today, i test drove an Xb. it was an automatic...well, simply put, that thing has no ***** at all! i was going about 25mph and i floored it...all it did was rev a whole bunch and slowly start to pickup some speed...it was a joke. my broke ___ corolla at least throws your head back if you floor it at 25. although, i could spin the tires when i took off the traction control and was on wet pavement. it felt too big, even though it's about the same length as an Xa, it's 5 inches wider too. it had a wierd glovebox area that was just void space, my friend said it was for burritos. the cieling was so high it made you feel small. it was a little bumpy too. i guess if i had a family to haul around, it would be perfect...but this this was not worth my money.

so, then i was looking forward to the tC...the guy told me, this car is nothing like the Xa or Xb at all...he was right. it has everything in it, even a tire pressure sensor. did anyone see that sunroof with a moonroof too?? thats nuts. i tried the auto because there was lots of traffic and i didn't want to worry about stalling (i'm newer at stick) so, i started off slow, they had just got this thing about an hour before and hadn't even checked it over yet, it still had plastic all around. so i drove to a park area and i let it rip at 25, just like the Xb...this thing shot my head back, i wasn't prepared for that at all. i showed off to some kids when i spun the tires for a couple of seconds when i pulled out of the park. this thing had some *****...and it wasn't bad for an auto, it makes me second guess to buy a stick, that might get me in trouble with all the power on hand.

so, heres what i like and dislike about the tC
likes:
awesome styling and it comes with 17" 6 spoke wheels.
tons of sweet ___ power
amazing sunroof and moonroof and they both have covers
only scion with cruise control and an armrest
keyless entry is standard and transponder keys, unlike for an Xa
you sit nice and low, like in my corolla
everything is aluminum, even the buttons
cool gauges
panel cover for cd player
auto off headlights
turn signals in mirrors
knee airbag
auto down and up! windows
seats are pretty comfy and have alot of great controls for lumbar and whatnot
hatchback opens up to whole car, not just a trunk
it
includes a hatch tonnue (sp?) cover to hide goodies
tire pressure sensor
awesome digital climate control
it has a thing that automatically changes the seat to a preset position when you enter
keyless entry is on the key
camry engine with is300 suspension (or at least thats what the guy said)
abs, traction control power mirrors, a/c, and all that good stuff

dislikes:
i don't know wether i want stick or auto
brakes seemed like they needed a little more effort than the xb and xa (maybe low fluid, they never checked it yet)
it's a little more than what i want to spend
blindspots...yeah, can't do much about that, in the back mainly
gas mileage is not great at all...21 in the city with an auto?
horn cover on streering wheel felt cheap
shifter on an auto had that wierd cutout that the mazda3 has, where you have to go through a maze to get to drive gear and the shifter was a little stubby and cheap compared to the rest of the car
i'm not sure if i really want a two door
i couldn't figure out how to turn off the traction control
no floormats...how is that not standard and moonroof is?
i heard the paint is cheap on scions all together
driver's seatbelt is mounted far back

so, i really have fallen in love with that car after just one test drive...and if i put down $5000, i could get it for $240 a month for 60 months...i can deal with that, i would rather be driving this in 5 years instead of an Xa

heres my main question: on dry pavement, with an automatic tC, how much can you spin the tires off the line? does it have the torque for that? seems like it does. iff it performs well with an auto tranny, i can live with an auto. i would love a stick, but i drive alot in traffic and stop on hills a bunch, i've read alot of concerning stuff about the life of the stickshift, people are having trouble already. let me know how it is.

 

the tC has no traction control

 

Oh, and I have an auto, with about 60% throttle off the line I can break the tires loose, any more than that and I'll be peeling out. The tC has enough torque that flooring it going 25mph in the rain will make you spin.

 

tc is good enough for da price

 

buy the xa or xb

 

def. test drive the mazda 3 and sentra spec-v. those are capable cars also and make your choice from there. the gas mileage isnt that great for the car so i guess you have to just weight your likes and dislikes of the car and go from there

def. test drive the xa/xb and other cars in your price range before you make your choice. alot of great cars out there these days
good luck on your choice

 

i've test driven an xB auto...and it sucked bad! at 25mph i floored it and the engine only revved high and slowly started picking up speed. not impressive at all.
i test drove an xA auto...it was sluggish, it reminded me of my 97 corolla 1.8l i'm driving now.
i test drove the xA stick shift and it was much better. i had my heart set on the xA stick, till i tried a tC. tC is the way to go

 

if you are comparing an xb to a tc, there is really not much to think about. Definitely tc. Considering you are buying a new car, the tc is really not much more than the xb, but offers so much more. And keep in mind, everyone likes the tc. With the xb, people either like it or absolutely hate it (more people hate it). When i tell people I have a Scion, I ALWAYS have to give an explanation that its not the box, just so they dont make disgusted faces and make jokes. The engine power difference alone is worthy of the couple thousand price difference. The inside of the box also looks kinda cheap.

 

the tC is a definate yes over the xB, no offense to any xB owners, i love the car. But for the what, 2 thousand more you get so much more stuff. and all the things you have against the tC you can get over. as far as mileage goes, i got around 27 mpg on my first tank, so it doesnt seem to be a problem. you can get nice floormats for 90 bucks, half of which can be paid for if you do the dealer referral thing through scion life. the paint isnt really a big issue if you dont abuse the car. and i agree with captain tC, the box has a sort of negative connotation to it lol.

but in the end, its up to you, just thought id let you have my opinion

 

test drove the xb, tc and mazda3 (5-door), all 5-speeds, and the choice was pretty clear. the xb as a standard was quick enough to get out of its own way, but wouldn't want to see it as a auto. the tC just had so much more for only a couple thousand more: stock 17" alloys, bigger engine, better feeling clutch/shifter, sunroof (moonroof?), independent rear suspension (does the xb have this?), etc. Drive them all and make up your own mind, for my gf and I the choice was pretty clear.