2016 Scion iA 1.5L 6AT FWD (106 HP)

Vehicle Overview

It was the last model revealed by Scion before it vanished from the market, being absorbed back by its parent company, Toyota, in August 2016.

Introduced as a 2016 model-year in 2015, the Scion iA was not even a Toyota but a Mazda 2 sedan. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea the Japanese automaker had when it launched the vehicle, so there’s no wonder that the car didn’t live too much on the market, making it the second-rarest Scion ever made, with sales that didn’t reach the 10,000 mark.

While the exterior design was not supposed to win any beauty contest, the small-sized sedan was a good idea for Scion, which tried to dodge the bullet. As a result, the front fascia featured a broad grille that started right underneath the hood and continued until the lower part of the bumper. Yet, the overall look was not as pleasant as on the Mazda 2. Moreover, the addition of the short trunk in the back made the car look unbalanced.

Inside, the iA was surprisingly spacious for its class, at least for the front-seated occupants. They fronted a curved dashboard where Scion fitted as standard a touchscreen for the infotainment system that was carried over from Mazda, and that included the rotary dial between the front seats. In the back, the bench seat could hardly accommodate three passengers due to the center tunnel. The trunk, on the other hand, was large for the car’s segment.

Under the hood, Scion used the same 1.5-liter gasoline engine made by Mazda. It was adequate for the car’s weight when fitted with the standard six-speed manual but felt underpowered when paired with the six-speed automatic.