SANTA MONICA, CA – It can be hard to get excited about a subcompact sedan and compact hatchback.
But for the starved-for-product Scion brand, they’re just what the doctor ordered.
The iA B-car, derived from a new platform Toyota shares with Mazda, and the iM, a derivative of the popular European Toyota Auris 5-door, go on sale Sept. 1 and that’s just in time.
Scion hasn’t had a new model in three years, since the debut of the FR-S sports car.
The Toyota youth brand once thought it could sell 20,000 of those per year, but that hasn’t panned out.
To make matters worse, the xD subcompact has been discontinued, as has the iQ microcar, so the 5-year-old tC and 8-year-old xB have had to pull a lot of weight.
But while sales of both are up this year, volume is small. Plus, Scion just announced this is the final year for the xB, so the brand desperately needs the iA and iM to stay above water.
The good news is both new cars are above-average entrants in their respective segments with class-up interior materials and lots of standard tech content that today’s millennials expect.
The bad news is they’re underpowered relative to competitors, and sales-wise B- and C-cars are lagging this year, with gas below $3.50 per gallon in most of the U.S.
But the brand figures its core target group, those under 35, still needs stylish, reliable transportation.
New iA Mazda-Engineered Model
The iA is the first model launched in the U.S. off the Mazda B-car platform Toyota is using for the next-gen Yaris.
The first thing one notices about the iA is its gaping mouth, which seems to be a design trend at Toyota (exhibit A: the Mirai fuel-cell vehicle, exhibit B: every Lexus).
It’s a divisive look, but it makes the car stand out in the segment that has models with less-expressive faces.
Not surprisingly, the car handles a lot like a Mazda2. Mazda led engineering of the iA, although Toyota says it had input on tuning.
Southern California’s Topanga Canyon is more suited to wringing out a BMW i8 than a subcompact 4-door, but the iA handles the numerous curves well enough.
We notice an intermittent vibration on a flat, straight stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, but it is hard to tell if this is road imperfection or a chassis deficiency.
The iA has MacPherson-strut front and torsion-beam rear suspensions. The latter can inspire terror in the hearts of driving enthusiasts, but Scion says a U-shaped beam, chassis mounting points and bushings help boost agility.
Not that it really needs much help to move. The tiny car (roughly 2,400 lbs. [1,089 kg]) is naturally flingable.
The iA’s steering rack is mounted to the chassis without any bushings for improved road feel, Scion says.
Steering weight is just right, firming up nicely in higher-speed runs with frequent steering inputs.
The iA uses Mazda’s 1.5L Skyactiv 4-cyl. with direct injection, making 106 hp at 6,000 rpm and 103 lb.-ft. (140 Nm) of torque at 4,000 rpm.
Those figures are decent enough for flat roads, but the 1.5L is definitely challenged on the steeper hills of Calabasas and Malibu, even as we’re able to row our own gears in the 6-speed manual model.
Our fuel economy reflects the challenging terrain, as a 32-mpg (7.4-L/100 km) average is shy of the 35-mpg (6.7-L/100 km) estimated combined figure.
The iA is reasonably roomy. Scion touts its trunk space, slightly above the C-segment Toyota Corolla.
Total passenger volume of 85.9 cu.-ft. (2.4 cu.-m) edges out the Ford Fiesta 4-door, but is shy of the Hyundai Accent’s 89.7 cu.-ft. (2.5 cu.-m) of space.
iM Euro-Style Compact Hatch
The iM wears the same design language as the Auris, contrasting with the iA’s big mouth. The iM has a thin, wide grille and wedge shape from the A-pillar forward. In the rear, the D-pillar is raked steeply forward and the hatch door is rounded.
The car is 6 ins. (152 mm) shorter than the last compact hatchback Toyota retailed in the U.S., the Corolla-based Matrix, but about the same width.
The iM with its 6MT is a blast, which is no surprise as the Auris is a well-regarded model in Europe.
The wide and low car carves up the legendary Los Angeles County canyons with ease, remaining flat and balanced in the process.
The iM has MacPherson-strut front suspension and double-wishbone rear suspension, with front and rear stabilizer bars. The front’s is the bigger of the two, at 23.2 mm (0.9 ins.) in diameter.
The hatchback is powered by Toyota’s 1.8L DOHC 4-cyl. from the Corolla Eco variant, making 137 hp at 6,100 rpm and 126 lb.-ft. (171 Nm) of torque at 4,000 rpm in the iM.
Those are decent numbers, but the competition is stronger with the Ford Focus and Mazda3 5-doors using 2.0L fours churning out 160 hp and 146 lb.-ft. (198 Nm) of torque and 155 hp and 150 lb.-ft. (203 Nm) of torque, respectively, at similar peaks.
The iM engine is better matched to the 6-speed manual transmission than to the optional CVT with its seven fake gears. Even though the CVT allows for manual control of the gears, downshifting at most times doesn’t bring the torque necessary to breeze up the steep hills here.
In Sport mode, the CVT-equipped iM’s engine audibly droned virtually nonstop. Maybe the targeted Gen-Y audience won’t mind.
After testing the CVT and 6MT models, we get used to the iM’s electric power steering, which errs too light at medium speeds, but does firm-up on the highway.
Most of our route is stop-and-go, and our fuel economy is on par with or a tad below city estimates.
In a ’16 iM with a CVT and an average speed of 32 mph (51 km/h) we earn 27 mpg (8.7 L/100 km), just below the car’s 28-mpg (8.4-L/100 km) estimated city average.
Late-day traffic saps what was a 37-mpg (6.4-L/100 km) average in the iM manual model down to 27 mpg.
Interiors Have Upmarket Materials, Features
Scion emphasizes buyers will get premium interior materials in the iA and iM, including soft-touch skins and contrast stitching.
The iA has nylon woven fabrics on seats and door panels and lots of tech-y looking trim pieces. We count three distinct designs, all glossy or matte black with two approximating carbon fiber.
Much of the iA’s interior is easily identifiable as coming from the Mazda parts bin, although that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
The handsome touchscreen trimmed in chrome sitting TV-like atop the center stack looks better than the iM’s integrated screen.
A misfire is the iA’s headliner, using what we’ll call shaved rat fur. The iM’s headliner is textured to resemble pricier circular knit, and its plastic pillar trim is textured too, a feature not always found in vehicles costing twice as much.
Fit-and-finish is good in our pre-production models. The only flub is flashing on the iM CVT’s passenger-side door pocket.
Ergonomics are decent in both cars. Most controls are within easy reach. However, the iM’s radio buttons and knobs surrounding the iM’s touchscreen are tiny and closely spaced.
Confirming the belief of yours truly that cheap seats are best, seating comfort is high in both models, with the iA’s driver’s seat having especially good lumbar and thigh support.
Both cars’ backseats have generous legroom, but the iM’s low roofline intrudes on outboard-seat headroom.
Lots of Standard Content Trumps Competition
In keeping with Scion tradition, both cars are mono spec, with no grade strategy. In keeping with Scion’s claims both are better than basic econoboxes, standard features include not only air conditioning, power windows and doors, 60/40 split rear seats and remote keyless entry, but also a backup camera, Bluetooth, a touchscreen audio system, voice recognition, multiple USB ports and Aha, Pandora and Stitcher music apps.
Six airbags come on every iA and eight are standard on the iM.
The iA also has as standard a low-speed pre-collision system that will apply the brakes if it detects a hazard ahead at speeds of 2-18 mph (3-29 km/h).
A secondary collision reduction system, also standard, means if the iA strikes a vehicle ahead, the car’s hazards will come on to warn the driver behind.
Navigation is optional on both the iA and iM.
The compact hatchback has many elective body add-ons, including side moldings and, coming later this year, a rear spoiler and rear diffuser. Toyota Racing Development (TRD) accessories available for the iM include lowering springs and a sway bar.
Pricing, not inclusive of a $795 destination and handling charge, begins at $18,460 for the iM with manual and $19,200 for the iM CVT, while the iA starts at $15,700 for the manual grade and $16,800 for the optional 6-speed automatic.
The iA and iM’s starting prices don’t undercut all their competitors, which Scion considers for the iA to be the Chevy Sonic LT, Fiesta SE, Accent GLS and Nissan Versa S and for the iM the Focus SE, Mazda3 i Touring, Hyundai Elantra GT and Volkswagen Golf S. But brand officials note those cars have less standard content. For instance, none have standard LED daytime running lights or taillights.
Scion is targeting annual sales of roughly 25,000 for the iA and 30,000-40,000 for the iM.
Those are reasonable goals, given bigger-name competitors annually deliver 50,000-100,000 B-cars per year and north of 100,000 compact cars.
As much as we’d like to believe Scion will sell 10% of iAs and iMs with a stick, we’re skeptical. That’s about twice the industry average take-rate for manuals, and knowing how to drive a manual-equipped car is a skill more prevalent in older generations Scion is not targeting.
It’s a shame, too, because the iM with a manual is a great-bang-for-the-buck car and, if you live in a level region of the U.S., the iA and iM with a CVT should be given more than a passing glance by B-car and C-car intenders.
These won’t be the cars that save Scion (a rumored forthcoming CUV likely will do more toward that goal), but both are a good start.
'16 Scion iM
| Vehicle type | 5-door, 5-passenger front-wheel-drive car |
| Engine | 1.8L all-aluminum DOHC 4-cyl. with direct injection |
| Power (SAE net) | 137 hp @ 6,100 rpm |
| Torque | 126 lb.-ft. (171 Nm) @ 4,000 rpm |
| Bore x stroke (mm) | 80.5 x 88.3 |
| Compression ratio | 10.6:1 |
| Transmission | 6-speed manual |
| Wheelbase | 102.4 ins. (2,601 mm) |
| Overall length | 170.5 ins. (4,331 mm) |
| Overall width | 69.3 ins. (1,760 mm) |
| Overall height | 55.3 ins. (1,405 mm) |
| Curb weight | 2,943 lbs. (1,335 kg) |
| Base price | $18,460, not incl. $795 destination and handling fee |
| Fuel economy | 27/36 mpg (8.7-6.5 L/100 km) city/highway |
| Competition | Ford Focus, Hyundai Elantra GT, Kia Forte5, Mazda3, Subaru Impreza, Volkswagen Golf |
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| European good looks | Rear headroom |
| Short-throw 6-speed | Will anyone buy? |
| Decent engine specs | Comps more powerful |
