Toyota Scion xA sets off coast-to-coast as a five-door hatch
Bob Plunkett
Date Posted: 5/10/2005
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SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- This is wild: It's Friday evening on University Avenue, nightlife site in Hillcrest for San Diego's collegiate crowd, and the traffic's jamming with way-cool tuner cars pulsating from some serious on-board audio kits.
Our vehicle, squeezing into the center of the pack, throbs in deep beats from its own stereo stoked by a Bazooka subwoofer, yet the cabin also glows in the dark due to a subtle light motif that can be tuned to various vivid shades like mauve, lime and indigo, then flashed in sync from sounds spewing out of a dash-bound six-disc CD changer.
This one seems slick too, despite eensy-weensy proportions in the form of a boxy four-door with big glass up front and the tail square for a hatchback back door.
It looks progressive, even daring.
Rather than the typical long, low and slinky shape of a conventional car, our tester stands tall in the aerodynamic format of a cubistic bubble on wheels which seems to tip forward due to the high tail and low nose united by the arching roofline initiated by a boldly raked windshield.
Inside, the cabin floor dips low so you can step aboard easily, and the ceiling bows high to fit tall chair-like seats. Passengers in the two front buckets sit upright, with their heads positioned higher than normal for better visibility though an expansive wrap of windows.
Still, ample air space remains overhead, which diminishes the crammed and jammed atmosphere of the typical small car.
And it comes with so many different accessories that invite a custom treatment for the cabin.
What's working here?
It's Toyota's big idea for Scion, sort of a brand within a brand to showcase custom-cool wheels for Generation Y, that 20-something market where individuality matters.
A pair of subcompact-size vehicles are the first to carry the Scion name.
Scion xA is the five-door hatchback that we're steering through San Diego, while the xB Scion looks like a box on wheels as contemporary homage to the tried-and-trusty American panel van, only in an abbreviated version.
Both have been on the market in California during 2003 -- and you can find plenty of them on the freeways of Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego.
But only in calendar-year 2004 are Scions showing up at Toyota stores in the rest of the country.
Both Scion models employ a 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine with dual cams on top. It's constructed from light-weight aluminum and plastic composites, then equipped with sophisticated combustion controls for a multi-valve system.
Toyota's variable-valve timing technology goes to work here, balancing power output with high fuel economy. It reaches to 108 hp at 6000 rpm and 105 lb-ft of torque at 4200 rpm.
All power channels through a standard manual five-speed shifter or optional four-speed automatic.
And the hatch earns notable fuel economy numbers -- as high as 38 mpg for road work and 32 mpg in town.
Also, the federal EPA has certified the xA with a low-emission vehicle (LEV) designation.
Hatch and wagon ride on a platform used for two vehicles sold exclusively in Japan -- Toyota's ist hatchback and the bB wagon.
Scion xA hatchback gets a suspension system with MacPherson struts and coil springs up front and rear torsion beams/trailing arms plus toe-correcting geometry and stabilizer bar.
Steering by rack and pinion gears goes beyond the norm for an economy car due to a sub-frame mount added to control noise and vibration.
Brakes utilize front ventilated discs and rear drums.
Also aboard is a standard anti-lock brake system (ABS) as well as electronic brake force distribution (EBD), which measures differences in speed for front and rear wheels, then doles out proper braking force to all wheels.
Other on-board safety equipment includes dual frontal air bags and seatbelt pretensioners with force limiters, plus integrated headrests designed to lessen whiplash injury from a rear-end collision.
Curtain-style air bags concealed in headliners for front and rear seats appear on the list of options.
The xA feels fun to drive, particularly in an urban environment on city streets. It zips to speed with a quick run through the lower gears, while handling seems acute with responsive steering conducive to quick-cut maneuvers.
And Toyota offers multiple components to customize the exterior package of xA.
Gear ranges from foglamps and a front mask to a spoiler on the tail with rear bumper applique plus taillamp garnish, a roof rack by Yakima
Satellite, alloy wheels and wheel locks, mudguards and sports parts from Toyota Racing Development (TRD).
More fun comes on the inside with the two buckets up front pitched on either side of a console, and a bench in back with room for three.
The instrument cluster mounts at the top center of the dashboard, leaving the area immediately in front of a small and sporty steering wheel airy and uncluttered. Gauges get stylized black-on-white faces with a rim in metal tone.
There are a number of stow spots -- like a bin in the center dash cluster with translucent lid or a secret compartment below the floor in the back cargo bay.
The standard six-speaker audio system by Pioneer comes with digital sound processing in three settings plus a CD deck capable of playing MP3 files.
Other stock items range from air conditioning and power for running windows and door locks and mirrors to a tilt steering wheel and split-folding rear seatback.
Custom goods include the six-disc CD changer with audio display illumination that changes among ten colors, subwoofer by Bazooka Mobile Audio and a leather-wrapped steering wheel in choice of red or gray, carbon fiber shift knob by OBX Racing Sports in four tint choices, plus carbon fiber appliques by Superior Dash for door pillars, sport pedals by OBX Racing Sports in red, blue or silver, door sill enhancements and a LED light kit by Luxaura.
Toyota sets the MSRP for Scion xA at $12,480.
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| 2004 TOYOTA SCION XA VEHICLE SPECIFICATIONS |
| Description: |
Subcompact 5-door hatchback
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| Model Options: |
Subcompact 5-door hatchback
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| Wheelbase: |
93.3 inches
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| Overall Length: |
154.1 inches
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| Engine Size: |
DOHC 1.5-L I4
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| Transmission: |
Manual/5
Auto/4 ECT
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| Drive: |
Front
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| Braking: |
Power disc/drum
ABS/EBD
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| Airbags: |
2 (front) + opt. 4 (side curtain)
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| Gas Mileage: |
M/5: 32/38 mpg
A/4: 32/38 mpg
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| MSRP Price: |
$ 12,480 |
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