Scion Wants to Sell Cars on New-fangled Thing Called "The Internet"
Scion — the youth focused, geriatric-coveted Toyota Junior Team brand — is looking to push sales in a different direction as it tries to shed its “retiree in an xB” image in favor of Snapchatting their road trips in Scion iMs.
According to The Detroit Bureau, Scion wants to offer their wares online in more markets in an effort to appeal to younger consumers who don’t want to take test drives, I guess.
The Pure Process program, as Scion calls it, allows to login to AOL, use the Scion keyboard, and pay for their vehicle by money order shop for a brand new car via their tablet, computer or other iDevice, get a final price, arrange financing, and have the vehicle delivered. The Detroit Bureau points out that last point can only be done where it’s legal to do so.17
The system is linked to dealers. A pilot program brought 10 dealers into the test. Now there are 60 participating Scion locations as part of Pure Process. Average purchase time, from start to finish, was four hours, though about 50 percent of participants completed the process in about two hours.
If you are not a and unsure about this whole Internet thing, here’s a how-to video from some smart, British IT people.
More by Mark Stevenson
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To all you naysayers: there is a 70% chance I will buy an iM when they come out. Reason A) it's a Corolla hatch. Boring, sure, but simple and dead-nuts reliable. It's also made in Japan, which I like. I think the pricing is fair and reasonable competitive. Here's the competition (in my mind), and why I've rejected it: Hyundai Elantra GT. Always cash on the hood, so it would be cheaper. However, I'm seeing too much about valve buildup on the GDI engines, and don't want to be the guinea pig. Mazda3 hatch: Looks good on paper, but it's a Mexican car, and I don't buy Mexican cars. Subaru Impreza hatch: don't want/need AWD, and the resultant complexity and MPG hit. No, I wouldn't care if it was a Scion iM or a Toyota Corolla hatchback, but as a Scion, I know I can buy it at MSRP, without arguing with the dealer about all their nasty ADM stickers.
FWIW, my xA has had no recalls at all. Id rather have a car thats VIN starts with JT than not.