I'm fairly sure the xA will be my next vehicle purchase. I was originally looking at the Honda Fit, but since I want a manual, and a sport, well, you all know how difficult that can be. Couple that with the fact that I'm essentially out of a car at the end of October (my tags expire, and my car, bless her for the great vehicle she's been, just won't pass Missouri inspections) and I just don't have the time to play around with dealers.

After being ignored by Honda dealers, and pushed around by used car dealers, I decided to try a Scion dealership. Completely different experience. The salesman I am currently worknig with is a stud - and the dealership bought their own xA specifically for test drives because they can't keep them on the lot. Let me take it out by myself (huge bonus points there), and when I asked him how long I should be gone his answer was "I close at 9, so before then preferably". Offered to call me back when their next manual came in so I could drive one of those - and when I told him I wasn't going to be buying until October he didn't even flinch. In fact, he said "well that's okay because I'll still be here in October".

So yeah, on experience alone, the xA is way ahead of the game. However, I haven't been able to find as much information as I'd like, and seeing that you all seem to have been pretty honest about the shortcomings of your xA's in previous threads, I'm taking it to you.

My biggest worry is this:


It seems that the #1 complaint I've come across on user reviews is the xA being underpowered on hills. Now, I'm a 22 year old professional female with no inclination to mod my vehicle (I'm not hating, I'm just saying it's not a practical fix for me), so I need the car to do what I want it to stock. I also happen to live in the extreme southern burbs of St. Louis, which borders the Ozarks. Which means my daily commute is quite hilly.

Now, I don't mind dropping my car into 4th to keep speed on a steep hill on the highway - I have to do it now. If *that's* what the big complaint is about then it's no big deal. It's actually a pretty natural reaction for me considering where I live. It's not as bad as say, living in the mountians, but it's certianly not a typical urban commute either. I can't get up the hills in my neighborhood in anything higher than second, and if I have to slow down for another car, it's 1st.

So, from the users themselves - is this as big an issue as it's been made out to be, or just a nusiance?


My second biggest concern:

I. Put. Miles. On. Cars. I drive 40 miles round trip to work every day. My boyfriend lives in the extreme NORTH burbs of St. Louis, making our respective dwellings an hour apart. I like to roadtrip, and will drive before flying any day. So, on a day that I go to work, go to my boyfriend's, then drive home I've gone 90 miles easily in varying degrees of terrible traffic. It's also about 90 miles roundtrip from my place to his. When I go back to school in a different part of the burbs, it'll only get worse.

I'm not worried about reliability, I AM worried about durability. I know the car will last me many miles, what I don't know is how it's going to stand up to 2+ hours of driving in varying conditions 3-5 days a week. So, enlighten me - will it hold up or do I need to look elsewhere?

Thanks for any and all input. These are the two things that my decision is hinging on, and with the lack of user reviews compared to other cars in it's class, I've had trouble finding the information I needed to make a solid decision.

 

Power on hills...

I don't quite know what the hills are like in your area, but I do commend the choice of a manual transmission because the cars can lag a bit on the hills... but then again mine has 30lb rims and a sub box in the back. I personally like downshifting because the car is geared to be very peppy and it's fun to drive.

Miles...

We've got people with 100k+ miles on this website, some make 12 hour round trips at least 3-5 times a year. The best thing for any new car is to keep an eye on your fluid levels and your tire pressure just to keep the engine happy and healthy. You also might consider running synthetic oil, it's not a must, but should help keep the car going a little longer.

I would guess the best thing to do is to find out where the next manual is coming in and test drive it on some hills. I hope I've cleared up a little bit for ya.

 

Great answers, thank you.

My salesman said he had a manual coming on to his lot soon, and I'd be the first person to know about it. Unfortunatly the dealership I happened to choose is near my boyfriend's place, not mine, and as cool as the dude was I doubt he's going to let me take a car he's trying to sell that far. Heh. However, even though it's flatter around the boy's parts, I might be able to find something that'll at least give me an idea.

And where I live if you're even considering owning a 4 banger it better be a manual. Grew up driving them - the only car I owned that wasn't one was a v6 Dodge Shadow (laugh if you will but 6 horses powering that tiny body meant a pretty quick little car. too bad the classic dodge transmission problems sent it to an early grave, and me back to manuals for life.)

Good to know that lots of driving and roadtrips aren't a problem. That's actually one of the main reasons I decided to go new - as many miles as I put on cars I'd be upside down on a used car so fast it's not even funny.

 

IMHO for the hills it would be a good idea to at least go with a cold air intake and an exhaust mod shellica. My wife complains about not having enough power in it and she is a slow driver. One thing about doing those mods though is that they will pay for themselves over time in gas savings and will give you a lot better throttle response and the I'd imagine at least 20 horsies to really push you up the steep stuff. I imagine you could get an extra 3 mpg out of it if not a little more.

 

Any idea on cost or difficulty?

I *really* don't want to buy something I'm going to have to mess with to make it what I want, but if it's not a huge deal I might consider it.

 

Well the cold air intake which I will refer to CAI from now on is about a 30 minute job usually. The exhaust on the other hand if you aren't mechanically inclined and don't want to get dirty would be much more of a job and should be taken to a muffler shop. I have not researched these items on the Xa as I don't drive it and my wife most of the time couldn't care less. On the Durango (which will propably be more expensive since more materials are used) the CAI is about 230ish (That's the good stuff k&n) and a cat back exhaust is in the 250 range (flowmaster also one of the top brands) so for an Xa I'd say propably less than $600 on your car with the exhaust installed by a pro and you doing your own work with the CAI (which is EASY). One other thing I think you have the option of getting the CAI installed from the dealership before delivery as well as exhaust but I'm not too sure if the exhaust is only for cosmetics and noise or not...

 

I'm more mechanically inclined than most females in my age bracket, but I'd probably never tackle a big job myself, especially on a new car.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll definitely consider it, especially if I buy the car and find I'm not happy with performance down the road. Good stuff to know.

 

I am looking up the prices for ya right now all I can say is let that baby breath...
http://shop.knfilters.com/KNShop/Pro...?pid=69-8606TB This is a k&n setup for the 06 xa They also have a chrome tube setup same price...
The TRD exhaust is 400 on the scion website...
Well I looked around at a few sites and couldn't find much anything that was much cheaper than the TRD exhaust and you might as well go with that unless anyone else has anything to add about a better exhaust.

Pretty much the hardest thing about installing an exhaust is getting up under the car in my opinion. I like a lot of power so I'm not a huge fan of 4 cylinders but it is an ok car it can be built to have a bit of pep. I bought a Durango as my DD and for towing it has the 360 in it and is a monster up hills but the gas prices are killing me I'm spending about 280 to 300 a month where my wife is going through about $70 a month with a little less driving than me...

 

and if you can get the new AEM Dryflow airfilter, never needs to be oiled = super easy maintenece when/if needed. There's do it yourself write ups around here on this site if you do end up modding the car.

 

I live in Colorado and I haven't had trouble in the mountains. Like you said, you just downshift and make up for burning a lot of gas by coasting down the other side. Holding 75 mph up an 8% grade might not fly, but I can easily keep up with traffic.

I did an hour drive on a 75 mph highway here and I found the car was very noisy at that speed, and the ride was terrible. Gas mileage was awful as well. I think the car does best around 60-65, and can easily hold that on hills. On the upside, the seats are very comfortable on a long drive, and it's easy to drive with lots of visibility.

Hope this helps.

 

Good questions, Shell!

I would be curious to know what are some long road trips people have taken with their xAs. How far? How comfortable was everyone? driver? passenger(s)? Once mine arrives, we'll be going down to Kentucky for a weekend. And we're making plans for another road trip to South Dakota.

 

A couple of quick points...

First, I have almost 75k on my xA and it is a '05. I do LOTS of driving as my wife is a professional cyclist. Our road trips have been anywhere from 2 hrs up. Her family is in WI and mine is in MI...we live in Chattanooga, TN. Over Christmas, the xA is driven to both places and back. That's 10 hours up...5 hours over...and another 10 hours back home. I've never had ANY problems with the long distances. I tend to drive fast...80-85. The biggest thing you will need to realize about the car, and your mpg, is that the mpg is DIRECTLY related to how quickly you accelerate. I have seen the same gas mileage whether I drive 65 or 85 on the hwy. It's not about how fast you go; it's how quick you go fast that will kill the mpg!

Second, on the hill issue. There is maybe one stretch of flat road a couple of miles long here and that's it. Everything else is either up a mtn or down the backside. I have a manual and other than downshifting, going up the mtns isn't a problem.

About the only thing that bothered me on my initial driving was the fact at 80 mph you are turning 4k on the tach and constantly feeling like you need another gear to shift into. After you get used to the high rev motor, however, you don't notice it. Remember, this is a small footprint of a car...it has all the advantages and disadvantages of such design...

hope this helps...


Mark

 

I bought my car in April, and I've already got close to 7500 miles on her. Roughly 1800-something miles a month.

I've driven to the Jersey shore a couple times; Long Island, NY; The Outer Banks in NC; and I've done a few other random trips as well. The Drive to NC was the longest one to date, at around 7 hours, but I never had any problems with comfort. I only stopped once to get gas in Salisbury, MD, and that was my only stop. Actually, wait... I stopped just before crossing the Bay-Bridge tunnel so I could wash the car.

I'd look into cruise control if you're a big roadtripper - I wish I had it.

My average for MPG hovers around 31-32 MPG, and I'm no granny-footed driver. I enjoy the occasional blast through the gears, and I do 75-80 on the highway. My best tank to date was 37 MPG on my way back from the ScionLife BBQ in Maryland.

 

This is exactly the kind of feedback I was hoping for - thank you everyone and keep it coming! I'm not concerned with being the speediest thing on the road, just with being able to keep up with traffic.

Matt - If your xA doesn't give you trouble in Colorado, I doubt I'll have trouble with it in Missouri. Thanks for the awesome feedback. I figured the car might not handle as well at higher speeds, but that's pretty typical of the vehicles I've owned and I've gotten used to engine noise and the like when on a 70mph highway.

Mark - I live in MO and I have family in GA, MI, and my goddaughter is in TX. Lots of roadtrips in my future. Looks like you've done similar drives with no problems - thanks for you input. Is the engine turning 4k because it's straining at those speeds, or is that just how it's geared? My current car turns about 3-3.5 at 80 so that would be an adjustment, but so long as it's not straining the engine, not one I can't get over. Thanks for your input on hills too - this is by far my biggest concern.

Zillion - I already discussed cruise with my dealer. They do it on site so it's an option I will more than likely get. I don't have it in my current car, and roadtrips get kind of brutal without it (not to mention buring more gas with an uneven foot). I can definitely live without it, but if I'm buying a new car, I'll spend the extra few hundred to have it. You can probably get it installed at your Scion dealer still if it's an option you really want. Thanks for the other awesome feedback.

 

the car is simply geared to be agressive at lower gears and that's why you'll be running at around 3.5k going 65-70mph. I can suggest getting a silencer if you get an exhaust, it'll drone a bit under the stress of hills and heavy loads in 5th gear.

 

I drive 20K-25K a year on business, and love my XA so far. I went thru the same thoughts with the Honda vs. Scion, but after being ignored 3 times trying to get info at my local Honda dealer, I went back to Toyota where after 20 years they have treated me wonderful. I had read about how underpowered the XA was, but my experience is quite the opposite. I live in Pa. on the top of a very hilly neighborhood, and it is no problem at all. The only complaint, and it is very minor, is the short wheelbase makes it "buck" a little mor over the interstate strips than my Passat that the XA replaces. I do have the 5 spd., hope that helps, pm me if you wish more details, always glad to help.