After living with my Xa for about 10,000 miles - driving it daily at least 70 miles I can say that I now have an honest opinion of the car. Interested in hearing from some of you out there. I could not find an Xa "general" category,, which is where this post should be. But before I get to the dislikes,, I would like to start with the "likes".
1) I actually like the style and looks of the car.
2) I have had a lot of cars and this is one of the most comfortable seating I have owned.
I can get in and easily clip the seatbelt with my full utility belt on. I did have to remove the center arm-rest/console. If anyone wants it,, it will sell it - reasonable.
3) Great sound system for a stock unit.
4) Love the gas mileage. Constantly average 36-38 - non highway - rush hour traffic.
5) Ride is OK, considering the wheelbase.
6) Great option list for the price.
7) It is one of the only car's it's size (that I am aware of) that has rear seat doors.
It is a Toyota product and should prove to be dependable.
9) Maintenance is at a minimum with 5k oil changes,, and almost never trans oil changes. Timing chain has replaced the old 60k timing belts.

WHAT WOULD I CHANGE - if I could.
1) The position of the switch for adjusting the mirror - What were they thinking -or not?
2) Absolutely needs a telescopic steering wheel. I wear a 36" sleeve (uniform shirt) and have a "reach" for the wheel. My wife loves the car,, but can't drive it for any real length of time without her shoulders bothering her. What were they thinking - or not?
3) Cruse control would be nice.
4) Fold down arm-rests for driver and passenger. The center box (which I removed) is just too restricting with the seatbelt.

Ya know,, that is about it for me.

.. Yes, I would like disc brakes all around,, but with the weight and power of this car,, they are sufficient.
.. Yes,, some of you are going to say more HP,,, but that is always a trade-off for economy. If I wanted performance,, or more performance,, I would not have bought the Xa.

Guess I really like the car.
What do you all think??

 

Likes: Aggressive styling, nimble handling when a Rear Swaybar is installed, list of standard features, center guages

Dislikes: Needs more power, Needs a sixth gear, Needs a tilt/telescopic steering wheel and a seat with more adjustments for us tall people, Needs an engine coolant temperature guage, Factory option sunroof, more rear seat room/ trunk space, Should have taken that fold flat front seat from a Matrix to better utilize hauling compasity, Better design of the rear quater panels/rear door (those damn bulges catch all of the road crap), Seperate High-Low Beam headlights with a better housing or a projector style houseing(horrible to drive this car at nite), O and MUCH MUCH better paint (My front end looks like sh*t because of this crappy paint yet my Dad's 98 Camry looks in better shape than my car), And how about fixing problems with the car before selling it in the US or issue the proper recall on the car (The crap I went through to get the EVAP system fixed is unacceptable, if I wanted Bullcrap from my car I wouldn't have bought a Toyota....very dissapointed).

 

WoW
And you still have it????
Out of curiosity,, how old are you??

 

i have my xb and i love it. But if i had the extra dough, i would get the 08 xb.....

 

My main issue withthis car is the CRAPPY TANNY!!!! I HATE IT!!! Its cluky, chunky, rough, unsmooth, incredibly short, in dying need of a 6th gear and to top it off not even a short shifter fixes the problem. I say throw the thing out and get something better!! The rest of the car i can deal with, but the tranny ____es me off more every single day. I run out of transmission ALL the time, the extra boost from the turbo makes the transmission USELESS!! The telescopic steering wheel would help us tall people out ALOT!!

I really love the front look of the car when you slam it to the floor and get wider tires. I love hatchbacks, so this car is for ME!!

 

the echo had a sport version, with a 6 speed tranny that is plug-and play w/ the xa/xb if memory serves me correctly.

 

boy i love my xA i have no cons about it, i don't think it needs a 6th gear, its just closer to peak power right where it should be...

 

Well if you look over to the side above my avatar you'll see I'm 21....I still have the damn car because 1)I've averaged about a car a year in the past and need to slow down with changeing cars 2) The car is fully paid off 3)Nothing else is out yet that I want to trade the car in for and 4) My biggest reason is right now I'm saving up to get a place, and that outweights my desire to start over again with another car.

I agree with you on the tranny issue JSosa....As hard as I try I can never get the damn 1-2 shift smooth...rediculous. The Corsport Cable and Shift Base bushings help take out all of the slack in the shifter action... and killed the issue of not being able to get into second because the soft rubber bushings would allow the shifter to mover to far over and not be able to go into the gate.

I was reminded today of the ____ poor motor mounts that allow this damn engine to buck back and forth so violently.....rediculous and should be nonexistant. I also can't stand the rediculous wheel hop whenever the front wheels loose traction. I've had much more powerful cars with much wider and stickier rubber and non of them had wheelhop...yet this little windup car with stock rubber will violently shake and bang if your not carefull with your traction....... Again very dissapointed Toyota.

 

Thanks for the replies,, guys. This is the first auto trans I have had in a long, long time. Have had about 40 cars. Super fast high performance to sports cars. This is just what I needed to slow me down. Guess we are all looking for something different,, but I like the car - though as I said,, I wish a few small items could be different.. BUT,, I am loving the 36-38 consistent MPG!!!!

 

The oil and coolant temps should be there.....
the wheel hop is disturbing
a 6th gear so im not running 4k rpms at 80mph

 

What tires are you running? Not sure why your rpms are so different than mine. I am exactly 3400rpm @80mph.

 

was running stock tires when i wrote that....and i have the 5 speed.

 

Love the shape and I hate the motor..

 

I hated the looks of the average Xa before I saw an RS1.I was looking for fuel economy and Toyota reliability;hence the Xa /Rs1,as well as a sporty looking car with a sunroof,I found it all in the RS1!!Dislikes; Steering wheel sucks,too big ,there are no gauges to inhibit you view so why such a big cheap wheel?The wheel on Matrix/Corolla would have been perfact.Telescopic steering wheel.Personally thats about it ,I hate the suspension and audio ,but Im changing those,that gives you the Scion individuality as far as what you want to do .Gas mileage on highway should be better.Hmm I think thats it...I absolutly love this car otherwise,I havent had this much fum since my Bmw 320i or Vw Gti first gen.