Gov. Josh Stein and Charlotte officials said on Tuesday that Scout Motors — a startup electric vehicle maker backed by Volkswagen — will open its U.S. headquarters in east Charlotte.
Scout Motors is also building a 4,000-job manufacturing plant in Blythewood, S.C., north of Columbia. The Charlotte headquarters will be located on Commonwealth Avenue, at the Commonwealth project, a new mixed-use development by Crosland Southeast that's under construction. The Scout Motors headquarters is expected to bring more than 1,000 high-paying jobs.
It's one of the biggest economic development projects headed to Charlotte in recent years, and represents a new industry, auto manufacturing, that Charlotte has not traditionally been a hub for. Still, North Carolina has been expanding its footprint in the automaking business — also on Wednesday, Stein celebrated the grand opening of Toyota's $14 billion EV battery plant in Randolph County.
Scout Motors is a reboot of an automotive brand from the 1960s, originally produced by International Harvester. The company plans to make an SUV, the Terra, and a pickup truck, the Traveler. Production is expected to start in 2027 and the company has said it will price both models starting below $60,000.
“Charlotte is the ideal home for Scout Motors – a place as dynamic as our people and brand, where heritage and pride meet progress and innovation,” said Scott Keogh, CEO of Scout Motors. “With a thriving talent pool, world-class universities, and a deserved reputation as a launchpad for bold ideas, Charlotte offers the momentum we need to scale quickly and sustainably. We’ll build a headquarters that reflects our culture, empowers our teams, and connects us to a region that’s fast becoming a national hub for mobility and manufacturing.”
The jobs will have an average salary of about $173,000. The company will invest a total of $207 million into the site, with staffing starting in 2026 and building up over the next several years.
To help lure Scout Motors, the state approved incentives worth up to $46.5 million, to be paid out over a dozen years if the company hits hiring and investment goals.
Keogh also said the proximity to their factory in Blythewood made the Charlotte site attractive.
"We think we can get the talent. The second thing is all the things about livability, work-life balance, the schools, the education, great weather, and of course having this ecosystem where it's close to the factory also is critical. We're going to be able to go to the factory on a daily basis and have those back and forth, so that combination made Charlotte perfect," he said.
The Charlotte facilities will total 300,000 square feet. Speaking in Charlotte, Stein praised the company for its contribution to a manufacturing revival.
“Scout Motors is revitalizing an iconic American brand, creating high-quality jobs, and building the next great automotive company right here in the Carolinas,” said Stein. “Our business-friendly climate, our top-tier research universities and community colleges, our leadership in the clean energy economy, our quality of life, and above all, our people make companies want to call North Carolina home.”
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles said the project "is a major job creation milestone for the city and will serve as a catalyst for continued revitalization in a part of our city that’s seeing new life through infrastructure and development."
