Autoblog

When Toyota's youth brand was born, there was an unwritten rule that it wouldn't grow beyond three models. Years later, Scion is an unqualified success having sold 170,000 units of the xA, xB and tC last year, which has Toyota execs wondering if just a few more units could be sold with a fourth model. The Car Connection got Scion's corporate manager Steve Haag to admit his brand does need to expand. Haag told TCC, "We have to offer more products, (though) we want to remain small."

Though a fourth vehicle, if produced, would still have to be an entry-level model to be called a Scion, Haag hinted that it would likely be something bigger and more expensive than what Scion currently offers. Haag also acknowledged that despite the green image of parent company Toyota, Scion models aren't fuel efficient enough to attract environmentally conscious car shoppers. As such, Scion could get its own hybrid as a fourth model.

The question is can Scion sell 200,000 units a year with its current three-model lineup, which includes the redesigned xB, all-new xD and tC, or will a fourth be needed to break through the ceiling? What type of model do you think Scion should sell next, or should it nix a fourth car and concentrate on improving the three it currently sells?

[Source: TCC]

For the first 255 days of 2006, Scion sold more than 151,000 cars. Next year, the youth-oriented brand plans to sell even fewer. The Wall Street Journal reports that Toyota plans to limit its youth brand's sales to a year-long total of only 150,000 vehicles next year. Toyota hopes that by keeping Scion a hard-to-obtain product, the brand can retain some of its underground coolness. Hmmm... that's the same kind of strategy used by brand's like Bentley to keep its car's ultra exclusive.

Limiting sales is a pretty big gamble for any brand, but is an especially big gamble for one selling essentially economy cars that most other carmakers sell at a loss. Add in the two new models Scion will have on lots next spring, and the stakes climb even higher. Only a company with pockets as deep as Toyota could run such a marketing experiment without much trepidation.

To further enhance that can't-have-it appeal, Scion is expected to move away from advertising on the "too mainstream" MySpace and instead focus its online efforts on Secondlife. Scion may also totally shun TV advertising, though its TV presence was limited to begin with. It's a novel way to pitch cars to the ever-elusive youth crowd that could just be crazy enough to work.

[Source: The Wall Street Journal via Inside Line]

They miss the Yugo, godblessum. Those wacky guys at Slate long for the days when a new car could be had for less than the price of a modern television set. Surveying the bargain basement offerings of the automotive world, they found that only the Chevy Aveo can be had for under 10 grand, let alone the four thousand bucks a Yugo stickered for 20 years ago. Even at an adjusted-for-inflation price of $7500, the Yugo GV earns its initials and indeed represents a Great Value. Well, you get what you pay for. Anyway, Slate rounded up a field of econoboxes for a brief comparison test to see what you can realistically expect at the bottom end of the scale.

Slate's Seth Stevenson, an admitted cheapskate who drives a '96 Saturn with 103,000 miles on it, laments the fact that the lowest rung of the car market actually spans $12,000 to $17,000 nowadays. But what exactly do you get for that much cash? More than some might guess in a few cases. Mainly in response to escalating gas prices, several automakers have brought thrifty new models out to make the bargain hunters happy. Slate tried out the Saturn Ion, the Kia Rio, the Nissan Versa, the Scion xA, the Toyota Yaris, and the Honda Fit. When he went in to rent a Chevy Aveo, the counter agent told him, "You do not want to drive that car." So he skipped it. We don't want to spoil the rankings, but after trying cars that were too boring, too jerky, and even too flashy, he finally found one that was a perfect fit. Click through for the car-by-car reviews.

Thanks for helping us fill our slate, smj!

[Source: Slate]