Whats u guys take on it pro's nad con's? my cousin brags his elemnt is water proof material inside dunno how true that statement is. but the elements suicide doors were pretty cool(if only that was on the xB).

 

those doors are ok, but kinda useless in my opinion. You have to open the front doors b4 you can open the rear doors!! It defeats the purpose of having a 4 door!!

 

I hate those suicide doors...

you need to open the front doors for the people to get out of the back...you can't roll down the windows, they're the sucky pop-outs. On the Scion the rear windows go ALL the way down.

Also, if you're in the back seat of an element you can't see anything but the B-pillar.
it's an ok car, but no comparison to Scion.

 

These two vehicles shouldn't even be compared--it's apples and oranges.

They aren't even in the same class--people constantly make comparisons just because they are "boxy".

 

yeh i know.............but "boxy" should be its own category

 

yeh, i compared the two. personally i think the scion owns it. its a 1000lbs lighter, has teh standard keyless entry, holds more resale value after 3 years, has more options, and i forgot a few more.

but im comparing the base model element to the scion

 

Now that the Scion xB is out all I think when an Element drives by is "ugly". I have checked them out and all the seat positions can be cool, but being able to hose down the interior is really unnecessary IMO. If they removed the body clad panels and painted the whole thing it can look pretty sweet though, as I recently saw from an auto show where Honda had a custom one painted all black.

I'll still take my xBox over it though.

 

^^^ yeah... the nasty plastic body panels is a turn off for me....

 

They're two different vehicles for two different types of people.

I'd get the element if I was into many outdoor activities, planned on going off road (Element has AWD available), and planned on getting the interior of my vehicle dirty. That's what the element is for - the interior can practically be sprayed out with a hose, there's body cladding on the outside because paint would get scratched up. It's a very utilitarian vehicle, offering more horsepower and torque the the xB, more interior room, and a better transmission than Toyota could ever WISH to build.

The xB is a vehicle for people who value space, but don't plan on driving their car on the beach or off road. It's small, has a lower price, much smaller engine (although it's pretty light), and more standard features than the Element. What we sacrifice in size we get back in option, what the element sacrifices in options it makes up in sheer size. It's marketed as a tuner car, touting it the amount of customization that's available from the factory and in aftermarket accessories.

Two different cars marketed to two different types of people. Don't knock on it if it doesn't appeal to you, the Element and xB are both great cars. Unfortunately, some people around here feel as if some rivalry should exist, creating zealous hatred of the other

And to Jatt - where did you get your theory on better resale value?!?? We're talking about freakin' Honda and Toyotas - two brands that have nearly equal residual value percentages - both are amoung the highest in the industry. That's like saying that a Honda is going to be unreliable, so you should buy a Toyota!

 

i got the theory from honda's website. goto honda's website, click compare. then compare the two vehicles. after 3 years, toyota has a better resale value by 2%

no body said anything about honda being unreliable thats just assume 'ing things. which makes an ___ out of you and me. haha. ok enough jokes.

 

Wow, this conversation sounds familiar (I wonder if there was some kind of HUGE argument over on the Element forum...) :?:

 

" CANT WE ALL JUST GET ALONG " all this hatered for each other... we should all rally against our ultimated foe CARS................................BOX POWER!BOX POWER!

 

I was using if for comparison sake, to point out how ridiculous your statement was. Also, where are you getting your information - this is what I just took DIRECTLY off of Honda's website:

" (Element) ALG Residual Value after 36 months is 5% greater.
(Element) ALG Residual Value after 60 months is 7% greater. "

In other words - they're in a statistical dead heat.

 

congrats

 

Also, the Element has a better interior with much more friendly dash material, and hard surfaces. It's obvious where toyota was able to cut down on manufacturing costs on the xB - there are trim gaps everywhere (but that's to be expected in a vehicle of this price range, so it really doesn't bother me). If your a dashstroker, you'll like the Element's interior better.

 

compaing the xB and element is getting old. everyone knows they are not in the same class.

 

Exactly, there is no need to compare the two. That's like comparing a Toyota Camry and a Toyota Echo or something just because they are both sedans and have a somewhat similar shape. They are two totally different cars, they are different types of cars. One is an SUV and the other is a regular car with a box shaped shell. They are in different price ranges etc etc etc.
I really don't think anyone is gonna actually spend nights tossing and turning at night trying to decide which one to get. They both have things that the other does not, and it all depends on what you need.
Come on, enought comparing....

 

If you're going to compare the Scion to something, why not something more like the Scion to compare it to. That's what I hate about a lot of the auto mags. They like to do comparisons on such dissimilar things, like Corvette's vs Neons, etc. I even remember seeing comparisons in some mags b/w cars and airplanes (Maybach vs Gulfstream, Mustang GT vs. P-51). How ridiculous are those? What's the point? There's really nothing else on the US market that's even close to the xb.

Carpont.com goes so far as to say xB's top competitors are Malibu Maxx, Focus Wagon, Rio Cinco, Protoge5 Wagon, Impreza Wagon, and Aerio SX.

IMO, the closest thing in size/MPG/coolness factor is the Base MINI, but even that can't truly be compared. It's definitely in a different price category, and forget about interior space compared to the xB.

We could start trying to compare against non-US models, like the MB Smart, or the Nissan Cube, but we can't get them here, so who cares?

 

I would like to see a "box car" comparison in a car mag (or somewhere) with these cars:

xA
xB
Suzuki Aerio SX (FWD)
Chrysler PT Cruiser (non turbo)
Honda Element DX (FWD)
Kia Rio Cinco
Chevrolet Aveo

Maybe include these too:
Mazda 3 wagon
Ford Focus ZX5 or wagon

The base prices would range from about $13K (xA to probably around $18K for the Element). All would be manual transmission and FWD. I think it'd be an entertaining read.

 

I've seen some comparisons of the Suzuki, and the xB as well as the Aveo and the Protege5. I would definately compare the Protege5 to the xB, especially since I have one of each! I love our Protege5, but I'd much rather have my xB. Much cooler ride, with much more interior room. If I were to compare the Element to anything, (I'm quoting this from the Element argument on their board that a few of us Scion owners decided to get into) I would compare it to the Aztek. I'm not suggesting in appearance (I don't like Elements much, but Azteks are the most hidious vehicles EVER created) but in usability and versitility. Seat arrangement/movability in the Element is a cool feature not to mention the availability of 4WD. But if we're going to compare anything lets stick with the stuff in our "wagon" class, not in the "small SUV" class. We don't compare our cars to a RAV4, or a CRV, so why an Element? Let's just stick with our own class... the only thing we have in common with the Element is that they're both boxes and we should be united under that.