Toyota Scion TC

[SkyTorch]

It's time once again to play "bust a coupe". Scion, the upstart from Toyota, has a new coupe available in 2005 called TC. It features a DOHC 2.4L 4 cylinder with 159hp@6000/162@4200torque. It come with p215/45zr17, all wheel disc brakes and either a 5 speed stick or 4 speed automatic transmission. Price??? $16.5K base. It will also have an optional supercharger with estimated power figures above 200hp. It's heavy at 2950lbs. The look? I would describe it as the love child of a Civic and a Celica. Very plain.

It's a hatchback with seats that fold flat (for that jumbo speaker box). Standard features include air conditioning, power locks, power windows, sunroof, Pioneer stereo, cruise control and keyless entry. Impressive for the price. Have you seen it? Have you even heard of it? What's the concensus? Opinion time!!

[thrasher]

I like them a lot. They're reasonably quick, good looking, the interior is pretty nice, and they're supposed to handle pretty damn good too. All with bulletproof Toyota build quality at that price? Gold. Toyota should sell a shitload of them.

[supertool]

My peeves with it:
Huge gap between front of hood and grill.
Shiny aluminium looking plastic screams cheap to me.
Standard sunroof - I preffer to have the headroom and lower price instead.
Rear end screams Tiburon.
Cabin overly stretched out makes it look too much like a sedan, but I guess you get more headroom.
Front end looks very derivative - I see volvo, bmw, skyline. Side looks like uglified G35.
No haggle pricing = can't bargain it down even lower.
So typical toyota strengths: build quality, value.
typical toyota weaknesses: awkward, derivative styling.
Haven't driven one, so can't comment on performance/ride.

[SkyTorch]

Originally Posted by supertool

My peeves with it:
No haggle pricing = can't bargain it down even lower.

How much lower do think the price will get?
Sentra S $17.5K 2.5L
Neon RT $17.5 2.0L
Tiburon GT $17.6K 2.7L 5-speed
Eclipse RS $18.3K 2.4L
Civic SI $18.5K 2.0 VTEC
Impreza RS $18.3 2.5L (non-turbo)
Lancer Ralliart $18.2K 2.4L
Mustang (base) $17.7 3.8L, simularly equipped $19.2k
At 16.5, it's the least expensive of the low enders. All the cars listed have simular trim/power/amenities.

[99maxse]

also i heard that the scion is going to replace the celica. i dont know if its true,,but i heard rumors that 2005 is going to be the last year for the celica.

[SkyTorch]

Originally Posted by 99maxse

also i heard that the scion is going to replace the celica. i dont know if its true,,but i heard rumors that 2005 is going to be the last year for the celica.

Not saying it's not true, just that the 2 cars are not equal. The celica uses a 1.8L 180hp/130torque engine in a car that only weighs about 2500 pounds. It would not take many mods to make this car really fast. The car seems to be built for speed.

On the flip side, it is $5-6000 more expensive. For that same price, you have have a 3000lb scion tc supercharged ($4500 option) and have horse and torque well above a celica. However, this car seems to built more to be an everyday driver - that just so happens to have some mods available. It's built heavy. But Toyota may feel that cheaper will win out with the consumers.