Comments on: Scion xA Review

By: xA 201

xA 201 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 01:19:37 +0000

Additionally, the blank area in front of the steering wheel is a really great spot for my 11 band Amateur Radio tranciever (also not a USA product Icom Ic-706) with which I can communicate world-wide by direct transmission, no cel-phone required.

By: xA 201

xA 201 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:58:46 +0000

Seeing as I have been looking for a reliable, 1-2 person car since meeting John & Jayne Shuttleworth (founders Mother Earth News) in 1976, it has been astounding than NO ONE has actually produced a personal transporter for what about 85% of trips are about: moving one person and a few small parcels 20-30 miles and occasionally across the state. Over the years a ‘67 VW Bug, ‘68 Fiat 1100 R (Abarth exhaust & 2 bbl side-draft Weber carb, Dunlop fabric radials) ‘73 1600 (Hemi) Corolla (440,000 miles to sale) ‘76 8-speed Champ, City Electric, RX-7, Geo Metro 1 L/5 speed (53 mpg) and my present Scion xA have been comprimises to that end. Still looking …

However of all of the above, the xA is by the far the best of the lot. Power, and ease of use (not to mention NO REPAIRS in 88,000 miles since new purchase for $12,500 with an astounding MP-3 – Pioneer stereo in BASE SPEC) and real fun handeling (with front & rear anti-roll bars.) I do not understand why the (not so)SMART gets worse milage than the xA since it is 1,000 pounds lighter with 1/2 the engine displacement.

It is really too baaad that the second generation Scions are such a dissapointment. The xBlotto2 and the xD ugli (which managed to loose 10 mpg to my xA) don’t come close in styling or actual real-world preformance. This indicates that while SOME engineers live at Toyota, they don’t actually make the production decisions …

It is interesting to note that my varnished mahagony 17′ 6″ x 22″ scratch-built sea-kayak/ trailer/ xA generate many questions such asd “did you custom build the car too ?” Despite the best products, I do not understand the Toyota way of “bigger is better, darn the standard shift. (future Scion IQ’s)”

A friend who drives her Aveo automatic 6 miles a day to work thinks it is great, but the local Chevy dealer would not even bother to look up a 5-speed for me since “no one wants a standard shift in America” , I bought the xA 30 minutes later and have never looked back.

By: Sigsworth

Sigsworth — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 16:39:02 +0000

Since the xA is no longer made, this comment must serve as advice to used car seekers. The first thing to know is that all xA’s are basically the same, varying only in transmission. They were marketed with a whole slew of factory add-ons that you could choose from, and the dealer would install for you. In reality, the dealers just sold what they had and downplayed the whole “custom tailored” thing. So when shopping it will be difficult to compare values since the potential for different add-ons is high. I bought mine dead-stock with the 5-speed. I chose the Scion primarily because it offered the most standard features for the best price. Secondarily because it had interesting styling and was a hatchback. After driving it for a while I added a few minor cosmetic things, but the best things to add are the front strut tie rod and the rear anti-sway bar. As Robert’s review notes, the handling at highway speed is somewhat nervous. These two adds fix that. Even my wife noticed how much better it handles. The ride is still a little jouncy, and the wind noise is bad, but around town it’s a blast. I get an honest 34 mpg, with about half city half highway driving. I drive fairly agressively, too, so you can do better if you want. The center console is no big deal, you will get used to it in 10 seconds. I really enjoy my xA, and am happy to drive it everyday. As far as I’m concerned the xD is hideous, and I expect that down the road the xA will retain its value much better because a) it’s not as hideous and b) it gets better mileage. Sure, in the future I might be tempted by one of the many small cars that might hit our shores, but for now, there’s no challengers for my Scion xA.

By: mallman

mallman — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 00:35:38 +0000

Dear Steaming Pile, the gear ratios of the automatic and the manual XAs are likely different. If you could find out, what are your RPMs when you are driving 52 miles per hour? I would be interested to know how different my RPMs would be at the same speed.

By: Steaming Pile

Steaming Pile — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 20:57:39 +0000

@mallman – I love my xA. I’ve had it for about 2 1/2 years, and I still love it, especially when I hear that the price of gas has gone up yet again.

Want better mileage? I don’t know about the automatic, but with the five-speed the sweet spot is 52 MPH. Stay there and watch your mileage go comfortably north of 40.

By: mallman

mallman — Wed, 14 May 2008 00:26:26 +0000

Where I live regular gas is now $4.32 per gallon and will undoubtedly continue to rise. A Prius would be nice but they command close to $30,000 and get only 7 more miles per gallon than my 2005 XA with automatic. I bought the XA because I was tired of getting the sweats every time gas prices jumped. I am 6′ 2″ and weigh 267 and I find the XA comfortable inside thanks to the excellent seats. Plus more leg room than in my wife’s Camry. An XA is an affordable, fun car to drive (tight steering, quiet interior and superior fit and finish) that gets great mpg. My worst was 35mpg and my best 37.5mpg (no highway driving just a combination of city and rural). I drive about 40 miles a day and was spending a small fortune on gas in a SUV and 6 cylinder pickup. I liked the XA so much I bought a second one (2006 model and the last year with the 1.5 litre engine). I believe that it has the same gas engine that is in the Prius. When I have a need for speed I take out my 350Z Roadster. But for daily commuting you can’t beat the Scion XA. I drove a few Honda Fits but the passenger seat didn’t go back as far as the driver’s seat and for me that is a big NO,NO! The Fit and the XA are almost identical in size. With the back seats folded down I was able to transport a new in the box water softener from Home Depot. It was a squeeze but it did make it. My only complaints with the XA is that Scion does not offer factory cruise control and no armrest between the front seats (but the armrests are available for less than $100). The Scions seem to hold their value very well. What cost about $15,000 new are selling for $12,000 after 3 years of use. The latest word is that the Scion brand scored higher in initial quality than did Toyota this year. I plan to mate our two XA’s and sell their offspring. I may never have to buy another new car. By the way, I belong to the silver generation and have owned over 25 cars in my lifetime. No regrets whatsoever with my decision to buy an XA or two.

By: motown missile

motown missile — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 07:20:08 +0000

Hey, I love mine…it fits into parking spaces larger cars like the Nash Metrpolitan have to pass by, and it’s great on gas. I’ve gotten as much as 40 MPG on the highway with the automatic trans, and with the back seats down it’s got plenty of cargo space. Too bad Toyota replaced it with the unspeakably ugly xD.

By: jdmxA

jdmxA — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 05:37:33 +0000

believe it , or not the look has grown on me. Proud owner for the last 7 months . Its a sub-compact(not even a compact) , so it doesn’t jive with everyones tastes.. thats for sure. If gas mileage matters any bit to you.. go xA. If you like to have fun driving your car.. for the $$, the xA does not disappoint. Build quality is also very-very good. Basically, go test drive one.. and see for yourself. Everyone has different tastes. I drove a Fit auto sport, and thought it was alright. But considering it was almost $2K more(only thing really extra it had was a bit more interior room + CC), to me I could not disgrace the Toyota tradition/line. VVT-i(DOHC w/xA) blows away VTEC(SOHC w/Fit) overall- w/durability + torque.

By: finger

finger — Fri, 10 Nov 2006 23:55:20 +0000

You have to be kidding with that “box”. It is absolutely hideous.