Goin' to the mall with the xD

So it was time for a little daddy-daughter quality time, so we headed off to Upper Canada Mall.  I moved the car seat over to the xD.  Installation went smoothly as the xD has the standard anchor points.  The only issue was attaching the rear strap.  In order to get to the anchor I had to remove the floor of the trunk.  Not a big deal, since it is not something you would do on a regular basis, it's just that I found on other cars it was easier to do.

The car seat fit comfortably.  My daughter had room to kick her legs without hitting the back of the front seat, for the most part.  As she gets bigger, though, she'll definitely be within striking distance.

Loading up the trunk I found that the stroller barely fit across the back of the trunk.  Something to consider when buying a car of this size. I do love the hatchback design, though.  I really wonder why I've never owned a small hatchback myself?










I think the trunk size would be suitable for a family weekend getaway, but for anything longer you might want to look at roof-top storage.  Scion Canada installed a Thule roof-rack system on this car.  Never having used a Thule roof-rack system before I can't comment on how well they work, but hopefully they are easy to put-on and take-off.  I'd hate to have to drive this car all the time with the rack on - it somewhat ruins the lines of the car.

Overall, this car has really exceed all my expectations.  It would make a fine daily driver.  My full review will be posted shortly, so please check back.

Test Driving the Scion xD

Praise Jeebus! That was my first thought getting into the Scion xD.  They managed to put the instrument panel in its proper location - in front of the driver!


Scion Canada has been generous enough to offer me a chance to drive the 2011 Scion xD for a few days, following my drive of the xB in December.  Read my review of the xB here.  So I headed out to the corporate offices of Toyota/Scion during the afternoon rush hour - never fun - to pick up this little car.

First thing I noticed were the gorgeous  18" TRD rims.  They really fill out the wheel wells very nicely and provide a nice aggressive stance for the car.  Fortunately they are wearing a set of Continental winter tires, which came in handy last night and this morning.

My first impressions of the car are very positive.  So far it has managed to greatly exceed my expectations.  

A couple of oddities, at least to me.  First, the rear window defroster doesn't shut off automatically, which is foreign to me.  Secondly, it has a tachometer, even though it has an automatic transmission.  This is a nice touch.  Most of all, I am really pleased with the engine they chose to put into this car.  It is the 4 cylinder base Corolla engine, which is a very nice step-up from the power plant in the Yaris, the xD's sibling.  Power is more than adequate for a car of this size.

I'll be posting my thoughts and comments over the next week or so, so please check back again for updates.

Ahhh, a properly located IP.  Thank you Scion.

Scion at NAIAS

Source: Scion Canada via Facebook

Scion Canada has posted some photos from the Scion booth at the North American International AutoShow in Detroit on their Facebook page.  My favourite of the bunch is this xD in Castrol colours (right).  This obviously brings back memories of the Toyota rally cars, like the Celica and Corolla.


Check out their entire gallery here.