Image: VWKjell Gruner revealed the move during a media roundtable in New York, and Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg headquarters later confirmed it to Automobilwoche. The report attributes the planned pause in launching additional electric models in the US to several factors, including the suspended $7,500 EV tax credit, US tariff policies and limited local production capacity.Volkswagen plans to bring new electric models to the US only with its future SSP platform toward the end of the decade, a company spokesperson said. One candidate is an electric version of the VW Atlas, the large SUV tailored to the US market, though reports about such a model have circulated for years. The Scalable Systems Platform (SSP) is designed as a highly flexible architecture for battery-electric vehicles across volume and premium segments, with Volkswagen outlining a total of eight SSP derivatives.Kjell Gruner also highlighted Volkswagen’s partnership with Rivian on a new software-defined vehicle (SDV) architecture during the media roundtable. Volkswagen plans to debut the SDV software in the ID. Every1, scheduled for 2027. However, the small electric car is unlikely to reach the US market due to weak demand for compact models, where only compact SUVs are considered viable. Based on the timeline and Gruner’s earlier comments, the upcoming ID. Polo—set to launch this year—also has no prospects in the US.Alongside marketing the ID.4, which is produced directly in the US, and the ID. Buzz, imported from Hanover, Germany, Volkswagen will initially focus on reviving the Scout brand in North America. Under this brand, Volkswagen plans to sell pickups and SUVs. While these models were originally intended to be fully electric, they are now expected to launch first with a range extender.After delays in planning, Volkswagen now expects to deliver the first Scout vehicles in 2028 instead of 2027. It remains unclear whether the models will feature software from Rivian. US CEO Kjell Gruner welcomed the partnership, saying: “This is exactly the technology we need. It’s not just about software but also about hardware. You need a computing architecture and software that work together seamlessly.”automobilwoche.de