2011 Scion xD: My Review

Spunky, spritely, nimble, pug-ish good looks.  These are all words that describe the 2011 Scion xD.


Scion Canada allowed me to test drive a 2011 Scion xD.  The car itself had an automatic transmission and was Classic Silver Metallic in colour, wearing a stunning set of 18" TRD rims, which really complimented the styling of the car.


To be honest, I wasn't expecting a lot from this car.  The xD is the entry model for the Scion brand.  It is also based on the Toyota Yaris platform, also the entry-level car for Toyota.  These cars are considered to be B-segment cars, competing with the likes of the Ford Fiesta/Mazda 2 pairing and Honda Fit.  Typically, these are small, low horsepower cars, probably best suited to commuting duties.

What I discovered, however, was a car with great character and a fair bit of fun, when all things are considered.  Remember, this is car with a fairly low MSRP of $17,200, and no sporting intentions.  I found the car to be rather nimble and maneuverable - in part I'm sure to the short wheelbase.  Also, the rather wide tires (225/40R18) probably improved the sure-footed handling considerably - even though they were winter tires.


I wasn't terribly excited about the automatic transmission, having never owned a car with one - I prefer to select my own gears.  It wasn't as bad as I feared.  It didn't hold the gear as long as I would have liked, and had a tendency to down shift at the slightest prod of the accelerator.  One complaint is that the transmission has only 4 forward gears for it to choose from.  Admittedly, the competition typically has a 4-speed transmission as well, but an extra gear would have allowed the transmission the get a bit more out of the engine.

18" TRD Rims

That brings me to another high point of the car, along with the handling - the engine.  Scion has put a 1.8 litre engine into this car - the same engine used in the base Corolla/Matrix.  This is a significant step up from the 1.5 litre engine in the Yaris.  The engine produces 128bhp@6000RPM, and for a car of this size it is quite adequate.  It is more than the competition offers, anyway.  


While the car isn't "fast", it was certainly quick enough to be a bit of fun.  There is a saying - "It's more fun to drive a slow car fast, than a fast car slow".  This car proves that - it was really a fun little car to fling around the corners and on-ramps of my commute.  This is the type of car where you need to maintain momentum, rather than relying on horsepower to get you back up to speed, which can be entertaining.

Alpine head unit is available as an upgrade.

The interior was fairly bare-bones.  It did have a full instrument panel, including a tachometer.  The steering wheel includes audio controls for the stereo, which in this case was the upgraded Alpine head unit.  The stereo handling most everything I threw at it - Dream Theater, Tool, Pearl Jam, etc. - fairly well.  I could live with it without difficulty.  If you want a litle more "thump" to the system, there are built-in outputs that will allow an easy install of an amp and sub-woofer.  I especially enjoy the iPod connectivity.  

The seats were covered in cloth and generally comfortably.  Adjustments are limited, and with a bit more time I would have fine-tuned the seating.  The car doesn't have a centre-armrest for the driver - this is something I would add ($162.50) as I found myself looking for somewhere to rest my elbow.


Space inside was adequate for me.  The trunk isn't very deep, but that is to be expected with a car of this size.  The rear seats do fold down, which would help with any larger packages.

The styling of the car is something that I ended up really admiring - from different angles I saw bits of the MINI and VW GTI.  The front is a little flat, but it grew on me (like a pug's cute mug).  There are nice fender bulges over both the front and rear wheels.  The aforementioned TRD rims filled out the wheel-wells beautifully.  They went a long way to creating an aggressive stance for this little car.  The rear hatch had a traditional upright style to it - not a forward sloping design you see on some other small hatchbacks - and a small integrated spoiler along the roof line.  This upright design also adds to the usable space in the trunk.


I really enjoy the small hatchback design, and have so for a long time.  They are useful, sometimes sporty - makes me wonder why I've never owned one.  If my personal needs were a little different, I could definitely see myself owning one of these (with a manual transmission, of course).  There is a decent amount of standard equipment and a reasonable sticker price.


This car greatly exceeded my expectations - it handled and performed better than I thought a sub-compact car ever could straight from the factory.  If Toyota can build small cars that are this good, at these retail prices, it makes me wonder why I would ever need to spend more.  Bravo, Scion!


Thanks again to Scion Canada for giving me this opportunity to test drive one of their cars for a few days.  The 2011 Scion xD, in particular, is a car that I probably wouldn't have paid much attention to before - my eyes have been opened.