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Scion xB Test Drive - What Did You Think?
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A few other things that would be nice to have: an armrest accessory (not one of those useless console/armrests which are usually too low), a height adjustable driver's seat, and an outside temperature gauge.
For me it's going to be a tough decision between the xA and xB.
I drove it last night; it looks much better in person than in the pictures, it has an amazing amount of room inside for such a small car, it handles like a tall go-kart, and the acceleration is decent (the first-second shift is w-i-d-e, but second through fourth are really close together, which keeps the engine in the power band).
I have a Sentra now (for economical commuting) and I was going to pick up a cheap used pickup truck for light hauling (furniture from IKEA, props for my wife's plays, gutters and molding, that sort of thing) -- but the xB can haul that sort of thing, gets better gas mileage than my Sentra, and is a lot more fun to drive.
So I'm sold. Anyone in the Southern California area want to buy a 2001 Sentra GXE 5-speed with 28,000 miles?
But this is a pretty cool box. Its coolness is its functionality. "A car is not a luxury item, it is a means of transportation". Exactly. The car is huge inside. And I mean HUGE. Lots of headroom, lots of air between you and windshield, and just enormous rear legroom. After I set up the front seat for myself I sat on the rear seat. Boy, I did spread my legs almost straight! I am 6ft height. Of course, shoulder and hip room is smaller than in your family sedan, and the trunk fits just one suitcase. But you can fold rear seats, or even (as they say) can take them completely off.
I am not particularly fond of central instrumentation position, but I liked xB arrangement with speedometer/tachometer moved closer to driver side. xA with main cluster exactly on top of central console is too funky for me. For the record, I like the theme of "airplane cockpit" like BMW 3-series or SAAB cars have. Relatively soft plastic and cloth adds warmth and feel of quality. Seating is upright but I like it this way, my spine says OK.
The 5-speed shifter is OK, but the real jewel is the clutch. Pedal travel is short, but clutch takes on softly and gently, which is very helpful with relatively weak 1.5-liter engine. The clutch on my 3.0-liter Camry feels kinda "sporty" after xB: it is either engaged or not, and it takes special attention to make smooth gear changes. On xB it happens itself, without any hassle.
Engine is a sore story. Let's look on the fuel economy of the other, bigger cars. Focus: 2L, 30/36; P5: 2L, 31/36; Matrix: 1.8L, 30/35; Civic: 1.7L, 32/37. Now get this, xB: 1.5L, 30/34. Toyota, what this is about? I can understand that highway mileage is not exceptional because of boxy, high-profile shape. The proof of this is xA mileage, which manages to get 38mpg on a highway. But 30mpg in the city driving? What is the point of the smallish engine then? Put in 1ZZ-FE from Corolla/Matrix, and xB will make a decent car. I doubt that physical dimensions of 1.8 engine are that much bigger so it cannot fit xB engine bay. Anyway, a car with only 2400 lb weight and this smallish engine should have at least 35/40. Honda somehow managed to get 44 and even 46 on previous generation Civic.
The xB drives OK. I did not notice anything special about it, good or bad. Nice small responsive car. Inside it feels a little bit like in a minivan, but only when the car stands still. In motion is is predictable and firm. Yep, much firmer than my Camry. I did not know that that backroad had so many potholes... What do you want, 185/60R15 and firm suspention.
Anyway, I really liked the xB. Though xA styled more sophisticated, xB just talk business. Clean lines and lots of space inside. Here is your VW Bug of XXI century: maybe it is ugly, but it is very practical.
It was an auto, loaded to the gills with options bringing the price to over $19k
I personally really really liked the car except for the fact it has so little useable space under its hatch (I wouldn't doubt its less than my 86 civic hatch)
but the power was good (though I would like to drive one on the highway wit ha few more miles on it this one only had 26 on it and I didn't want to totally tear it up)
I am really torn on the car I really like it other than the lack of cargo space with passengers. I really wish Toyota would have shoe horned a corolla engine into the car too plus the white speedometer really grates on my nerves.
I may be edging out of the target market though at 28 yrs old I am beginning to think the vehicle looks a little too "toy" like.
I liked it better than most of the cars I've test driven the past 2 years though, and as an added bonus they had already installed a cruise control (although it was the most backwards one I've ever used)
Side note, Fred Anderson Toyota had their xB demo given to the owner's daughter to drive all week, how stupid, so went to Toyota of Durham to drive.
The xA had a harsh ride, but otherwise ok.
The xB was amazing. It drove great. The ride was excellent even with the 18 inch wheels that was on it. The driving postion was not bad either.
I wonder what the tC is going to be like (driving). I really thought getting the xB, but the tC looks just as great.
Just drove the xB for the first time today. I was very impressed with how tight and agile it was. Even though this was an auto, I thought the acceleration was just fine. A little slow off the line, but plenty responsive otherwise.
We've had some snow recently and the roads are a little slick, but it handle some quick, fairly sharp turns with no fuss.
The dealership is one I swore I'd never visit again, but there was zero pressure. The salesman, good guy, wouldn't even take my name and number. Said he went to a Scion sales seminar and was flat out told not to "sell" the cars. Let customers ask questions but that's it.
Seems sort of smart: the serious buyers will self-select and no time wasted chasing people who won't buy anyway. Pricing is fixed -- he quoted me $14,165 for standard trans. Why would't that approach work with all makes?
Good luck on the replacement xB. Sweet car.
My girlfriend and I test drove a Scion in Maryland today and were suprised by how much we liked it. I am 6'2" and have broad shoulders, and I cannot even fit into any of the Toyotas on the lot without my head hitting the roof (including a 4 Runner). I could drive the Scion with a ten gallon hat on!
We somehow pulled ourselves from the dealership (the sales person had no problem with us leaving to think it over) and when we got home to research it more, we found conflicting stories about the rear seats. We folded them down, but some people claim that you can take them out completely. Is this true? Does anyone have a picture? We would like it if the rear seats would somehow go more flat to accomodate our dog better.
Also, the sales person said something to the effect that they will be receiving an orange one shortly...
It was an automatic with some of the aftermarket accessories - rims, bass, decals.... If you want to get noticed this is the car. I have never had soooo many people look at me while on a test drive. I'm sure part of this is due to the fact that there are not any around here yet and that we had the stereo cranked.
Overall I thought the car rode very well and acceleration was not that bad even though I would get a manual. Fit and finish is excellent as well as the quality of materials. Very spacious as well.
Overall I really enjoyed this car and for the money and uniqueness it is a very good package. Well, I'm off to drive a CTS-V.
I'm looking for a commuter car and really didn't think about Scion until a friend mentioned it and read what you folks wrote got me thinking.
Its a little more than what I intended to spend, but keeping an open mind. The power is ok, it does the job. The noise on the freeway was almost as loud as my 10 yr old cherokee, but thought of possibly adding or changing the weather-stripping might help.
The dealer says the car is only sold at MSRP, I've read yes and no here. Has anyone purchase the car at invoice?
Another question, I'll be vacationing in Vegas in the summer, "IF" I purchase the Scion there and brought it back to CA. Would the emission in NV meet CA's requirements? I asking this because if I can get a better price and pay no taxes, it maybe worth it. Thanks.
I was able to sit comfortably in the front seat and adjust it all the way back to fit my frame. I had plenty of leg room and had about 2" to 3" of clear space above my head. I then got out of the vehicle and sat in the rear passenger seat directly behind the driver seat. I was amazed! There was plenty of head room (still 2-3" clear) and I had over 1" of space between my knees and the back of the seat in front of me. I have sat in a lot of vehicles and I have never been in one that costs under $25k that has this kind of leg room in the back seat. Typically you need to step up to luxury sedans to get this type of room. I decided I would take it for a spin to get a feel for the vehicle on the road.
The model they had available had the automatic transmission but there was still enough get up and go to get the car motivated quickly from stop lights. The vehicle is a fun city car for stop and go traffic and corners very well for a tall car ... and it draws attention like crazy. Since the vehicle isn't available for sale yet in this market, it is unique around here and turned heads wherever I went. I even had the obligatory drive by wher a car would slowly drive by me on one side, pull in front of me and then to the other side of the vehicle, then slow down to let me pass so they could get a good look all around the vehicle. Visibility out of the xB is great. I didn't notice any blindspots during my test drive. The interior materials were pretty nice for a vehicle in this price range. The drivers seat was pretty comfortable too. It would be interesting to see how comfortable the seats would be after an extended drive.
I moved onto the freeway after a short drive around town. The xB was able to get up to freeway speed without too much drama but once it hits 65 MPH it takes a lot of coaxing to get it to go any faster. Also, when I started up any inclines, the transmission hunted a lot between overdrive and 4th. I was able to turn off the overdrive but the RPM's jumped to nearly 4k and the engine noise was quite high. The dealership had added the 18" TRD rims on the vehicle so the ride was a bit harsh ... particularly over speed bumps. My son in the back seat complained and asked if the car had any springs.
The stereo was not overly impressive, even with the optional Bazooka subwoofer the dealer had installed. The sound was pretty muddy without very clear perfomace in any of the SSP settings. My son liked the "feel" setting since he was right in front of the subwoofer. If I was ever to get one of these cars I would opt out of any stereo upgrades and go aftermarket and replace the whole system from head unit to speakers.
Over all I was quite impressed by the little xB. It has gobs of interior passenger room, decent performance for around town driving but struggles a bit on the highway. I wouldn't want to try and take this vehicle up any of the local canyons though, at least not with the current normally aspirated 1.5L engine. I would be relegated to the slow moving right hand lane. If I had any adult passengers in the xB with me, I would likely have big rigs passing me as I made my way up the canyon. I'm sure it would do just fine with adult passengers in city driving though.
As a side note, I noticed that the specification data here at Edmunds has incorrect rear seat leg room numbers. They list the room at 31.8" and it is actually 38".
I paced around the outside of an xB I later saw parked on the street and estimated that with the rear seats removed, there might be a flat, carpeted floor with a diagonal as much as 6'8" long. Could anyone tell me what the diagonal actually is when the seats are removed and the front seats are all the way forward?
I am 6'3" and want to know if I could comfortably sleep in the back of an xB with its rear seats removed.
(I can’t just run over to the nearest Scion dealer to check this out, since the nearest dealer is almost 200 miles away.)
Thanks,
John
I expected a noisey engine and usually don't mine it at all but, it's beyond noisey. The automatic I drove barely had enough pickup to get you going it's very noticable. Perhaps a little dangerous for my way of driving.
Now take into consideration both of those items are usually last on my list when I look at cars. But I feel they are so bad it takes the scion off my list.
I love the MPG, I love the interior room, I like the interior design for the most part, Very well priced. I hate that your head is so close to the front windshield. I do not like the lack of great bumpers. Specially on the doors, I can see it being a ding magnet. I don't like having a console in the middle. Your right arm will get very tired as you drive.
I think on long trips you would get exhausted driving this car, from the lack of a armrest console, the noise, and lack of good pickup. It really suprised me how bad these were.
One last thing the placement of the speedometer is very awkward. You tend not to check your speed as often.
The search goes on.
It seems I can get a Vibe/Matrix for 16500, with sunroof, stabilitrak, sounds pack, power everything, five speed. Has more storage room than the xb, better gas mileage and pickup, and quieter. But there's something about that xb. I'm very conflicted.
When I first saw the Scion xB back in 2003, I wasn't sure what model of vehicle I was seeing, but it definitely caught my attention. (And yes, admittedly, I too thought the car was ugly as hell, but have grown to embrace this "milk carton on wheels.") I initially mistook it for a Mini Cooper. :confuse: These cars have taken quite some time to pick up any sort of popularity in my area. The only person I saw driving an xB on a regular basis looked to be in his 40's, and it was impossible to miss seeing him drive his Scion because it was in that funky metallic orange color. Here we are three years later, Jan. 2006, and I'm seeing a few more xBs around town, used mostly as delivery/business vehicles. I am not seeing any Generation Y'ers driving this car, even though they were the targeted market. More often than not, the people I see driving these cars are people who are around my age (36) and the occasional elderly driver.
I'm presently driving a Honda Civic LX 2002, and I gave my 1998 Honda Civic CX hatchback to my husband after his Chevy van keeled over in 2001. While I absolutely adore my Hondas and their reliability, I'm starting to feel the need for more space, and am exploring my options and doing my homework for my next car. The Scion xB has held my interest for quite some time now, and I'm also considering a Toyota Matrix. Much as I wouldn't hesitate to go out and buy a Honda Element, I can't in good conscience do so because they're rated as only getting 20-25mpg. Any car I'm going to spend my hard-earned money on needs to get 30+mpg in order to justify the expenditure. Oh sure--if money weren't a factor I'd go out and buy the Toyota Pruis. I'd opt for the Toyota Prius rather than the Civic hybrid because, hybrid or not, who wants to spend $21K+ for a Civic? :mad:
At any rate, I went to the LeBrun Toyota dealership in Canandaigua on 1/28/06 and test drove a Scion xB. I liked the feeling of sitting up high in the car--almost as though I was in a truck. Once I had it out on the road, I found the acceleration to be a bit lacking. I'm accustomed to driving a 5 speed, and the xB I tested was an automatic; however, I found this to be a nice change from always having to shift gears. Definitely WON'T be winning any races in the xB, but after getting pulled over one too many times on Route 332 by the Staties, do I REALLY need to drive any faster than I already do?
Next on the list was a baseline Matrix. Overall, I liked this vehicle much better. I drove this in both an automatic, but had to drive it in a 2003 model in order to try the 5 speed. Surprisingly, I HATED the stick shift; loved the automatic, though!
While I'm not planning on buying a new vehicle for probably two more years, I'm doing my homework NOW. It always helps to be prepared. Here's hoping that Scion/Toyota will opt to put in the 1.8L engine of the Corolla into the xB rather than the Echo's 1.5L engine. The OPTION of some extra power would be nice, and might sway my decision accordingly.
I was wondering if there's any "adult" drivers out there (the 35+ crowd who aren't spending mommy and daddy's hard-earned money to buy a car, and have mortgages of their own to pay, kids to care for, etc.) who have purchased the Scion xB and can tell me what you think of your purchase? I'm not into street racing or any other modifications to "sport up" my car--I just like to get from Point A to Point B with the least amount of hassle.
Once you've been stranded with a young kid in the car, reliability is of the utmost importance. Having said that, I will NEVER buy another VW EVER.
Looking forward to hearing from you!
If you like the Matrix, and like an automatic , why not buy one?
The drive was a big let down. We have driven 4 cyclinder cars for 10 years, but the other 4-bangers have never sounded so loud(unrefined?) and felt so sluggish. The road feel was very vague and the ride was rough. Best part of the car is the very open and spacious interior. I was really hoping this would be the replacement for our gas guzzling Tundra which is my daily driver.
It is important to change the rear shocks from the oddly stiff OEM KYBs to smoother SensaTracs made by Tenneco and sold by NAPA and Monroe. The SensaTracs are only $75/pair, and the change takes less than 30 minutes in the driveway with no jacking.
The front seats felt cheap and uncomfortable - so I bet it's no fun to drive this car over long distances.
We ended up buying the 5-cyl 150hp Volkswagen Rabbit, which has more cargo space than the xB and you really can't beat the feel of solidness and crispness of a German car. It was cheaper, too. Sorry, but Toyota didn't make the cut. I guess one unpleasant experience about Toyota was also the arrogant sales people, who really did not care about my business. Good luck to all of you finding the right fit for wallet and meeting all your needs!
A 5-speed xB has an MSRP of $14,600 to which is added delivery/prep of $500, dealer fees, and tax.
A 4-door Rabbit has an MSRP of $17,000 to which is added delivery/prep of $600 plus the rest.
If the Rabbit is cheaper, it must be because the dealer is discounting the price by $2,500.
Is that possible?
Likes: I love the style, we loved the room inside, except as others noted the space behind the rear seats. If you can't fold them because of passengers you will not carry much back there. Seemed to be typical Toyota quality which is good. Cheap price. Pretty good OEM stereo with MP3 and aux in jack included. Rode fairly well. Handled decent. All in all, a lot of car for the money. I found the seats to be very comfy, but our test drive was only 45 minutes or so. Gobs of head room (wear a cowboy hat while you drive?), good shoulder room, lots of leg room. Back seat super for 2, tight for 3. Low beam headlights are super - see what happens when you have a large, flat lens?
Dislikes: No cruise even as an option, cheapest wheel option is $669, no moonroof option, no side air bags (and gets so-so side impact ratings), 4 speed auto hunts a LOT at freeway speed. Way too much engine noise with OEM exhaust - if you want loud you could add it, OEM should be quieter. Seriously needs more power, but we knew that before we drove it. No interior lights except the one way back from the driver. Needs map lights, mirror lights or something. It is a cheap car and some bits show it - vanity mirrors, etc.
Scion experience:
The fixed price thing is OK, but they make a big deal out of "true price" or whatever then you find out they stick you with another $250-300 or more in "dealer fees" above MSRP. Seems like that is wrong on a fixed price car. Options from the dealer are expensive (and they say they don't negotiate them either) - you can find all the goodies at discount online stores for a lot less and install MOST of them yourself. Stereo stuff is way overpriced. Even tier one finance rates are higher than other sources. The folks we talk to and worked with that were Scion "specialists" were very nice and well informed, get a "Toyota" salesperson and they are little help. I don't care for one price cars, but in this case they are hard to get (around here) so having one price means they don't over-charge you. That also tends to keep resale high (along with the hard to get). The price difference between the xB and other cars is less than you think if you factor in many others can be had for invoice or less or maybe a little over - while you are stuck paying MSRP at Scion. That said, we didn't find anything at THIS price that we would rather have - only something that costs MORE was better.
In the end, my daughter has decided that the other cars are just nicer - and they are - and she can afford them so she is willing to pay more for a nicer ride. Probably will not get as good gas mileage and will pay more for insurance, and if she needs to haul stuff she will have to get me to bring the pickup over
I would have had no problem with her getting it, and if one of my other kids wanted one I would feel the same way.
Too bad the xB run ends this year. We don't know yet if the replacement will be a better xB of something completely different when we get it next year (as a 2008). But I love the style and love the how you see so few on the road. Would *I* drive one? Probably not, way too little power for me (even with manual) but I have an RX-8 and an S-2000.
Dennis
I had one of the original pocket-rocket econobox cars - a new '83 Rabbit GTI. I had few troubles with mine but the resale value was bad. I traded it for a 89 Civic Si which was a much better car - and retained a ton more value when it was time to sell or trade it.
The prior VW car, the Golf has a pretty terrible track record. So the "good news" is the Rabbit is new - the bad news is if they couldn't get it right during the Golf run do we expect they can make the Rabbit BETTER for 05? I hope so, but I would not bet my money on it.
I can understand why someone would want more power or a different look, but the VW shop would not be MY first stop (or second or third).
With the xB going away at the end of this year, the resale on xB's (which is already strong) should stay that way.
Dennis
Cruise can be bought through the dealer. I bought mine online, and had it installed by the place the dealer used.
Likewise the moonroof. I went to the shop that the dealers use, and had a Webasto moonroof installed.
I have 8,000 miles on a manual transmission, which revs higher than the auto, and just completed a 2,500 mile trip. I have not thought the engine noise or exhaust is too loud. I like the faint sounds they make.
As I said, I love the xB but it does have some issues - but is a heck or a bargain as it sits.
Dennis
Jim
Dennis
I don't know how to use this information to my advantage during price negotiations or whether it's actually even a valid point to bring up and attempt to negotiate a lower price based on.
Not totally understanding what exactly this means or whether the dealer I go to participates and actually gets this credit, I guess I'm concerned about trying to use this information to leverage a lower price only to find out this Man. to Dealer incentive doesn't apply to them. Also concerned about them simply SAYING this incentive doesn't apply to them when they actually WILL get the credit.
Thanks for any advice, it is appreciated.
Jim
Jim
That should take you to the Acura MDX prices paid & buying experience forum. Then read through those messages and perhaps pose your question there.
To give an answer (I am not in the MDX market) - in general when Edmunds shows factory to dealer money it is something "we" don't know about nor is it advertised. unlike a rebate where you get money back or the car maker runs ads for it, this is "secret" money to help the dealer move product they are having trouble selling. Knowing that there is marketing assistance or dealer money means you know you can get a better deal.
For example, the "generous" dealer offers you a new MDX for $500 over dealer cost. Sounds great doesn't it? They may even pull out the ACTUAL INVOICE to show you. But being a smart shopper, you see on Edmunds the dealer is getting $2,500 in help from Acura to move the MDX. WHOA! They are making $3k on this deal and not $500. That is a LOT more negotiating room for you. Of course, the dealer may start out at $500 over invoice less the $2,500 and save you the haggling - but at least you will know what is up. If they will not deal lower, then ask them about the marketing assistance money and tell them you need a lower price. One problem with high-end cars is that a) rich folks tend to be poor negotiators and often over pay and b) there may only be one dealer for that brand in the area so they have no competition.
Dennis
Jim
Within a few months I had foglights, cruise, moonroof and leather seats installed on my xB, totalling about $3,000. I could have had several other excellent basic cars for what I have in the xB. But they would not have been an xB with foglights, cruise, moonroof and leather seats. And then it would take another $3,000 to add all that stuff to the other cars. And for $6,000 more than an xB, I could have had a whole 'nother range of great basic cars to chose from. But probably still not with moonroof and leather.
However, I wanted an xB for a year, and waited a month after ordering, because I did not want to bend and stoop to get into a car, and no other car offers that at any price. Only after getting the xB did I realize how much I would really like so many other things about the car.
I really like the scion xb but I have one problem. I test drove an Xb and noticed a buring smell eminating from under the hood, inside the back seat and from the outside rear end. The dealer told me it will burn off in a few miles.
Anyone hear about this?
Thanks!
We drove one of the rental fleet and it had 0 burning smell. As was mentioned this can be very typical for a new, no mile car and is often caused by the engine, exhaust manifold, header, pipes, catalytic converted, and muffler all heating up and burning off any coating or sealant.
I would not worry about it - if you like the car, get it!
Dennis