Key Points
- The Chevrolet Silverado EV and VW Scout EV truck are upcoming releases in the electric truck market.
- The Silverado EV has an operational range of 450 miles and a towing capacity of up to 10,000 pounds.
- The VW Scout EV truck’s capabilities and specifications are still largely unknown.
- The Silverado EV is expected to be available for individual purchase in the summer of 2024, while the Scout EV truck is targeting a late 2025 release.
Which electric truck wins between the Chevrolet Silverado EV vs. VW Scout EV truck? The electric truck market is heating up, which has already been seen with the likes of the Ford F-150 Lightning, Hummer EV, and Rivian R1T.
Chevy has been a bit slower to launch its own flagship electric truck, but the Silverado EV looks to be a wonderful first entry to the market. Likewise, VW has been quick to embrace EVs but hasn’t really provided anything for more rugged use.
Both the Silverado EV and Scout EV truck are upcoming releases, so details are scant. That aside, let’s take a closer look at these two with what is known to see which comes out on top.
Chevrolet Silverado EV vs. VW Scout EV Truck: Side-by-Side Comparison
| Chevrolet Silverado EV | VW Scout EV Truck | |
|---|---|---|
| Operational Range | 450 miles | Rumored to be around 400 miles |
| Drivetrain | All-wheel drive and rear-wheel drive available on select trims | All-wheel drive |
| MSRP | $42,000 for the basic model | Estimated to start at $40,000 |
| Tow Capacity | Up to 10,000 pounds | Unknown |
| Horsepower | 510 horsepower (base WT trim) | Unknown |
| Battery Capacity | 215 kWh | Not available |
| Torque | 615 lb-ft (Silverado WT) | Not available |
| Charging Port | J1772 | J1772 |
The Chevy Silverado EV is already making the rounds to fleets and commercial customers. Chevrolet will be making the consumer-level models available for sale starting in the summer of 2024.
Chevrolet Silverado EV vs. VW Scout EV Truck: What’s the Difference?
With the harder specs out of the way, it’s time for a deeper dive into how exactly these trucks are compared directly. Both are relative newcomers to the electric truck market. As such, they both can invite comparisons to other comparable models that are already for sale.
Performance
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The Silverado EV is an excellent performer. The fleet variant is one of the best overall electric trucks available for work use. You get super smooth acceleration, aided by the 510 horsepower provided by the electric motors.
The vehicle itself is all-wheel drive. However, some of the consumer models are going to come with the option for rear-wheel drive. The basic work model of the Silverado EV comes with the ability to tow up to 10,000 pounds behind it.
Not much is known about the overall capabilities of the VW Scout EV truck. VW is targeting all-wheel drive for the primary drivetrain. Whether it has the sort of performance to be capable of towing remains to be seen.
However, given VW’s recent track record with EV performance, it should serve as a dependable daily driver with some capacity for off-roading. The EV itself was just recently announced so details are still very scant.
Range
The Silverado EV comes with an estimated range of 450 miles, which is excellent. Obviously, this goes down quite considerably when towing or hauling anything. However, as an unencumbered vehicle, you’re getting mileage that even Ford’s F-150 Lightning can’t boast.
The Silverado EV has a massive 210 kWh battery pack which resides in a cavity below the front passenger seat. It uses the same charging port as the Chevy Bolt, so you could feasibly use the same home charger if you want. The J1772 is a great universal standard and sees use with quite a few EVs.
It isn’t known exactly how large the battery is going to be for the VW Scout EV Truck. Speculation points to an estimated range of around 400 miles. This isn’t out of the ballpark for VW, as the recently announced ID.7 sedan is getting around 450 miles on a single charge.
The Scout EV truck will likely use the same J1772 port seen with other VW EVs. It provides an easy standard with plentiful infrastructure across the country. You could even potentially use the Rivian charging network popping up around the United States to charge both vehicles.
Expected Release Date
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While the Silverado EV is already making its way to fleet usage across the country, it isn’t available to consumers yet. The fleet version is shipping but comes with different specs than what you’d expect from the various trim levels available for non-professional use.
Consumer models of the Silverado EV are due very soon, however. If you’ve got one on preorder, Chevrolet has stated they will be available starting next summer.
The Scout EV Truck isn’t available for sale yet. Instead, it is likely that Volkswagen is targeting a late 2025 release for the 2026 production year. While this is a bit disappointing, VW is developing a whole new stateside manufacturing facility to solely produce Scout vehicles.
Later this year, or even at CES 2024, you could possibly expect to see a prototype that can be driven. EVs are still a burgeoning force in the automotive market, so manufacturers are taking their time to get things to market.
Pricing
The fleet version of the Silverado EV starts at $52,000. As you can imagine, there are variants of the work model with the 4WT shipping at $79,800.
The consumer models should be far more affordable, with the basic trim level coming in at around $42,000. Originally Chevrolet stated the price to be $39,000, but a price hike seems to have occurred at some point during development.
This isn’t a complete surprise, as Ford’s own F-150 Lightning fell victim to price hikes to factor in the rising cost of materials.
Volkswagen hasn’t given a hard price on the Scout EV Truck. However, members of the automotive media circuit have speculated it may be targeting a price range starting at around $40,000. The Scout imprint is intended to be lower cost than the more luxury Audi and Porsche branding.
Chevrolet Silverado EV vs. VW Scout EV Truck: 6 Must-Know Facts
- The Silverado EV is Chevrolet’s first all-electric truck.
- The Silverado EV is built for work and daily driving.
- The Silverado EV’s consumer trim levels cost far less than the Ford F-150 Lightning’s basic trim.
- The Scout EV Truck is VW’s first all-electric truck.
- The Scout EV Truck is targeting a 2025 release.
- The Scout EV Truck will qualify for the federal tax rebate.
Chevrolet Silverado EV vs. VW Scout EV Truck: Which One is Better? Which One Should You Choose?
This isn’t much of a shootout, as there are far more concrete details about one vehicle compared to the other. That said, the tip of the hat has to go to the Silverado EV. Chevy has really pulled out the stops to create a great first all-electric work truck.
It has a longer bed than the comparable Ford F-150 Lightning and a model with all the bells and whistles costs roughly the same as a basic Rivian R1T.
The Scout EV Truck could have great potential when it officially launches. Right now, the details themselves are too scant to really suggest purchasing one.
The Silverado EV will be available for individual purchase starting this summer, so that’s a great way to get into a reliable and high-performance electric truck.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Mike Mareen/Shutterstock.com.
