Scion models

Scion was a brand Toyota created in 2003 specifically for the United States, aimed at younger buyers it worried it was losing. The idea was to sell small, affordable, customisable cars with a no-haggle, fixed-price buying experience that felt different from a traditional Toyota dealership.

For a while it worked. Models like the boxy xB and the sporty tC found an audience, and the brand leaned into personalisation and a youthful, urban image. Later the well-regarded FR-S sports car, developed with Subaru, gave Scion genuine enthusiast credibility.

As its buyers aged and the youth strategy lost momentum, Toyota decided the separate brand was no longer worth it and discontinued Scion in 2016, folding its models back into the Toyota range. For buyers, Scion now exists only on the used market, where its cars are essentially rebadged Toyotas and carry the same reputation for reliability. It is remembered as an interesting experiment in selling cars differently to a younger generation.