Scion xB - goes custom

Toyota’s youthful Scion brand busted out of the box with, well, a box. The xB was as square as the earth is round, but all of that slab-sided real estate made the perfect canvas for drivers wanting to customize their ride. From the factory, there is a barrage of available colors, interior lighting choices, and add-ons. An enormous after-market parts business has also grown to support the Toyota offspring, but Scion retailers offer a warehouse full of options, ready for the asking.

Cruise through the accessories tab on scion.com and you’ll see a list of options that looks like the catalog for Auto Zone. Illuminated door sills, contrasting color leather-wrapped steering wheels, and custom floor mats dress up the interior. Carbon fibre door pillar appliques, chrome exhaust outlets, and 19” Toyota Racing Development (TRD) wheels turn the xB from boring to boisterous.

Moving beyond mere cosmetics, performance enthusiasts can check off a TRD lowering kit, front strut brace, rear sway bar, performance shocks, quick shifter, and even specific oil caps. The TRD torque-biasing differential is available with the five-speed manual transmission to make sure all of the xB’s power gets to the pavement. All of this customizing potential gave Scion a good idea.

To inspire our troops and custom car builders, Scion put out a challenge for active duty military personnel to customize xBs in a contest. Cars were judged on thirteen criteria that included “paint, build quality, bodywork, interior, and audio/visual entertainment.” The Grand Prize Winner of $14,000 was “Team: The Salty Dogs” for The Squid Concept. It was created by members of the U.S. Navy, based at Naval Station, Mayport, FL. Two other teams created concepts that look like a safari car with open air rear compartment and a jacked up dessert buggy.

“All three teams did an awesome job transforming their xBs from cool concepts to complete head-turning rides,” said Steve Hatanaka, Scion auto shows and events manager. “On behalf of Scion I want to congratulate The Salty Dogs on their amazing build. I look forward to seeing this vehicle at SEMA and around the country in the coming year.”
Besides its debut at SEMA, “The Dog” was on display at the Detroit auto show. You might not want to go for the full nautical theme on your Scion xB, but given a little creativity and lots of help from your local dealer, you can design and engineer an xB like no other.

By Casey Williams - MyCarData