Instead, it birthed a new Scion division and let it market cars aimed at 18- to 35-year-old buyers who probably would never drive a Corolla … and killed the cool Celica and the fun mid-engine MR2.
First came the xA – a cooler Yaris – and the boxy xB, both born off of familiar platforms to the U.S. Then came the one car enthusiasts waited for – the sporty tC, the first generation premiered at the 2004 North American International Auto Show. Designed for the U.S. alone in 13 months and based on the then-Europe only Avensis sedan platform, it was a sporty coupe that cost way under $20,000, was a lot of fun to drive and still handled four adults and stuff.
Six years later, it’s time for a reinvention of the tC, what Toyota said would be a compact sports coupe with “premium style and features” to meet “the desires of the evolving sports coupe buyer,” according to Toyota.
But has it changed?
· Scion scenery – The 2011 Scion tC coupe shares the same long (106.3-inch) wheelbase and 174-inch length as the first generation, while its design is definitely an evolution of the first version. Its “bolder, more aggressive stance” is inspired by the Calty-designed Scion FUSE concept, Toyota says. We start with a slit grill between a pair of slit-eyed, glaring headlights over a bolder, wider-mouthed lower inlet with small splitter. The side intakes, fake on the tC, are larger as part of the edgier lower bumper. The nose and hood line seem lower as a result, while the flat-edged fender flares framing 16-inch Toyo radials seem a bit more aggressive, athough the 14-spoke alloy wheel design is a carryover from 2010. The roofline is less rounded as it heads aft, the windshield and side windows (thanks to black accents on the A- and B-pillars) takes a bit of its design inspiration from a wrap-around racing helmet. The car is a bit over an inch and a half wider, but no lower according to the spec sheet. The rear side windows get a more angular upsweep of the beltline, which rises more sharply upward off the front fender line. In back, more sharply defined fender lines accent the rear roof line and larger taillights, while one chrome pipe peeps out of the lower fascia. Repeater turn signals live in the side mirrors. Our model had one of seven colors, a purple metallic Sizzling Crimson Mica, well applied to a precision built body. It looks sporty and purposeful, with that interesting rear roof line that promises utility inside. But it looks so much like the first-gen tC that no one noticed it, even other Scion owners.
· Scion seating – I said it back in 2005, when I tested the first tC – the long wheelbase means a nice long door to get into a grippy black cloth-covered bucket seat with good comfort and support, plus manual height adjustment. The thick flat-bottomed, leather-clad (perforated at 2 and 10) three-spoke steering wheel looks like a race car’s, and manually tilts and telescopes for a good view of the dual-cowl (vs. the three-cowl first-gen) gauge package. Under that hard plastic dash top, set deep, is a 140-mph speedometer and 8,000-rpm tach, the latter with a green temperature icon in lieu of a gauge. That’s it, except for the central gas gauge – not so sporty, I guess. Underneath, a trip meter, while a green “ECO” indicator lights on the speedometer when you are driving more efficiently. The steering wheel was lacking in controls, only the basics for stereo –no Bluetooth connectivity on the base tC. But there is one thing not missing from the second-gen tC – good basic audio. We had a standard 8-speaker, 300-watt Pioneer AM-FM-CD audio system that shares some speaker components with the Lexus LX 570, each door packing a tweeter, mid-range and woofer for seriously clear and powerful sound. The big volume knob also doubles as a tuning/song selection/menu selector, and works well. There’s a USB connector and a 12-volt outlet at the base of the center stack, with a hard plastic nook to rest your music unit. There’s also an MP3 auxiliary input for other music players. An Alpine Premium audio system is available. The tC always had something a lot of its sporty coupe competition didn’t have – very usable, adult-size rear seats, and the second-gen is no different. Thanks to a roofline that doesn’t go all fastback, plus front seats that easily tilt and slide forward, you get easy access to truly good head and leg room in back for two adults. The rear seats split 60/40 split to expand a wide, if not too deep rear cargo area. And the rear seatbacks do recline up to 10 degrees. For storage, water bottle holders in the door map pockets, two cup holders in the center console, one of which can hold a rubber coin tray with iPod/MP3 player slot. There’s storage space under a hard plastic center armrest with room for up to 18 CDs, and a big glove box. There’s a power tilt and slide moonroof up front and a glass roof in back, both with sunshades. For safety, driver and front and seat-mounted side airbags, driver knee airbag, and side curtain airbags. I have nitpicks – the first generation tC’s interior was bolder, brighter in its use of alloy-like plastic, and more fun to be in, while this one was almost all hard black plastic with a touch of silver and padded door inserts – solid and precisely made, but a bit drab.
· tCompetition – Back in 2005, I tested a first-gen tC with an aluminum 2.4-liter, DOHC, four-cylinder VVT-i in-line four with 160 hp, borrowed from the Camry SE. In the Camry, with 5-speed manual, we hit 60-mph in 9 seconds. The same engine in the tC coupe did it in 7.8, with a delightful 5-speed manual. Fast forward to 2011, and the second-gen tC grows a bit in power with a new 2.5-liter inline four with Dual Variable Valve Timing with intelligence (VVT-i) and a Variable-induction Intake Manifold System that changes the length of the air-intake pipe to supply more torque on demand. That meant 180-hp, with a snarling lightweight exhaust and a six-speed automatic vs. the base manual. The result – 60-mph in 7.2 seconds from our very young 900-mile-old tC, weighing 3,102-lbs. (198 more than the ’05). We had crisp downshifts, the ability to shift for ourselves, and an average 28-mpg in mostly highway driving on regular. Riding on what Toyota called “an enhanced platform” – read redoing the first version’s - we had a McPherson strut front/double-wishbone rear-suspension with a supple yet sporty ride. It handles highway bumps and back road lumps with no harshness, even with two on board. The new tC is as tossable as the old one, with good grip and a well-weighted electric power steering, aided by wider rubber and a thick-rimmed steering wheel. It plays well in the corners, with some front end scrub handled by traction and stability control, and stable in an off-ramp. Larger disc brakes on all corners helped the stopping power, with a precise feel to the pedal and no fade. I’d like the 6-speed automatic to downshift a bit quicker coming out of some turns. And if you want to play a bit more, the tC’s competition is sportier (see below).
· Scion economy - The tC starts at $18,275 with a manual transmission, and $19,275 with an automatic, all with ABS, Electronic Brake-force Distribution, Brake Assist, defeatable traction and stability control and a brake override system. All above was standard except $109 carpet mats, for a final price of $20,169. Direct competition includes the Honda Civic Si coupe and the Mini Cooper S. The Civic Si’s 2-liter four has 197-hp and hits 60 mph in 7 seconds with a very slick manual, as does the Mini Cooper S's turbocharged 181-hp in-line four. Both are crisper handlers as well, albeit a bit short in rear leg room. With 200-hp, a new VW Golf GTI gets to 60-mph in under 6 seconds as well and may be the supercar in the class. Alas, all three cost $2,000 to almost $10,000 more.
· Bottom line – If you want or need a chunky, sporty, good-handling sporty coupe with good fuel mileage and good room for people and gear, a tC is a good place to start. It is fun to drive, makes the right noises and has good value for the cash. It also has good power, and an automatic that gets us use it with economy. But I’d hoped the second-generation tC would up the ante in sportiness, when the aforementioned competition has.
2011 SCION TC
Specifications:
Vehicle type - front-wheel-drive 5-passenger compact sports coupe
Base price - $19,275 (As driven - $20,160)
Engine type - aluminum alloy block DOHC 16-valve with Dual VVT-i in-line four cylinder
Displacement - 2.5-liter
Horsepower (net) - 180 hp at 6,000 rpm
Torque (lb-ft) - 173 at 4,100 rpm
Transmission - 6-speed automatic
Wheelbase - 106.3 in.
Overall length - 174 in.
Overall width - 70.1 in.
Height - 55.7 in.
Front headroom - 37.7 in.
Front legroom - 41.8 in.
Rear headroom - 36.4 in.
Rear legroom - 34.6 in.
Cargo capacity - 14.7 cubic feet/35.4 w/rear seats folded
Curb weight - 3,102 pounds
Fuel capacity - 14.5 gallons
Mileage rating - 23 mpg city/ 31 mpg highway
By Dan Scanlan - MyCarData
Last word – Refreshed and redesigned, but maybe, just maybe, didn’t go sporty enough
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