2007 Scion Tc 2.4l I4 16v Automatic Front Wheel Drive Coupe on 2040-cars

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Scion was slain by Toyota, not the Great Recession

Scion didn't have to go down like this. Through the magic of hindsight and hubris, it's easier to see what went wrong. And what might have been. What the industry should understand is this: Scion wasn't a losing proposition from the get-go. Its death is due to negligence and apathy. This is more than just the failure of a sub-brand. It's the failure of a company to deliver new and compelling products over an extended period of time. Toyota will point to the Great Recession as the reason it hedged its bets and withdrew funding for new vehicles, instead of using that as an opportunity to redouble efforts. This was as good as a death warrant, although myopically no one realized it at the time. Sadly, GM's Saturn experiment was a road map for this exact form of failure. No one at Toyota seemed to think the Saturn experience was worth protecting their experimental brand from. Or they weren't heard. Brands live and die on product. Somehow, Scion convinced itself that its real success metric was a youthful demographic of buyers. It seems like this was used to gauge the overall health of the brand. Look at the aging and uncompetitive tC, which Scion proudly noted had a 29-year-old average buyer. That fails to take into account its lack of curb appeal and flagging sales. Who cares if the declining number of people buying your cars are younger? Toyota is going to kill the tC thirteen years [And two indifferent generations ... - Ed.] after it was introduced. In that time, Honda has come out with three entirely new generations of the Civic. Scion wasn't a losing proposition from the get-go. Its death is due to negligence and apathy. At launch, the brand could have gone a few different ways. The xB was plucky, interesting, and useful – a tough mix of ephemeral characteristics – but the xA didn't offer much except a thin veneer of self-consciously applied attitude. That's ok; it was cute. Enter the tC, which managed to combine sporty pretensions with decent cost. It took on the Civic Coupe in the contest for coolness, and usually managed to win. More importantly, an explicit brand value early on was a desire to avoid second generations of any of its models, promising a continually evolving and fresh lineup. At this point, the road splits. Down one lane lies the Scion that could have been. After a short but reasonable product lifecycle, it would have renewed the entire lineup.

Scion celebrates first 10 years with special edition models

As the story goes, Toyota's Scion brand was imagined up in someone's basement and then came to fruition in 2003 as a youth-oriented brand with a focus on delivering unique vehicles with an equally unique retail experience. A decade later, the brand has grown to five models, which will each be commemorated starting in June with a new Scion 10 Series edition.
In varying quantities, Scion will be offering the FR-S, tC, iQ, xB and xD with an exclusive package that will all come in the Silver Ignition exterior color. Aside from the paint, these cars will also receive Scion badges on the front and rear that are backlit with blue LEDs that illuminate when the car is unlocked. Silver seat belts and a solar-powered illuminated shift knob will help distinguish the interiors of these cars, but the iQ, xB and xD will stand out further from the outside with darker alloy wheels.
In total, just 10,000 Scion 10 Series models are planned, and each will be identifiable with a sequentially numbered badge inside the car. The redesigned 2014 tC will get the most of the special-edition models with 3,500 units, while other new models like the FR-S and iQ will be restricted to just 2,500 units and 900 units, respectively. The original Scion, the xB, will get 2,100 Scion 10 Series models, and the xD will round out the 10,000-unit run with 1,000 models being produced. Scroll down for the official press release.

The last new Scion is this tC Release Series 10.0

"We're not dead yet!" That's the message Scion will send next week at the New York Auto Show when it takes the stage with its very last brand-new car, the tC Release Series 10.0. For its final act, the tC gets an aero kit by JDM designer Ken Miura, consisting of a front lip spoiler, new rocker panels, a lower rear spoiler, and a little wing on the deck. Blacked-out Scion badges and gloss black alloy wheels contrast against this tC's unique Barcelona Red paint. It's not all for show, either. The Release Series 10.0 includes TRD lowering springs and TRD-tuned dual exhaust. Inside, black and red pours onto the new seat inserts, and there's similarly-toned contrast stitching on the shift boot, parking brake cover, and steering wheel. Only 1,200 examples will be built, available with a six-speed manual or automatic transmission. The manual car will go for $23,985, and with the six-speed auto, add $1,150. It's all very fitting – Scion was introduced to the US at the New York show in 2002, and over the past 14 years, the tC was the brand's most popular car (and one of its longest-running). To commemorate the occasion, Scion will also show some of its most popular showcars, including the original 2002 BBx concept, 2009 iQ concept, and 2011 FR-S concept – the "Friggin' Really Sweet" car, if you recall. Scroll down for the official "Scion-ara" (yep) announcement. Related Video: Scion-ara Celebration at New York International Auto Show Includes JDM-inspired tC Coupe and Classic Concepts TORRANCE, Calif. (March 16, 2016) – Scion is not going away quietly. With a final Kei Miura-inspired tC Release Series 10.0, a display of some of its most impressive project cars, and cool swag, the Scion by Toyota booth is sure to be a flurry of activity at the New York International Auto Show, March 25 – April 3, 2016. It's only fitting that Scion closes its auto show history at New York since that's where it all began. Fourteen years ago Scion debuted its first concept vehicles and announced the new youth division for Toyota that would be a laboratory for experimentation and introduce new products and processes. That commitment to innovation carries through to the debut of Scion's final Release Series vehicle for the tC sports coupe, Scion's most popular car.