inside the scout motors design story ep 114 This week we catch up with the chief exterior designer for Scout Motors, Taylor Langhals, who explains how Scout took a 1960s and '70s icon and made it cooler than ever for modern buyers. Host Greg Migliore interviews Langhals at the Scout Innovation Center in suburban Detroit, where they discuss the look and features of the Terra pickup truck and Traveler SUV. In this week's gear test, Mike Schlee reviews Fanatec sim racing gear. In the AutoGuide Garage, Greg test drives Ford F-150 Lobo, and Mike gets behind the wheel of the Audi Q3. We close things out with the mailbag, where we try to make sense of Corvette's electric future. Listen to The AutoGuide Show on your favorite platform: Spotify Apple iHeartRadio 2026 Hyundai Tucson Hybrid: All the Details SHOW NOTES 00:08 - Introduction: The host introduces the episode's lineup, including a design discussion about Scout Motors, a gear test of sim racing equipment, and test drives of the Ford F-150 Lobo and Audi Q3. 01:30 - Scout Motors Design: Taylor Langhals, Chief Exterior Designer for Scout Motors, discusses the design mission for the new Terra truck and Traveler SUV. He explains how they balanced 1960s heritage with modern aesthetics, highlighting features like the "equator line" and recognizable silhouettes. 08:42 - Differences Between Terra and Traveler: The designer details the specific design choices that distinguish the Terra truck, such as its 5.5-foot bed and unique shoulder surfacing inspired by the Scout 80, from the Traveler SUV. 09:52 - Functional Design and Customization: A look at how the vehicles are built for authentic function, featuring body-on-frame construction and designs meant to encourage user modification and upfitting. 12:10 - Gear Test: Sim Racing: Mike Schlee reviews the Fanatec Gran Turismo DD Pro racing wheel and pedals. He discusses the benefits of direct-drive systems over entry-level gear and how the setup improves the realism of games like Gran Turismo 7. 17:26 - AutoGuide Garage: Audi Q3: A review of the third-generation Audi Q3 after a test drive in California. Key updates include a more powerful 2.0L engine, a new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, and a premium interior featuring Audi's largest single piece of wood. 23:32 - AutoGuide Garage: Ford F-150 Lobo: The host reviews the F-150 Lobo, a street-truck-style package for the STX trim. It features a 5.0L V8 engine, a lowered suspension, and 22-inch black wheels, though it lacks some interior comforts like seat heaters. 30:04 - Mailbag: Corvette's Future: The team discusses rumors that Chevrolet may rebrand the E-Ray as the Grand Sport or introduce a "Grand Sport X" hybrid trim to better align with traditional Corvette buyers. FULL TRANSCRIPT The following is a transcript of the video: Greg Migliore: Welcome back to the Auto Guide Show presented by eBay Motors. I'm Greg Migliore, and this week we catch up with the chief exterior designer for Scout Motors. His name is Taylor Langhals, and he explains how Scout took a 1960s icon and made it cooler than ever for modern buyers. In this week's gear test, Mike reviews some Fanatec sim racing gear. If you're a gamer who's into racing, you definitely want to stick around for that. In the Auto Guide garage, I test drive the Ford F-150 Lobo, and Mike gets behind the wheel of the Audi Q3. We close things out with the mailbag, where we try to make sense of Corvette's electric future. But first, a word from eBay. Voiceover: eBay has reinvented vehicle buying. From click to curb, everything's covered. With their new Secure Purchase, eBay isn't just where you find your car; it's where you buy it, start to finish. Title, financing, registration, delivery-it's all built-in. And eligible vehicle purchases are backed by up to $100,000 in protection. This is what modern car buying looks like. Get your next ride on eBay. eBay: things people love. Secure Purchase is powered by Caramel Dealer Services LLC, an eBay subsidiary. Greg Migliore: We're here with Taylor Langhals. He's the chief exterior designer for Scout's new vehicles. This is the Terra and the Traveler. Thanks for being here, Taylor. Taylor Langhals: Yeah, of course. Yeah, pleasure. Greg Migliore: So, it's a little loud. This is sort of one of Scout's first press conferences here in Michigan. Everybody's super excited to see the vehicles. We've got the old one behind us here. This is super sweet. The new ones sort of blend some of that heritage of the old ones but with a much more modern, almost sleeker styling. Taylor, why don't you start us off? Tell us what's the design mission for these new vehicles. Taylor Langhals: Yeah, I mean, I think you captured it really well with kind of the mix of old and new. Но for us, you know, we have a really powerful and beautiful heritage to pull from. There was definitely like a key aesthetic that the original Scout vehicles had, but there was also a very rich community that kept it alive over all these years. So, a couple of things stood out to us. When I think back to all the Scouts that I've seen throughout my life, there were a couple of things I noticed. First and foremost, they were a blank canvas for people to work from. People modified them. They made them their own; it was an extension of their personalities, really. Но in doing so, they were all still very uniquely Scout, which I thought was very interesting. Even with the modifications people did to them, at a glance, you still knew it was a Scout vehicle going down the road. So, I think that was crucial to us going forward. For us, when we start designing, it really starts in a side view. It's creating this beautiful silhouette that is recognizable, and the old Scout that's directly behind us here does that in a pretty unique way. The cabin is set back on the wheels. It has what we call a very long dash-to-axle. So, it's the distance between the windshield and the front wheel. And that gives it like a really powerful stance but a very cool silhouette. So, that's where we drew the inspiration from when we started designing the Traveler-was those key features from the original Scout 2. As we worked our way around the car, we found a lot of unique features that we wanted to pull from and incorporate into our DNA. As you can see on the original one, there was this really unique side marker that was on the front and the back of the vehicle. So, we took that opportunity to modernize it into something we call the "equator line". You'll see on the new Traveler and Terra, we have a really cool light that's placed in the same location. You could draw a very clean line between the surfaces, and that tracks all the way around the car. It's where the headlights come and go through the fender and again on the taillights. Something we call the equator line. It's where the visual weight of the car is, and everything hangs off of it in a very beautiful way. We could go around a million different details that have drawn inspiration from the original car, but we've put a lot of time and thought into every single aspect of how it is now. Greg Migliore: So, I'm curious: some brands have gone totally retro, like the Dodge Challenger, for example. If you look at the new Scouts, they look like an old Scout, but they're not carbon copies. Why do that? Taylor Langhals: Yeah, I mean, as we said, the original cars had this very recognizable aesthetic. We don't want to copy what they did before, but we want to interpret it and bring it into today's market, into the future, into something that we can continue to build on as we go forward. If we just did a retro statement, where do you go from there? So, we had to create something that was Scout Motors, that was inspired by the past, but it gave us room to play as we go forward. I think we did that in a pretty successful way. Greg Migliore: Very cool. Tell me maybe two or three of your favorite features from the interior, some Easter eggs, too. Taylor Langhals: Yeah, so as we talked about, there's the equator line that wraps around the car, but then I think a really key element of any car design is the face-it's a personality, right? So for us, we spent a lot of time on the face of the new Scout vehicles. You'll notice that the Scout script, for example, is offset to the right. It's our signature on the art piece; it's not centered. The original cars had "International" on the driver's side. We took that as inspiration to rebrand in our new way with our Scout script, which is a beautifully designed iteration of the original Scout logo. Then we have something that we call "ghost lighting," which is this nice ambient light that traces around that shape and really just celebrates the shape. The original cars had that-they had this very unique kind of pill shape on the front end. We wanted to do that in a more modern way so that at night, if one's coming at you, you'll see this nice glow of the shape versus high-powered headlights where you can't tell what the vehicle is. This will give you an instantly recognizable shape, daytime and night. So, I think it's a pretty cool feature. Greg Migliore: You're listening to the Auto Guide Show presented by eBay Motors. We'll be right back with more from Taylor from Scout Motors. Voiceover: eBay has reinvented vehicle buying. From click to curb, everything's covered. It's all thanks to their new Secure Purchase. Ever try to buy a car and end up in a parking lot with a stranger and some blind trust? Or spend half the day at a dealership talking to pushy salespeople and signing paperwork? Or maybe worst of all, wait for hours at the DMV just to transfer the title? That era is over. For years, eBay has been the go-to for gearheads, collectors, and DIYers. 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If you still owe on your car, the financing payoff is fully integrated, so you're not chasing paperwork or waiting on checks to clear. And with Secure Purchase, you get paid fast. You're not going to be stuck chasing no-shows or answering the fifth "still available" message. This is what modern car buying looks like. Skip the DMV. Skip the sketchy meetups. Buy it on eBay. eBay: things people love. Secure Purchase is powered by Caramel Dealer Services LLC, an eBay subsidiary. Greg Migliore: Taylor, can you tell me a little bit about any differences between the SUV and the truck beyond the obvious ones-any design differences? How did that shake out? Taylor Langhals: Yeah, so obviously, the Terra and the Traveler share a very similar front end. There're subtle differences in the hood and the bumpers, but as you work your way down the Terra, for example, we have this nice 5.5-foot bed. Again, drawing inspiration from the past, the Scout 80 was this very beautiful pure form; it had a very clean shoulder line, a nice barreled body side. But in the back of it, it had a really subtle flick of the surfacing that was in the shoulder. You'll see that exact flick in the bed of the Terra truck. So, it was a nice tie to another part of the past that we wanted to bring into the Terra. In the back, the rear ends of the vehicles are complementary, but they're not exactly the same. Celebrating the lighting and the shape is done in two different ways between the Terra and the Traveler. Но they both have a very clean rear mass graphic that celebrates the brand. Greg Migliore: Can you talk about how the design supports the function of the vehicle? Taylor Langhals: Yeah, so as I mentioned early on, the original vehicles were heavily modified. I think that is some of the magic of the Scout brand and something we want to embrace. So, you'll see in our Terra and our Traveler, we're taking this as an opportunity to test different accessories. We want to see people modifying them; we want to see them upfit; we want to see them as an extension of whoever is buying them's personality. So, we're starting to look at some different options of accessories that we see people could benefit from. Our goal is, when the vehicle launches, to have a plethora of things that people can choose from and then have their vehicle outfit exactly how they want it. Greg Migliore: What haven't I asked you? Would you like to tell me about the design of these new Scouts? Taylor Langhals: Ooh, that's a good one. Greg Migliore: Free question. Taylor Langhals: Yeah. I would say the thing that we're most proud of, and what sets us apart right now, is: one, the technology; two, the design; but three, it's still a very authentic vehicle. They are body-on-frame trucks through and through. They're functional. They have pull door handles. There's no fuss, no extra ornamentation. They are built for function and they are built for purpose. I think that that's going to be a powerful thing in this segment. Greg Migliore: All right. I cannot wait to drive. This is going to be a very fun brand to watch in the coming years. Taylor Langhals: Yeah, appreciate it. Greg Migliore: You're listening to the Auto Guide Show presented by eBay Motors. Voiceover: eBay has reinvented vehicle buying. From click to curb, everything's covered. With their new Secure Purchase, eBay isn't just where you find your car; it's where you buy it, start to finish. Title, financing, registration, delivery-it's all built-in. And eligible vehicle purchases are backed by up to $100,000 in protection. This is what modern car buying looks like. Get your next ride on eBay. eBay: things people love. Secure Purchase is powered by Caramel Dealer Services LLC, an eBay subsidiary. Greg Migliore: Okay, Mike Schlee joins me now to talk about his latest gear test. This is Fanatec gear for some sim racing. If you're a big fan of racing and gaming, this is definitely something you're going to want to hear more about. So, what have you been doing with this, Mike? Playing games on company time? Mike Schlee: I wish! That's my goal-to review games on the side on company time. Car games, of course. But yeah, I've been doing racing games forever. Anyone who follows the site will see all of my throwback video game reviews and my growing up with the Gran Turismo series. We talked about Gran Turismo 7. So, I got into-I actually had a wheel for Gran Turismo 1, I think, for PlayStation 1, and it was terrible. There wasn't even analog back then. So, the pedals were basically buttons, and so was the wheel. Но as the years went on, I ended up getting more advanced ones for Gran Turismo 5 and 6. When those ones finally wore out, I decided to make the plunge and buy the Fanatec Gran Turismo DD Pro. This wheel is anywhere from two to three times the price of, say, a Thrustmaster or Logitech entry-level. And the reason being is direct drive. That means it's not a bunch of pulleys and wires; it's more like a real steering setup in a vehicle. And it feels that way. I heard about it, and when you first start using it, you think this doesn't feel a ton different. Но as you play more and more and you feel the expansion joints on the road in the races you're doing-especially if you're using something that has some pretty real feel, like I am in Gran Turismo-but I know a lot of people use the same setup for Assetto Corsa or iRacing-it really does make a difference. Then the pedals, too. I've upgraded my pedals from the CSL 1s to CSL 2s with a load cell brake, and it just gives such a more real feel. Again, I switched to it, and over time I realized how much better it was. Recently, I actually used just-I won't say the competitor, but a regular setup-and I was like, "Oh wow, this feels so artificial now". I mean, it's not completely replicating, but it's kind of cool. Again, I'll reference Gran Turismo: how the cars are programmed different. Some of the race cars have very light, precise steering, and some of the road cars have way too heavy steering, and that's sort of how it is in real life. It's as close as you can get. I don't even have the full version. I have, like I said, the DD Pro, which comes with a 5 Newton-meter direct drive force feedback. I've upgraded to the 8, but you can get bigger systems with 12 to give you even more wrist-breaking force. Anyone that's really serious into sim driving, or even just part-time like I am, this system is worth the investment if you're going to play enough. I mean, we're talking thousands of dollars upfront, but if you use it daily for years, it pays for itself early. Greg Migliore: Sounds fun. What way to get into this would you suggest? Would you say go full-on with all the elements of it? Or maybe ease into it? I mean, if you're maybe more like a casual gamer, how do you approach stuff like this? Mike Schlee: That's sort of how I got into it. I always was interested, but the problem is there are bases and there are wheels, and there are a ton of wheels. You can get some crazy expensive wheels-full-out replicas of GT3 cars or replicas of F1 car wheels, like just a double grip, almost like a-what do you call it?-the yoke. Those can get real expensive, but it's to give you the better feel. The reason I got into it was Gran Turismo released the Gran Turismo DD Pro set, which gave me the wheel, the base, and the pedals all for-at the time-about $1,400. So, somewhat reasonable for what you got. They've upgraded it since; there's actually a bigger version. Но that set, I can still-as I said, I've already upgraded the pedals. I could get different wheels; I could get a different base to put with the wheel. The reason I use this specific steering wheel is it's designed for the game. Но there are people out there who are probably into the five digits of wheels and bases and pedals that they interchange. The ones who are super serious sim racers have, like, "This is my GT3 racing set," "This is my open-wheel set". So, you can go as crazy as your budget allows, but you could get a full kit with the proper direct drive for somewhere between $1,000 and $1,500. Greg Migliore: So, it's a bit of an investment, but obviously it really takes the gaming experience to another level. Mike Schlee: Correct. And you can upgrade as you go. Like I said, I got the kit and I spent the money to get the upgraded pedals. The next thing is I want to get the shifter. Fanatec has a specific shifter, which is kind of cool because it's a dual. It can either be an H-pattern, so you can have like a traditional manual to use with my clutch pedal, or you can put it into a mode where it's just like a sequential and just pops up and down. I have wheel-mounted shifters as well. Но it's kind of cool-with a game that has old cars that have manuals, I could drive manual just for fun. Or if I get in some of the older race cars that had sequentials, I could do that as well. Greg Migliore: All right, we're going to go inside the Auto Guide garage now where Mike has been driving the Audi Q3 out in California, getting some beautiful weather out there, and I have been driving the Ford F-150 Lobo in some not-so-beautiful weather here on the wet and rainy spring streets of Michigan. Mike, since you win the weather game, let's go with you first. How is the Q3? Mike Schlee: So, yes, I was in San Luis Obispo-which I think I pronounced that right-in the central coast of California. I'd never actually heard of it. It's in a place called SLO County, S-L-O. And it is beautiful: nice rolling hills all around it. It's sort of like a college town-all low-rise buildings, lots of thrift shops, just a quaint downtown. It's quite the nice place. And we were there to drive the all-new generation of the Audi Q3. This is the third gen, and they've taken the vehicle and, I'd say, it's evolutionary, but they've improved almost everything, which is a lot to say, but it kind of is true. The styling I like. It's representative of the other new models the brand's introduced, like the A5, the Q5, and the A6. It got the big Audi grill-they always have big, huge grills up front-but I like sort of the way the lights are integrated in the back. Inside, it's a little bit larger; it's a little bit larger in every dimension outside-length and height. Not a great deal; we're talking a couple of inches here and there. Big news under the hood: the 2-liter engine is up on power. It's now making about 255 horsepower. I should know that number off by heart, but I'm pretty certain that's what it is. Но the bigger news is the 8-speed automatic transmission is gone, and it's been replaced by a 7-speed dual-clutch. Whereas a lot of manufacturers are going away from dual-clutches into automatics, Audi's decided to go back. And the reason being is they wanted to give it a little more response and performance. With this new combination, it's taken over one and a half seconds off the 0-60 time, which is quite a bit, because you're only talking like a 27-horsepower increase-but a lot of it has to do with the transmission. So, it's like 5.5 seconds. This isn't designed to be a performance vehicle, though, and they made that clear in the event and the presentation. It's meant to be a luxury little SUV with a sporty edge. It's designed power-, price-, and content-wise to fit between, say, the BMW X1 28i xDrive and the M35i xDrive, or the Mercedes-Benz GLA 250 and the 35 AMG. That's because Audi's going with a single-vehicle solution here. There's no more 40, 45, and the numbers they used to use; that stuff's all dead. This is just a single all-wheel-drive version. Quickly, how does it drive? It drives really well. No adaptive suspension whatsoever; it's just a solid, fixed suspension, but it really does split sport and comfort well. It's not the poshest and it's not the best handler, but it does both pretty well. We were ripping through the roads, and it remained flat enough and didn't make me or my co-driver nauseous or queasy, yet when you hit bumps, it doesn't jar the cabin either. Kudos there. The dual-clutch is actually one of the smoothest I've ever driven. It really lacks a lot of that low-speed jerkiness and hesitation that plagues that kind of transmission. I think that's because Audi's tuned it to really eliminate that. The downside is, unless you're in full launch control, you never get that 5.5-second 0-60 mph. There's a delay from when you hit the accelerator to when the transmission and engine decide, "Okay, let's get under power smoothly," as opposed to a lot of dual-clutches where you feel the jerkiness of it engage. Но as I said, when you're slowing down or you're just driving at low speeds, there's none of this on-off that you feel. Inside, technology's great. It's got the dual-screen setup. It's got the largest single piece of wood Audi's ever put in a vehicle, which is kind of funny because it's their tiny little SUV, but it just looks and feels premium inside and out. There's nothing about it that stands out as, like, "This defines the class". The X1 is funky, and the GLA had that sort of crazy-well, when it first came out-this crazy upscale interior. Но this just does everything really well. It's sort of what they were aiming for-the one solution for everything. I think it'll be a real contender in the segment. I think they've improved everywhere, including fuel economy, even though it's got more performance. Yeah, it was well-executed, and they didn't try to reinvent the segment or the car; they just tried to make it better. Greg Migliore: I think this is actually a really refreshing take on the segment: just keep it very simple. It comes with the S-line trim. There're not all these different alphanumeric configurations where you're trying to figure out if it's different or if the motor's different, so I think it's very refreshing. I like how it looks, too, looking at these pictures. I can't wait to drive it. I'll be interested to sit in the car and see, feel, and touch all the different elements, because I've always really liked Audi interiors. I think they're simple; I think they're clean. I think they're kind of a nice middle ground. Pure luxury is Mercedes-I think Mercedes is often like "old money". Но BMWs also, at times, they've been a little too angular and a little over-the-top. So, we'll see. I can't wait to drive it. Sorry, my dog's making her weekly appearance. Но yeah, I really think it being compared against the GLA and the X1 would be fantastic. The question is which trim, because they are splitting the difference. They had a slide comparing where you could load up the lower models and pricing is pretty similar, or you can take the entry-level upper models and basically just undercut them but have more equipment. So, yeah, something worth investigating in the future. Но overall, good job by them. Transition over here to the Ford F-150 Lobo. Vastly different segment and execution. The F-150 Lobo is basically a package that you could get on the STX trim in the Super Crew configuration. So, it's a big truck that looks pretty cool. The one I had was all black, which I think is a really nice treatment for the Lobo package, because it's lowered about 2 inches. It has 22-inch black wheels with kind of thin spokes. It has like a 12-piece body kit that makes it look even a little bit lower than you might expect from an F-150. And that's about it. If anything, I think it's maybe a bit of a lighter touch than what you might see with the Maverick Lobo, which, to me, feels a little more special, a little more fully formed. Но the reason being, and that's not a knock on the F-150 Lobo, I think it's just there're so many different flavors of F-150 that this just does a nice job of bringing a lot of those cool features together. Whereas the Maverick, you know, there're not that many different trims, so they do the Lobo and they can almost credibly call it a special model, whereas this is a little bit more of a variant. Но I liked it. It allows you to get into the 5-liter V8, which I have not driven in a while, and that is a heck of a good engine. It's a good time; it sounds good. You get that low-end torque which is very desirable in a naturally aspirated V8. 400 horsepower, 410 pound-feet of torque. Mine was around $62,000-right in that range. Again, I think it's a pretty good deal in that sense. It reminds me a little bit of the RSTs on the Chevy side of the rivalry where you can get into that V8 and it's like-you're not getting everything, but you're getting a lot of the things you want as an enthusiast. I would say the tradeoff is the interior is pretty basic. You're talking cloth seats, no seat heaters, no steering wheel heaters-a lot of the things that for 62 grand, you just kind of think are going to be in whatever vehicle you're in. Mike Schlee: Wow. Greg Migliore: Yeah. And it was cold and rainy this morning. As you can see-for those of you watching on YouTube-I'm just wearing a Patagonia vest and kind of a light golf shirt, so it was a little colder than I thought. Но I drove it here for this week's episode, and I think this is the right sort of package for the enthusiast truck buyer who wants something that's a little bit different. In Michigan, F-150s are so ubiquitous that if you can do something a little bit different, it's nice. Again, it sounds good with a quad exhaust, 5-liter V8. What's not to like, right? 10-speed automatic, smooth-shifting transmission. And yeah, maybe I'll go haul some logs or move some lumber. Have you been in an F-150 lately, Mike? Mike Schlee: Oh, yeah. Not a Lobo, obviously. Но I'm usually in the high-end ones, so it'd be interesting to try something like that. Does it have an upgraded exhaust at all? Greg Migliore: Yeah, dual exhausts are on there, so you get that just sort of as part of the Lobo package. They bring that in, which sounds pretty good. Mike Schlee: So, basically, it's a modern take on the old Harley-Davidson, because that's sort of what it was. It had the body kit, the exhaust, and the thin wheels, and it was on not a fully-loaded trim. It sounds like a good package. When you sell as many F-150s as Ford does, it's good to have all these different packages because it allows people to customize. I'm just curious if, in Mexico, it's the Lobo Lobo. I don't really know how that will work down there. Greg Migliore: Yeah, that's a good point. Speaking of the Lobo branding, though, I think it's a nice way to extend it. I could even see them doing something like this on the Explorer. That might be a little far afield, but right now it's on two trucks and I think that works well. I think they're going back to that like 1980s/1990s street truck vibe, which I think they credibly pull off. It's not like the original Lightning or anything, but they're going for it. It reminded me so much of the RST-which I guess I drove most recently in the Tahoe, but you can get that in a variety of Chevy trucks and SUVs. Big engine, a bunch of different things. Chevy's upgrades are actually more like brakes and chassis, whereas the Lobo is kind of something different, but it's a nice recipe. It also-somewhat unrelated but also related-Ram has made such a big deal about bringing back the Hemi, and then you drive Ford's 5-liter V8 and you're like, "Yeah, actually, they did need to bring back the Hemi". I don't really care what the Hurricane is, how much I actually maybe even like it more, how better it is for performance and efficiency-you get inside this Ford here and you're just like, "Yeah, 5-liter V8, no waiting, let's go". It's like, how could Ram not have an answer for that? So, it's funny how driving a competitor makes that make a little bit more sense. Mike Schlee: Yeah. No, the V8-and I don't want to make this sound wrong-but not in the performance truck, but sort of the image truck, makes sense with the exhaust because that's the point. So, yeah, no, it's good on them and it's something I want to try for sure down the road. Greg Migliore: All righty. So, that is the Auto Guide garage. We'll be right back to close things out with the mailbag. It's time to go inside the mailbag, where this week's question is: "What do you guys make of the rumor that Chevy is going to bring back the Grand Sport and offer a hybrid trim?" There was a rumor we had this week-it was in a number of our newsletters this week, if you subscribe, and we hope you do-that basically the E-Ray would go away and then the Grand Sport would offer a hybrid option. So, not really changing the products or the technology too much, just kind of rebranding it. What do you make of this, Mike? Mike Schlee: So, I have two main thoughts on this. The first one really would be: how is it executed? This could change everything, but if they are simply going to rebrand the Grand Sport because of the naming and what they're trying to do, I get it. People, for some reason-I won't say for some reason-people think the E-Ray may be a fully electric Corvette because of the "E". And as we all know, EVs and electric vehicles have been so politicized that there're probably a lot of consumers who like Corvettes who'd be like, "I'm not going to touch the electric one," even though it's actually just a hybrid boost and probably the best road-going-well, this is the best road-going Corvette model, period. So, giving it a different name like Grand Sport makes sense; you'll get them to buy it. Но on the flip side, Grand Sport was always basically a Z06 without the engine. Even the ones of the '90s-well, they're not the originals, but the ones of the '90s-they were ZR1s without the engine. That's always sort of been it: you don't have to pay for the exotic engine, but you get the cool brake and suspension bits and you get the stripes and all that. And the E-Ray isn't really that. So, if they're going to have a Grand Sport that is a Z06 minus the engine, and then you can also put the E-Ray drivetrain in if you want, okay, that makes sense. It's going to get pricey. Но if they're just renaming it, they're kind of caught, because you're going to have the people who maybe wanted the hybrid Corvette but wouldn't touch it with the name buy it, but then the people who want a Grand Sport probably aren't going to buy it because it's not a true Grand Sport. So, maybe a different name from their past, but I don't know what you would have gone with. They're already using Z06 and ZR1 and Grand Sport-I mean, that's sort of the big ones. They could dust off Zora. ZR2 used to be a Corvette name back in the day, but that's stolen by the trucks now. So, yeah, I mean, I get their thinking if it's a true Grand Sport and you just hybrid it as well, so it's like a baby ZR1 E-Ray, then I'm all for it. Но if it's just straight-up renaming it-I don't care about the names. It's not like I'm one of those people like, "Oh, you've killed the Grand Sport name". I just think-well, I don't know-I think the people who care about the names aren't the people buying Corvettes anyway. We're so close to things with what we do in our industry, we make a bigger deal out of probably what it really is. Greg Migliore: I like Corvettes. I like electric cars. I feel like I'm pretty read-in on this stuff, but honestly, I think even I at times just mentally thought E-Ray was all-electric. I mean, I know it's not, but I still would just go back, Google it, and you start to think to yourself, "Wait, did they say they were going to do an all-electric? Is this all-electric? Wait, what is this?" So, there is a little confusion. I actually happen to think it's a pretty good name. And if they do do an electric Corvette-which I think they should do, maybe not right now-that's probably what they should call it. Но rolling it into more of just like Grand Sport badging with "Grand Sport X" reportedly-meaning that it gets a front-mounted electric motor plus all-wheel drive-you're definitely soft-selling it in a way that maybe it actually aligns more with what the Corvette buyer is looking at. Because you're not being as upfront about the hybrid technology-but also, last time I checked, hybrid technology is amazing in racing and good for performance. Like, why wouldn't you want your Corvette to have a hybrid motor? To me, that's a good thing. When you tell me things like that, I'm like, "Does it have KERS? This is great. Can we do this?" Но maybe I'm not the Corvette buyer; I don't know. Mike Schlee: Yeah, I mean, Grand Sport X does make sense, but thinking of it now-just thinking names, not E-Ray-maybe you call it-okay, I got three name choices. My last one's my favorite, but you could just go Stingray, because that's what they called the C7 briefly. Но you've got the "Ray," so it could just be like, "Oh, that's the Stingray". People would be like, "Oh, that's the hybrid". Or, if you want to play off the "you get more power" so it sounds cooler, like the "Boost Ray," although I'm not sure if I'm sold on that one. Но why not call it the Corvette Le Mans? Because, like you said, it's got sort of that assist front motor; it can run on electric, fire the engine up independently, like the Le Mans prototypes are right now. They could brand it there, and you could even have like a cool paint package. So there you go, Chevy: call the E-Ray the Le Mans. Greg Migliore: You know, we've been workshopping this for a few minutes here, but right there-two outs, bottom of the ninth-walk it off. That's it right there. Love it. And that is all the time we have this week on the Auto Guide Show brought to you by eBay Motors. Thanks for listening. If you enjoy the show, please like, share, and subscribe. 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