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2008 Scion xB Preview

The Scion brand was a pretty daring move by way of Toyota, when it waslaunched a couple of years ago. It brought Japanese domestic market products with radically different styling to the table, yet, underneath these funky bodies were simple Echos at heart. Interestingly, Toyota durability and reliability weren't the selling points of these new little cars, but rather their unique style, and the ability to personalize was. The xA, and in particular the iconic xB were the vehicles for which a new generation could express their automotive ideas in metal on a new car, without breaking their budget. Needless to say, it was a move that paid off, as the xB is now entering a new phase in its second generation.

The new xB is a bigger vehicle, it's significantly

The x-box rides again... (Photo: Toyota)

longer overalland in wheelbase at 12 inches and 4 inches, not to mention width. In fact, there are some pretty interesting tidbits of info to be drawn, should you compare the width and wheelbase values with those of the new Toyota Auris, or the Japanese/European market Toyota Corolla. What you'll find is that the xB shares those main dimension points, which leads us to believe that the xB has been scaled up from a subcompact platform to a full-out compact architecture,

It's been no time at all, and already, tuned versions of the xB are popping up. (Photo: Toyota)

namely, the next Toyota Corolla. This isn't at all a bad thing though, as Scion knows that if anything its customers wanted its versatile box to have more room on the inside.

And if it's room that buyers are looking for, it's mostcertainly room that they're going to be getting. Increasing the xB's size means that there's more living space for passengers, not to mention the cargo that they'll inevitably be carrying along. The xB's cargo area grows by nearly eight cubic feet to 29.1 cubic feet, which

Lots of space thanks to the larger design. (Photo: Toyota)

is a pretty impressive cargo hold with the seats up. The Scion doesn't offer any clever seating arrangement system like the Honda Fit, but the 60/40 split seats do fold flat against the ground for a smooth, open floor. For certain clients, the xB's trunk may never hold crates and boxes, just speakers, subs, amps and other sound system gear. In any case, it'll hold more of that stuff too.

The xB's interior has been overhauled too, in a major way. The layout ofthe dashboard is a cross between the Toyota Yaris, with its centrally mounted instrument cluster, and the Honda Element, with its upright dashboard

Interior is funky and functional. (Photo: Toyota)

shape and console-mounted gearshift lever. But what separates the xB from almost anything else we've seen is the staggered layout of the center console. From the center of the cabin, the gearshift, HVAC and the instrument cluster look skewed in a left-right-left fashion, which is not only different, but cool looking. As for the gauges themselves, they're set in an ovoid binnacle with four overlapping dials that also look great. You can't help but feel a touch of irony: Toyota's interior designers must have been thinking outside the box for this one. Of course, this being a product conceived by Toyota, you know it's going to be infinitely practical and well built. The xB has tons of places

Gauge cluster - part digital, part analog - is cool. (Photo: Toyota)

to store your stuff, from convenience trays and console boxes to a tray located beneath the rear seats that can accommodate everything from a laptop or camera to a small stack of magazines or CD jewel cases.

But stepping back to the exterior for a moment, the new xB is a fairly differentlylooking machine compared to the vehicle that it replaces. Yes, the new car is still considered boxy, but the proportions have changed quite a bit. With a reduced overall height, the xB is lower and sleeker. It's a lot curvier too, and a lot more organic, with wraparound headlamps that don't seem to be mere glass blocks for lights, as on the old car. This time around, there's some actual styling going on, which (other than an anti-style coolness) was hardly the

Safety equipment is generous with standard ABS brakes, stability control and six airbags. (Photo: Toyota)

case on the previous vehicle. Something new has popped up though, which I believe will become one of Scion's defining exterior characteristics. The rear C-pillar on the new xB is broad and strong, a cue that was shown in the t2B concept vehicle that heavily inspired the new xB, as well as the FUSE Coupe Concept. The new xD also features this side pillar.

To stop its forward motion, the xB gets bigger brakes with discs that arejust under 11 inches across in diameter. That means the xB also needed 16-inch wheels to house those brakes, which are made out of steel and covered by plastic pie plates as standard equipment. A wide variety of snazzy aftermarket wheels will be available as optional equipment. Surprisingly, Toyota has also given the Scion a solid safety repertoire that includes standard ABS brakes with brake assist

Could this be the Element SC's biggest threat? (Photo: Toyota)

and electronic brakeforce distribution, plus VSC stability control and TRAC traction control. Six airbags, including side and curtain airbags are also standard. That's a pretty generous spec sheet.

While the old xB's little Echo 1.5-liter engine wassufficient for crawling around the city, with more room to move five in comfort, plus a lot more room for their stuff, the new xB needs more power and indeed, Scion has given it a bigger heart. They've actually reached out to the sports car of the range, the tC, for power. The 2.4-liter DOHC VVT-i four-cylinder found under the hood of the new model makes this the most powerful factory-offered "box" yet, with 158 horsepower. Buyers get the choice of either a five-speed manual or a four-speed automatic, though the automatic gearbox has a new manual mode, something that Toyota hadn't yet offered with a four-speed autobox. No word yet on performance figures,

Powerful stereo system is designed for customization, much like the rest of the car. (Photo: Toyota)

or fuel consumption for that matter, but it'll be quicker than the old xB, but probably thirstier as well. It might be a long shot, but we could consider the xB a rival to Honda's Element.

Scion knows that for its customers that are in the street customizationdemographic, sound is just as important as style. That's why they equipped the xB with a pretty slick sound system structure. The standard head unit on the car is a 160-watt Pioneer CD player with an aux-in jack, plus an iPod connector; that's right, a standard aux connector that not only charges the MP3 player, but also links the controls through the steering wheel and displays the credits on the LCD screen. The system features a digital sound processor (DSP) with different equalizers, plus Automatic Sound Leveling and Sound Retouch Technology for CD-like quality on burned discs. The system plays through six speakers. An upgraded head unit also gives owners the chance to customize their interface with downloadable "skins",

Body kit by Five Axis. (Photo: Toyota)

images, and short video clips for playback. The xB also has a standard rear head unit output with easy hookups for external amps, a popular feature requested by many owners.

The Scion project has been quite a fewyears in the making, but it's one that have given Toyota an advantage and an outlet for consumer creativity. Scion brags that the brand is more in touch with its buyers than any other, and we think that this might just be true. Because of this, they were really able to focus in on developing and improving the areas of the old car that needed to grow, and have kept many of the things that owners love, such as its general shape, not to mention its functionality. For that, we can see the new xB picking up very well, where the previous car tailed off. The new car will arrive in U.S. showrooms later this year, and will be available in one trim level only with a choice of color and wheel covers. It will of course be followed by a whole host of upgrades, from performance, to styling, to interior, to sound system. Prices are expected to start at $15,000. 

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