Scion iQ: Road Trip!

Scion graciously lent us a tenth anniversary edition iQ with BeSpoke audio system for a week. At first glance, it seems like a decent enough car for city environs even though the price is a bit steep ($19,803 for the anniversary edition). I had one misgiving, though: why does this car sport a conventional gasoline-powered drivetrain? If it’s meant to live and work in the city, where range is almost a non-issue, then why isn’t this car a hybrid? Better yet, why isn’t it a plug-in electric? But we’ll return to this in a bit.

So my fiancé and I set off from Los Angeles to visit friends in San Francisco. Sadly though, we were driving to arrive, not for scenery or adventure. So we took the quickest route: traveling north on the 405, jumping on the 5 and then into SF via 580 and the Bay Bridge. The route is a bit boring as it’s basically a hill climb and descent, 300 miles of flat lands and another hill climb and descent. But even though the route wasn’t too exciting, the peppy iQ did not disappoint. I wouldn’t call the car fast but the 94 hp (!), 1.3L four-cylinder always provided enough power to pass, even close to its top speed of 105 mph.

The Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) that we’ve found less than endearing in other Toyota products (see our Lexus ES300h review, here) was a non-issue in this car. It felt like an automatic transmission that was properly geared and always at the correct ratio. The BeSpoke audio system is clear, strong and we enjoyed singing along with the iPod, connected via Bluetooth, all the way from the Grapevine to the Bay.

Each of the California Central Valley’s 300 identical miles came and went without a landmark to distinguish them. With regard to the Scion, I did take exception to the aforementioned lack of range. Equipped with a fuel tank the size of a thimble (OK, it has an eight-point-five gallon fuel tank) and averaging just over thirty miles-per-gallon we had to stop for fuel twice since we set out with less than a quarter tank! Which makes us wonder again why Toyota has bothered with a gasoline engine if the range is so short? I’d like to go at least three hundred miles without refueling. Granted that 300 miles is an arbitrary number, but the 240 miles covered between fill-ups seems miserably insufficient. At least the substandard range did allow for multiple snack stops.

The majority of the drive was sunny and clear. However, approaching Tracy, storm clouds gathered and finally exploded as we passed through Livermore. Buckets of rain poured down on us and the iQ’s short wheelbase caused me to worry that a hint of hydroplaning would result in a Pioneer turntable-like spin. My fears were baseless and we never even felt the traction control kick in. Crossing from Treasure Island (it’s a real place) to San Francisco the clouds cleared and the sun shined down on the second span of the Bay Bridge.

Saturday was spent with my friend Joe and his family at a beach just north of the Palace of Fine Arts, followed by a Singaporean dinner in a restaurant with questionable service. The following morning we toured my friend’s manufacturing facility (he builds amazing carbon fiber guitars) and then brunched (is that a word?) with another friend. It was a good time, but it revealed another flaw in the iQ’s design.

My earlier complaints about range and drivetrain might be forgiven as it is a city car. But for this type of car to lack concealed storage is mind-boggling. The trunk of the iQ is non-existent, in fact, all we could fit was a bag of Doritos, a package of Chips Ahoy (we’re health nuts) and my fiancé’s small purse. This may sound like hyperbole about a Pagani, but it’s true. And while it does have rear seats large enough for a couple of bags they’d be visible to everybody who might walk by. Listen up, Scion: the iQ needs some sort of cargo cover, it’s that simple. I had to lug our bag and camera gear everywhere we went because I was afraid someone might break into the iQ.

It was a fun weekend with friends in central California. But the lack of range and particularly secure storage left us dissatisfied and wondering if, for the $19,803 price tag, Scion couldn’t have done a bit better? But overall, the car was great—it had some guts, was entertaining and lively, turned on a dime at low speeds and could park in spaces normally reserved for larger atomic molecules.