CAR GAZING
A unique take on the sports coupe
New Scion tC has unusual styling, sporty driving feel
By Derek Price
Toyota historically has been knocked for two things: bland styling and dull driving dynamics.
While Toyota makes some of the world's best cars in other, more important respects – like reliability – it seems there is always a minor "but" when you drive one.
"... But they look so boring."
"... But a Honda is more fun."
Well, Toyota makes a car that dispels those complaints. They just don't call it a Toyota.
This car is the all-new, second-generation Scion tC, and it's a Toyota that's actually fun to drive and incredibly spunky looking. It's like Toyota took a Subaru WRX front end and Dodge Challenger back end, then squished them together into one interesting little car sold under the Scion brand.
And, while Scion was initially conceived as a brand for young people, drivers of all ages will find a lot to like about this car.
The first is its funky, unique body shape. It combines the best parts of two seemingly incompatible types of vehicles: sexy, impractical two-door coupes and those ugly but immensely useful boxes on wheels, like the Honda Element and Nissan Cube.
Mix them together and what do you get? A car that drives like a coupe but has more rear headroom and wider-swinging doors like the boxes do.
Better yet, it makes drivers smile more than most Toyota products can manage. The base model comes from the factory with 18-inch wheels, wide tires, a great six-speed manual transmission and a 180-horsepower engine, all for around $19,000. It's got enough power and a suspension tuned just aggressively enough to make it enjoyable on winding roads.
It also comes with lots of standard comfort features, including air conditioning, power doors and locks, keyless entry, cruise control and a nifty panoramic sunroof that extends over the front and back seats.
In fact, this is one of the few cars with an options list that doesn't sing to me. It comes with everything a driver could need in the base model, and the style-related options that are available – things like fake carbon-fiber trim, body graphics, shift knobs and a lip spoiler – all seem a bit frivolous.
Still, it's nice that buyers can customize their ride before it even leaves the dealer. That's one thing Scion is known for.
The new tC's greatest strength – its cool body styling – is also one of its biggest drawbacks from inside the vehicle. The wide, Dodge-style rear pillars can block the driver's vision from certain angles, so you'll want to take a very thorough test drive to see if it's a problem from your driving position.
Its greatest strength, though, is that it looks and feels like a real sports coupe. It has a high-revving engine that makes a beautiful shriek, a taut suspension that limits body roll in corners, and plenty of grip from the fat tires. Especially with the manual transmission, it feels like a machine made for speed.
And, for a Toyota product, that's a great thing.
(Derek Price is a newspaper editor and freelance writer living in Texas.)
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