I just got my Car and Driver in the mail and there is a 5 page article on the xB I will scan it and put it up if anyone wants to read it.

The 5-Speed they tested ran a 16.0 1/4 mile at 87mph

 

i want to read it!!!

 

I will post it later on. I am a little mad at what they had to say. They said its the worst car that Scion has yet to release..............................

 

bunch.....of......crap...... I was flaming it when it first came out, but it DOES have a lot of good things about it too. So it doesn't deserve to be called the "worst" car of the brand. I can think of a lot of brands who make some pretty bad cars too. I drove a $30,000 truck today......had rollup windows.....yeah. The new xb has everything you need in a cheap little price. Can't beat that. Car & driver sucks, i dont want to read it...

 

You cannot take anything Car & Driver says too seriously. They are way more interested in being the Mad Magazine of car rags than a serious automotive publication.

I have been a subscriber for about 20 years and I read it strictly for the entertainment. I have never once used their information as a resource for buying a car (or anything else related to cars). I have, however, shared some of their funny comments and the always entertaining letters section with others because it is funny stuff.

The only way for a manufacturer to consistently get good reviews from C&D on their cars is to change their name to BMW. That right there should make it clear that reliability is not considered in any way when they look at cars.

 

So true regarding Car and Driver. I stopped reading BMW reviews years ago.

 

Hmmm... I guess they're all just a bunch of "haters" too.

-THE DON

 

I'm interested in seeing it, post it up!

 

I will have it tonight for sure. I am having problems with the scanner but I will have it up.

 

Here we go, all we need is yournamehere and the haters can have their field day.

 

Keep in mind these are the same geniuses who railed on the original xB when IT came out.

I'm assuming - because I've seen it before in Car and Driver - that these guys are just hating because they think Scion is an easy target. "Car guys" like this dislike our brand because they don't understand why anyone would want less than 400 hp or might transport cargo larger than a breadbox. They'll hate on whatever is most popular at the moment, and in the meantime, all of Gen Y will think "...wow. old."

And DON....that was uncalled for. Think of how irate we were when the IIHS released its Doomsday Scenario Side-Impact ratings.

Be nice to the n00bs, they just got their first blast. (Well...second, counting TTAC.) We're more thick-skinned because we got it from people at every stoplight.

 

Well I'm a "car guy" and I LOVE the Scion.

'05 Scion XB
'71 MGBGT
'97 Mustang Convertible
'86 Camry

Recently bought a '70 MGBGT for parts.
I'm a little over my "3 car rule!!"

 

Well, I am a "Car Guy", my wife test rode a 5sp 08' XB yesterday, we loved it an will buy one, but I have to tell you something, my car has 400 hp and still Car and Driver hates it!! They hate whatever is NOT popular at the moment, look how they talk about the Mustang and BMW's in general.

 

Try this link to the onine C&D "First Drive" Review

http://www.caranddriver.com/previews...-scion-xb.html

Is it any different than the magazine's?

 

By that review, it appears they like it...

 

That review must have come from a different writer(s). The magazine doesn't have anywhere near as many positives as the "First Drive" review.

 

I probably have my Car and Driver waiting at home - I'll roll past 1000 miles on my xB on the way home today to get it...

Car and Driver never really hated the original xB; at least from what I had read in 2006. Look at this article they did, where they rated the 06 xB the best of the boxes:

http://www.caranddriver.com/comparis...ous-boxes.html

The article that this thread's starter referred to is a road test, not a first drive article. It won't be online for at least another week, but I'm very interested to see what bogus reason they list for disliking it. I'd like to see them try the xB on a long-term (40,000 mi) test. I don't think they've done a Scion yet.

 

I just read the article, it does'nt seem like they hated the new XB, just that they think it got too "mass market". The article lament the loss of edginess and that it lost its JDM appeal. They mention that Toyota has a number of other JDM cars that they should bring over, specifically some of the Daihtsu models.

Car and Driver basically stated what many 1st gen XB owners have complained about, that the new XB just got too big and heavy. Personally, I think of both the 1st gen and the new XB's as two separate type cars and I like both for what they are. Ultimately they are two unique cars that happened to share the same name, and the new XB really isn't evolutionary, as many would have expected, and consequently, disappointed. If the new XB is judged for what it is without comparison to the 1st gen, then more people would appreciate its uniqueness and value.

 

bsl888,
I couldn't have said it any better; your comments were spot on........

 

bsl888 is definitely correct.

The article starts out with "The 2008 xB is a quiet, comfortable, spacious, well-built, and relatively inexpensive car. It's also a gross disappointment."

The article is basically stating its a really good car, but not a cool car. If it was Toyota-badged, they probably would have given it a more positive review. Car and Driver expects something different from Scion.

It's just my opinion, but I think they are dead right. The original xB and the new xB seemed to be targeted to completely different people. In most objective ways, the new xB is better except gas mileage. But for many who truly loved the original xB for what it was, the new xB will be a disappointment.

If you are buying the xB because it meets your needs and is a reliable, relatively economical, and practical car, then your making a great choice. If you are buying because it is a cool car, I think you'll likely be disappointed. It remains to be seen, but my expectation is that the new xB won't be viewed as a cool vehicle or get the cult status of the original. The people who loved the original will likely view it as a "cornfed, overweight, thoroughly Americanized" car (just like Car and Driver called it) that shouldn't have been called the xB.

The only thing I think was unfair about the article was that they complained about how little interior space was gained with the new xB despite the almost 600 lb weight gain. My expectation is that the height of the vehicle from floor to ceiling decreased, cutting interior space, but that other interior dimensions that matter more (unless you are very tall) increased.

I didn't like the orignal xB. I personally thought it was ugly. However, I could appreciate that it was very different than other cars and understand why it gained a cult following. Whether I liked it or not, I definitely agree it is a cool and different vehicle. It was cool and practical. In my opinion, the new xB is just practical.