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The Scion brand is supposed to be different by design, but it's still a product of Toyota, and on the road the 2008 Scion xD tends to reveal its Toyota roots. By this we mean that the xD travels straight down the middle of the road, in the figurative sense, as Toyota's vehicles often do by design. It's neither a standout nor a slouch in any particular dynamic category, and it's finished to satisfy the broadest possible cross-section of buyers.
Our driving included a wide range of conditions, from hard twisty corners to a crowded, choppy stretch of Los Angeles freeway to casual errand-running through suburbia. The Scion xD's suspension is neither too soft nor too firm and responsive. It's tuned for a balance between decent ride quality and decent response. In typical circumstances the xD handles well, with a crisp, moderately sporty feel, and its driver will quickly develop confidence in how it will react in any situation.
If you really push the Scion xD, however, as we did through some tight switchback corners, its front end presses down toward the pavement and the front tires quickly start to slide. The driver's natural inclination is to lift a little off the gas pedal, and the xD responds by plowing safely through the curve. It's not as responsive or inspiring as a Honda Fit Sport, for example, but that is probably the smart approach, because most drivers will probably never drive it hard enough to find out. Those who do will likely invest in some of the Toyota Racing Development parts offered specifically to improve handling.
The ride is good, particularly when the road is relatively smooth. The Scion xD is comfortable, without wallowing in a way that makes the driver think the car is floating around underneath. Moderate bumps are no problem either, as there is enough suspension travel to soak up the shock before it travels up into the cabin. But when the bumps come one after another in rapid succession, the xD gets a bit bouncy and unsettled. If those bumps are big, the front wheels can shake at moderate speeds, and the rear-end feels a bit skittish. The xD's torsion-beam rear axle simply can't keep the rear tires planted as firmly as a fully independent rear suspension.
The 1.8-liter engine in the Scion xD makes 128 horsepower, which is 20 more than the engine in the prior Scion xA, and there's also 20 more pound-feet of torque. On the other hand, the xD is 300 pounds heavier than the xA, so the more powerful engine has more mass to get rolling. In total, the xD's acceleration pretty much matches the xA model it replaces, and with the five-speed manual transmission, it's more than adequate. The engine's power is biased toward the high end of its rev range (peak horsepower comes at 6,000 rpm), so if maximum acceleration is the goal, it's best to keep the four-cylinder spinning at high revs. That's easy to accomplish with the manual transmission and an enjoyable experience to boot. With the manual transmission, the Scion xD can hold its own with the fuel-swilling, big-engined carnivores that populate the urban jungle.
In stop-and-go freeway traffic, the xD's throttle response can be abrupt. It takes a bit of practice to get on the gas smoothly, each time the traffic moves again, without producing a little jerk. But the driver will learn, and smooth things out in reasonably short order. The only real complaint in the xD's powertrain is the optional automatic transmission.
The Scion xD has a four-speed automatic, where many small cars now offer five-speeds or continuously variable (CVT) automatics. We're not getting into a most-gears contest here, because it's a matter of what works. But with its high-revving four-cylinder engine, the xD's automatic simply doesn't perform all that well, except perhaps for the pokiest of drivers. In short, the automatic transmission does not offer the spry acceleration of the manual, especially at slower speeds.
The automatic is lacking in responsiveness. We made a U-turn at 15 mph, put our foot down to get out of the way of traffic, and nothing much happened, in second gear. The transmission should have shifted down to first, but it chose not to. In fairly busy afternoon traffic, when roads are crowded but not packed bumper to bumper, the only real way to get on in the Scion xD automatic is to floor the gas pedal every time the driver needs acceleration. At least then the xD thinks it's in a drag race, shifting down as quickly and up as late as it's capable of doing, but it's not great for gas mileage.
With the bigger engine and 300 more pounds, we expect gas mileage will suffer at least a bit in all circumstances, compared to the old Scion xA, though it's difficult to say how much, short of accumulating over-road data for thousands of miles. The 2008 xD is EPA-rated five or six miles per gallon lower than the xA in all categories, automatic or manual. Yet some part of that is due to EPA test procedures that are supposed to give consumers more realistic figures on 2008 models. All cars are coming down, relative to 2007, and small cars tend to suffer more than large cars. Bottom line, a mileage comparison between 2007 and 2008 models based on EPA ratings is useless.
The only comparison with any value might be against competitors' ratings for 2008, and here the xD falls in the middle. It's rated at 26/32 mpg City/Highway with the automatic, 27/33 with the manual trans. A Versa hatchback gets 26/31 with a manual, according to the EPA, while a Honda Fit delivers 28/34.
We were able to test the xD's brakes fairly well, using them hard in the twisties, and they did a good job. They've got the full complement of electronic assistance, meaning the car's computer will maximize stopping power while allowing the driver to maintain steering control. All the driver has to do is apply the pedal.
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