midtowndesi

What a surprise! From my previous post, I had 9,900 miles on my 2013 xb at the end of October 2014 and I checked yesterday... I am now at 9,998 miles - just shy of 10k. I just can't believe i've only put 98 miles on it in the last 4 months!

still loving the car although now i want the backup camera that comes standard on the 2015s

I bought the car at the end of march 2013 and i'm coming up on the 2 year mark. I've gone in for 2 free oil changes so far (i know, i didn't need to due to mileage) and plan to go in for a 3rd and final free oil change in the upcoming weeks just go get in one last "free" oil change.

The car has held up well during this insane winter. my only concern has been parking next to / on ice/snow mounds which makes me nervous that im going to rip off my side skirts or front/rear bumpers... knock on wood, no issues so far. i've driven it in snow without a problem although i cringe when i drive over a "high" snow mound and i hear crunching noises under my car as i go over them... nothing insane but they're maybe 4-5 inches high.... luckily, nothing has happened so im relieved!

on my list of "wanted to dos but haven't done yet" is 1) install the cargo net which i literally bought 2 years ago and 2) make my own diy cargo cover and 3) make a new phone mount since i went from the iphone 5 to the ipad mini aka iphone 6+ ... just haven't gotten around to it.....

midtowndesi

filthy, filthy, FILTHYYYYY!!

midtowndesi

hi all! back with a tiny update.

now at around 11k miles after about 2 years and 4 months of ownership :D zero problems so far, still purring like a kitten.

saw this on youtube and wanted to build something like this for my xb for the upcoming winter!


and this is the hitch i would get - http://www.etrailer.com/hitch-2012_Scion_xB.htm

Anybody try anything like this or know any xb owners that have? I dont plan on towing anything - just pushing snow with the sweet diy plow in the above video... let's see what happens!

midtowndesi

@12,500 miles now. So I put 2500 miles on it in the past 10 months :-X lol...

Took a nice long (all highway) drive yesterday and still loving how she purrs. Along the way, I ran into several white boxes but only took pics with a couple of them

I also installed an eTrailer class 2 hitch yesterday (this one http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitc...cleid=20139848 ) and will be building a "hitch plow" in a few days. I saw the idea on youtube (here's an updated video)
I think its brilliant. I'll be plowing a small, short driveway, so i think a plow similar to the one above should be no problem for the box. stayed tuned for pics of that!

Here are some pics from yesterday - sorry for the filth in advance, I don't drive it much. I haven't washed her in a while








*** Edit - The car was so filthy that I actually went and got it washed, waxed and vaccumed yesterday after work. now she's shining like new :D

midtowndesi

So, I made the snow plow like in the video above and.... IT WORKS!

A huge storm here just ended and we got over 2 feet of snow in total. as it fell today, i went out with my xb and the plow and pushed a ton of snow away with it and it worked PERFECTLY. This is such a back saver!!! and a money saver! plowing in my area costs $100 per storm which adds up over the course of the winter.

i made one mistake - i waited for almost a foot of snow to pile up before using the plow. next time around, if we are going to get this much snow, i will plow each time 4 inches piles up. the reason why is because i got stuck a couple of times on my driveway in high snow areas but i was only stuck for a few minutes at a time. i put 2x4's under the tires and i was out.

this is a nice, cheap, ugly, ghetto? and crazy thing but it worked perfectly for me! the point of it is not to clean the entire driveway and leave it spotless. i built this thing to move a MAJORITY of the snow, saving my back, so i can then go back with a shovel/salt and remove the little that's left. because of the "shoes" that i put under the plow to reduce friction, the plow leaves maybe a 1/2 inch of snow on the ground which i am more than happy with! i'd rather shovel 1/2 inch of snow than 4" inches! or in todays case, almost 1 foot of snow! this thing saved my back today!

total cost:
tow hitch - $200
hitch extender - $30
wood/bolts for the plow- $150
total was $380.

i could have brought a snowblower but with this thing, i am sitting comfortably (and warm) in my car and simply driving in reverse. i literally reversed down my 70 foot driveway in one go and it moved all the snow to one side. i then went back up the driveway, and did the same thing again to get the other half of the driveway. literally a couple of minutes of backing up and most of the snow has been pushed aside!

a huge thanks to RichInMN1975 on youtube for making this thing. I literally followed his recipe for the plow and i made one just like his.

AND NOW WHAT ALWAYS SEEMS TO BE THE BEST PART: PICS!!

MR_LUV

Hi midtowndesi, that's a nice Super White xB you have there. I thought your snow plow idea was ingenious.
You must have been an Engineer in a former life.

Quick Question, I must have miss something in your pages, forgive me, but Where are the Snow pictures taken?

That's not the Cupertino, CA that I know.

midtowndesi

thanks so much. the plow idea was from a guy on youtube. he has a near 300-foot long driveway and the same setup (in terms of wood used, etc) worked well for him. my driveway is long but nowhere near 300 feet so i thought the setup would be ideal. i used it for the first time during a crazy blizzard in january and it worked perfectly


pics are from the northeast

MR_LUV

Hey, maybe, when you were back there, with so much snow, you show run a snow plow service shoveling driveways.
If your doing it anyways, why not earn a few bucks? $$

MR_LUV

If you are not interested in a Snow Shoveling Service, I have an Idea you can do with your Super White when you get back to Cali.
It's a Winner!

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midtowndesi

Hahahha, that's gr8 man but I would probably eat everything in the food truck/box

midtowndesi

hi all. hope your rides are treating you all well.

after 3.5 years of ownership, i'm at 19,200 miles now. i've been driving more than i have been in my entire life and managed to put 7k miles on it in the last 11 months. i know this is still a very low # but i am not used to driving so much! although skewed, i am putting on 5,500 miles per year on the car since i bought it

This thing still purrs like the day i got it and still have had no issues at all with it. I am going in for yet another oil change at about 20k miles. i really need to get it detailed bc there is dirt thats 'stuck' to the roof of the car and in other places. i take it for a wash infrequently (not good) so i think it's about time to get it detailed/waxed. aside from that, i keep it at 63 on cruise control and enjoy the ride/purring ;)

capgrover

Have had my 09 xb since 08 and have never had one single problem with it besides regular maint. and it has 151,000 miles on it. Very reliable

midtowndesi

beautiful! i love hearing stories like this thank you for sharing and wishing you 151k more miles of reliability!




An aside: I bought both front and rear brake pads for $125 (shipping included). I found a local shop to install them for $150 but haven't gone yet - I'm still 2mm in the clear :D

midtowndesi

hi all, just another check in. Im at almost 4 years of ownership (4 years will be at the end of march 2017). I just passed 22,500 miles on my ride.

no news other than the fact that i replaced the brake pads. I paid $125 for all the pads and had them replaced for $150 at a local shop. he said the rotors need to be replaced too but they could wait. so the next time i do the brakes, it will be new rotors + new pads.

lastly, the stock crappy tires are wearing thin - and i have only put 22k miles on them! when it warms up (march/april), i am heading to costco and having 4 new tires put on.

aside from that, everything is fine with the car so far and im loving the reliability (considering i drive it so little lol).

happy new year all.

XBroker

Seems odd you'd need new pads (and rotors) w/ such low miles. The thing only weighs 3k pounds. Given it's 4 wheel disk and ceramic, you should have gotten a lot more miles out of the brakes. Who told you you needed them?

Enjoy following your thread as I've considered seemingly nonrelated vehicles that I passed on (lexus ES350) and ended up w/ the xB and keeping my 01 Camry as my snow car. Going to be looking into that trailer hitch. Have to call them to see if this RS has any peculiarities from other xB's.

I'm enjoying my 2011 that I purchased w/ 42k or so miles. I actually want a second; but I wouldn't likely be thinking that way if they were still making them.

midtowndesi

perhaps it's my driving style that wears them out so quickly? I had an xb1 and recall replacing rotors AND brake pads at like 15k miles in and then i did the pads again around 32k miles, if i recall correctly... these cars (both my old xb1 and current xb2) roll so effortlessly that i am applying the brakes a lot during my stop and go driving where i live. when i let off the gas in other cars, the tranny gear keeps the car either at speed or makes it go slightly slower. in these xb's, you let off the gas and the car still feels like it's moving so quickly as though you are giving gas... it runs like a top!

I think it's a combo of both my driving style + how fast these cars roll. i am not a speed demon but stopping the car takes a lot of effort... this is why i think i need to replace the pads/rotors. the stop and go driving is probably why im getting such horrendous gas mileage haha. i get between 22 and 23mpg with my tires inflated higher for better rolling performance...

who told me i needed them = the reputable shop that i trust. so it looks like in 10k or 15k miles, i will be replacing all rotors and pads. i can resurface if they're not so shot but prefer the piece of mind of buying all new.

glad to hear another car buyer picking the xb over other cars. I could have gotten another mercedes or lexus etc but do not want headaches! i dont like visiting the dealer often for "minor" technical problems as i have a busy life (WE ALL DO!). This and the bang for the buck appeal made me decide on another xb. in all seriousness, when the lease on my mercedes ended, i was considering either an s550 or ML350 and i test drove both. i wanted the s550 very badly but when i recalled the horrible experience i had with the fully-loaded e350 i had, it didnt make sense to me. Why pay so much for a car that's just adding headaches to your life? aint nobody got time for that!!!

I want another xb too maybe a 2015 model with the backup camera! this is the only feature i find myself wanting but can go without it.

Enjoy your 2011 ride. My family is growing but i am adamant that i want to keep the xb for as long as i can!!!

midtowndesi

2 weeks shy of having owned my xb for 4 years and i am at 24,500 miles only .

took it for an oil change today ($23 w/a car wash )

i had read online that even though a car may have low miles, the fluids in it (brake fluid, tranny fluid, coolant) would lose their strength over time and should be replaced.I talked to a couple people at the dealer about it and they said it would basically be a waste of money if i got those things done bc the miles are so low on my car. the one tech kept saying it will be based on the mileage of the car, not the age of the fluids.

having said all that, i just had the oil changed and that was it.


i also went to costco to find replacement tires. i have such few miles on the car and never rotated the tires so they are pretty worn now. so i ordered 4 Bridgestone Turenza serenity plus.the tires are $112 each but costco had $70 off of 4 tires so i paid $502 after tax for 4 tires + install etc. tires were ordered today and will be installed on tuesday. i asked for the quietest + most affordable tires for the xb and these tires have great reviews online for being very quiet and perform great in mixed weather (rain/snow). so i have my fingers crossed that they will make my xb a tiny bit quieter only thing i need to have done is an alignment soon after the tires get installed. again, with so few miles on the xb, i kept putting off getting the alignment done bc it's not misaligned too terribly.

no other issues to report. this winter was bad but luckily i dont drive too far so the worn tires held up fine surprisingly haha

i hope everyone is well. cheers!

midtowndesi

here she is! 24.5k miles, oil is changed, just got tires put on! thanks costco!

i just need to get an alignment and i am set for the spring/summer!

midtowndesi

I'll call this my end-of-summer post

Owned the box for 4 years and 5 months now and im at 28,500 miles.

I plan to get the oil changed / tires rotated in September sometime.

Speaking of tires, i've put about 4k miles on my new tires and I cannot recommend them enough (details are in above post(s)). I drive around now and the car is so much quieter than before. There's definitely noise there still but on certain blacktop roads, this thing is quiet like a mercedes The tires were "pricey" for tires you put on an economy car but I feel they were absolutely worth it now that i've put months of driving onto them.

i highly recommend you get the tires from costco too (if you're a member). if something happens to your tires, costco will replace it and prorate you a certain $ for the remaining tread on your blown tire. this is the best.

hope everyone is well.

midtowndesi

4 years and 9 months i've had the car and im at 29,700 miles.

oil change done - $53 paid for oil change + tire rotation + car wash. this is the "most expensive" oil service i've paid for so far on my xb i usually pay $21 just for an oil change.

anyway, the car is purring like a kitten again dealer said brakes, battery, etc all look good. loving how cheap this thing is to care for!!!!!!!!!!!