Toyota Scion Quickly Found a Home

Toyota Scion is a brand of vehicles produced by Toyota Motor Corporation for the North American market. The Scion name, meaning the descendant of a family or heir, refers both to the brand’s cars and their owners. Founded in 2002, the Scion long-term goal is to appeal to Generation Y consumers. The first Scion models, the xA hatchback and xB wagon, went on sale in California in 2003, followed by a sports coupe, the tC, and a nationwide U.S. launch in 2004.

A successor to the xA, the Scion xD, premiered in 2008, and the Scion marquee expanded to Canada in 2010. The Scion lineup uses a one-trim, simplified purchase process, and the marquee has relied upon guerrilla and viral marketing techniques. Toyota Scion was first introduced in March 2002, at the New York Auto Show.

There were just two Toyota Scion concept vehicles, the bbX (which became the xB), and the ccX (which became the tC). The 2004 Scion xA and xB were unveiled at the Greater Los Angeles Auto Show on January 2, 2003. The 2004 Scion xA and xB were available only in 105 Scion Dealers in California at their initial launch on June 6, 2003.

Toyota Scion vehicles were available nationwide in June 2004, coinciding with the release of the 2005 tC. On December 16, 2006, Scion unveiled the next-generation xB, based on the t2B concept, and the new Scion xD, successor of the xA, at an invitation-only, no-camera event in Miami. Both Toyota cars were then publicly unveiled on February 8, 2007 at the 2007 Chicago Auto Show.

Toyota Scion currently has three models: the second-generation tC, a 3-door liftback based on the European-marketed Toyota Avensis sedan; the second-generation xB, a 5-door box-shaped compact wagon sold as the Toyota Corolla Rumion in the Japanese market; and the Scion xD, a 5 door-subcompact car that is sold in Japan as the second generation Toyota ist, which is based on the Toyota Yaris platform with the tenth-generation Corolla’s engine.

The Scion iQ, which is sold in Japan as the Toyota iQ, went on sale in the western United States in December 2011 and will be sold in the rest of the US in the first quarter of 2012. The subsequent rollout of the Scion brand to the South, the Southeast, and the East Coast occurred in February 2004.

The Toyota Scion Pricing Strategy

Only a few years old, Scion is the youngest brand on the market — a fact that seems appropriate, given that it’s targeted at a very youthful demographic. Scion has quickly found a home in the hearts of buyers seeking its winning blend of value and style. In the interest of keeping things simple for buyers, Scion come in only one trim.

However, buyers have the option of customizing their rides with a host of aftermarket Toyota Scion accessories, such as a subwoofer, body kits and custom exhausts. Toyota prices also offers no-haggle pricing, the same policy that has been offered by Saturn. Under this system, buyers pay the Scion list (window sticker) price, thus streamlining the negotiation process.

So far, no-haggle pricing, a simple and well-equipped model lineup and a variety of dealer-added options have combined to make the Toyota brand a surprise hit with American consumers. The economy-car segment isn’t exactly the first place you’d look for stylish, fun-to-drive vehicles, but Toyota Scion has changed all that, offering cars rich with a seductive exuberance that belies their modest pricing.