2012 Scion xD and Test Drive Car Review
If you like the Scion xA, get one now - their latest 2007 will keep the new line.
For years, the Japanese and the Europeans have benefited from a range of smaller cars than the standard American popular subcompact Toyota series are being modified, and finally shipped to the United States, and the first fruits are Scion xA, xB and tC These vehicles, devoid of bland Toyotas American style, are of regular size for Japan, and small for the United States.
The bottom of the range is the Scion xA, a traditional sedan with more than a resemblance to the Mini Powered by a gutsy little engine 1 of 5 liters, the xA is unusual in many ways, including when Toyota does and does not cut corner gas mileage is 32 city, 38 highway either automatic or five-speed stick, nothing to sneeze at, but not better than the much larger, more powerful, and even price Toyota Corolla and Corolla but xA share little in common, other than their parents where the Corolla coats while velvet and isolates you from mechanical sensation, xA sharing the road, the motor and gear with you for a more tactile, non appliancey sensation.
The xA uses small footprint well, but you can t get around the fact that it has a very small footprint Although terribly practical for parking and storage - you can use half your garage for bicycles, lawn mowers and toys, and park in the other half depending on the size of your garage, the size also means that there's not much space for cargo is great, so the free space is enough good and the hold is fine size, but legroom is tight, and hold is small rear seats do fold so you can make a good amount of things, but no more than two people taller people - particularly wide people - may find uncomfortable seats, and side of the car too handy While some like the feel of a small car, others can find the xA be a little too small Legro om is not bad for the front or rear passenger - but for both to have legroom can be difficult both on the lighter side, the fornt seats Relatively high set on the floor, so to room for feet below.
Despite the small size, the Scion xA is apparently quite safe - 4 out of 5 star rating collecting all government crash test optional side airbags, and antilock brakes - electronically balanced on four wheels - are standard.
The interior is inexpensive but not cheap The dashboard is a mass of textured black plastic, but the seats look good, with a solid tissue, side bolsters and adjustable headrests; keying seems unfortunately quite expensive and not a na dust The door panels are designed to look like leather, they're plastic The trim is plastic chrome color, emulates brushed aluminum for a modern silver and black look that focuses on gauges Four large round vents are quietly air in the cabin, even with the fan speed These winds are easy to redirect, and don t air leakage in other directions - but they can t be closed individually.
The xA as echo before it, has a dashboard located above the dashboard, which is handy for Toyota because they do not need to have two versions, one for left the drivers and one for the right-conductors, but less convenient for homeowners gauges are quite small but clear, with the speedometer is in black and white and the tachometer is white on black; the fuel gauge is on the lower half of the speedometer, and that's for gauges You know when the engine is cold blue light, and when it is hot with an oil pressure and red tension are indicated by the warning lights if the problem backlighting is well made, perfectly smooth, with a slight yellow tint to preserve night vision and highten visiiblity in all types of light except for this is the stereo, which has its own adjustable backlighting user at least in our test car You can even set to cycle through the different colors.
The stereo looks like a unit after sales, and in fact, it has both the name and Scion Pioneer on it There are no functions that require the stereo head unit Scion be there, so you can easily swap out its best is that one might expect, another example of Toyota being selective about where to spend money another example, by the way, is actually put a real lock on the passenger door, which seems out of fashion; and having folding mirrors The stereo is in the upper central part of the dashboard, where it is easy to see and use Unfortunately, its user interface is not particularly well adapted; everything must be done with buttons, and no layout is not particularly intuitive The power button is just right of the center unit, not where most people seek - and lettering of the power button mode of choice is silver on silver.
Below are a c option buttons, rear defroster, hazard lights and vent recirculation; as these are the three large buttons air conditioning, temperature, fan speed and selection Bleed the large buttons can be set easily even with gloves.
Under the climate control is a rather nice covered compartment, unusual, because the inside is still on, and the cover is tinted brown rather than solid for a rather pleasant effect is also an ashtray and extra compartment in the center stack which makes the lack of a covered center console.
Between the seats is the shift, a pair of primitive cup holders, and a pair of short storage arrays that complement the map pockets on each front door, the minibins under glove compartments, and the box gloves itself - which won t hold much more than the usual documentation.
It is good that Toyota sells Scions as a separate line, because the feeling is really different from the Corolla, Camry, and in particular, the Avalon, and it is good to never confuse US customers.
The ride and handling are very different from the Corolla, with road feel much more busy, more round closes with a much better and agile handling feel is not the sports car, but it does need to be pushed many laps around bright, and small size works to his advantage There is a body roll, but not too much, and some torque steer as well, which could be reduced by using better tires, we were pleasantly surprised by the lack of sound effects around corners strong suspension is firm but not unforgiving, capable of dealing well with road imperfections without losing tension or shock the driver.
The Scion xA feels and looks solid, more in some respects, than the previous generation Corolla Although small, it doesn t feel light or thin You have to be thrown around the light weight means that the little engine does not have to work too hard for rapid acceleration He loves to be revved high; any sound of acceleration that most commentators call unrefined on American cars, much like to hear their engine, and it is not intrusive in normal driving notes changes when you near redline, so you can lead to the ear rather than the eye, using the tachometer just to get used to the engine warning sounds.
The five-speed stickshift- the best way to control a Scion because it maximizes power - easy to use, with a smooth clutch that makes it easy to switch from an automatic You won miss even stops and ; Scion makes it easy to manipulate both the clutch and the gear ratios of staff are in place to do sprints pass quickly, but the engine is mounted in fairly high rpm at highway speeds - over 3000 rounds per minute at 65 mph; it means that you have a good power on the road, but his little noisy engine Scion is a city car that Avalon Style highway cruiser, but it can handle 65 well and feels steady 0-60 cut in less than ten seconds the stick, and under eleven with the four-speed automatic.
The EPA says you don t lose any gas mileage with the car, but the car doesn t feel as quick or fun with it sprints aren t too slow, but in ordinary driving, the stick provides much more pep his credit, automatic downshifts quickly to provide energy, and feels good in the street it does not seem to hurt highway speeds of 60, or if you want to get-up-and-go sudden - and leaves the stroke of the engine for a moment before collecting, downshift, and seizing.
With 108 horsepower and 105 lb-ft of torque, the little engine is well balanced Air conditioning is powerful enough for the car, but doesn t seem much tax the engine - or change its output power.
As a mainly Japanese car selling as well on the European market, the Scion xA comes with turn signals mounted on the foreign style wings - not those that rise above the wings that the elderly are more likely to remember, but those on the sides, the Saab these provide a clear warning of your intentions, if you are one of those who actually uses turn signals correctly - as a warning rather than showing a done headlights are exceptionally bright visibility well target is very good, with the usual minor exception of the hindquarter where the headrest of the rear seat can get in the way, and the rear pillar has a window cut into it.
The Scion xA is not cheap, at 12900, but is rather a car pleasant and economic standard features ABS electronics include four-wheel drive, a first aid kit, intermittent wipers, rear wiper, 160-watt stereo Pioneer with six speakers, air conditioning, tilt steering wheel, tachometer, power locks and windows, and rear defroster Our test car rang in at 14938, through good and some options overpriced - changer six CD 395, rear spoiler 385, fog lights 58, alloy wheels 665 and carpeted floor and cargo mats 120 the price of the car is much more reasonable than the option price guarantee is standard for time, three years - 36,000 miles bumper to bumper, 5 years - 50,000 miles for the powertrain and five years for rust.
We liked the Scion xA - we really did, though loved us even more with cruise control gauges were used mounted in the center, after-sales stereo appearance and size quickly enough The xA is not for everyone, but - it's small, no doubt, and some people find it cramped and say it feels in danger, even if the federal crash tests say it is not Sometimes small size of a bonus; sometimes you want a little more space, but they pack a lot of good things in this small package.
Scion xA car reviews, scion.