Lately I’ve been noticing more and more Toyota Scion xB’s on the road. They’re distinctive looking: short from front to back, boxy and snub-nosed. Officially characterized as five-door station wagons, they remind me of a London cab. We bought our Salsa red Scion to replace one of our two Honda Accords, an aging (1988) beat-up car that had reliably taken us on many road trips from Alaska through Mexico, to the East coast and back to California. We wanted a second vehicle that wasn’t a gas-guzzler, had room for our multiple dogs and cats plus groceries, and didn’t cost a fortune.
It took a while for me to get used to the Scion’s unusual looks, but now I’m hooked. It cost under $16,000, within our price range. Originally intended for the Japanese market, it has proven popular in the U.S. among drivers of all ages. If you check out the advertising for the Scion xB you’d think only kids want to buy them, but that’s deceptive; my husband is officially a senior and I’m not far behind. We bought our Scion in the fall of 2006 just before we moved my mother out of her California house and transported her to New Mexico, and packed it high with her stuff in two epic trips. It proved to be a very roomy and comfortable road car.
The Scion xB can tear up a hill with the greatest of ease, and even with a 1.5 liter engine it seems to have more “beans” than my old Accord. It’s downright zippy at low speeds. It looks small compared to other vehicles, but it’s amazingly spacious inside for both passengers and cargo. Like an SUV, it’s basically a truck with an extended roof. As a political animal, one feature that I really appreciate is having lots of room for my bumper stickers on the back.
A 4-speed automatic, our Scion gets about 34 mpg highway and 30 mpg city. I especially enjoy the convenience of the AM/FM/CD steering controller. The audio system in general is pretty awesome-clearly aimed at the youth market-and I haven’t mastered all the possibilities in that area as yet.
Our Scion is front wheel drive and automatic. We had a very snowy winter and an unusually wet spring, but except for a memorable period of deep snow followed by soupy mud when practically everybody in the neighborhood had to park their vehicles near the main road and walk in, we were able to drive it up our dirt road without getting stuck. It’s also easy for older people with orthopedic problems to get into. My 86 year-old mother loves that feature.
There are a few drawbacks about our Scion: it has a rather flimsy frame; the paint job is not optimal; the cup holders are a little too small, in my opinion; and there’s not enough room between the front seats for my dogs to get through. Since it’s light, it gets pushed around by strong winds. But to me, these are minor issues.
Add-ons are available for the Scion xB, like running lights and a spoiler. As minimalists, we stuck to just buying front and back mats. But its fixed price and the fact that you can personalize your Scion can only add to its attraction, especially for young drivers.
Until our purchase of the Scion, we’d been devoted Honda fans. Our other car is a 1997 Honda Accord. But judging from our experience with the Scion so far, Toyota looks like our new favorite.
The 2008 Scion xB looks quite different from our model. It’s more rounded, larger, and blends in easier with other vehicles on the road. But I much prefer the squared-off, unique looks of our 2006 Scion.
