After nearly 40 years, the parent company to the International truck brand is getting its classic name back.
The International story began well over a century ago, when the merger of McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and Deering Harvester Company formed International Harvester Company in Chicago. The legacy of that company created icons across multiple industries, including a two-decade foray into SUV production with the original Scout and Scout II. When the company fell on hard times in the late 1970s and early ’80s, International Harvester (IH) reemerged as Navistar International Corporation in 1986. It’s marketed its truck and engine divisions under that name ever since — until now. As of this week, current Navistar parent company VW Group (which took over the Lisle, Illinois-based company in 2021), announced it would rebrand Navistar to International Motors, effective October 1.
The move is part of a broader effort to build out the International brand’s prominence not just in commercial trucks, but across supporting disciplines that will reinvigorate the brand with a buzzworthy “full solutions portfolio”.
“After more than 120 years, we are choosing to return to our roots as International,” chief strategy and transformation officer Tobias Glitterstam said in the company’s official statement. “Our new name and look complement the strategic changes we are making to offer enhanced customer experiences.” The wider portfolio, as such, will revamp operations across parts, maintenance, financing, connectivity and charging, with the last point being a clear nod to its efforts to develop and market electric trucks and school buses.
On the powertrain front, International Motors launched the S13 powertrain lineup in 2022 as an evolution of the then-five-year-old A26 inline-six engine that replaced the maligned MaxxForce 13 series. While this announcement focuses more on digital tools, like rolling the OnCommand Connection and International 360 systems into a new “My International” interface, this rebrand may help build more recognition about a new Class 8 truck to replace the LT.
While Volkswagen Group also owns the Scout name that adorned International Harvester’s iconic SUV, it will not come to fruition under the rebranded International Motors. Instead, VW spun off the Scout SUV and truck under another entity called Scout Motors, which is set to reveal its all-electric reimagining of the classic Scout on October 24 (more on that below).
