Toyota model Scion's appeal to young drivers seems to be waning

Five years after Toyota rolled out the inexpensive and fuel-efficient Scion , the Japanese automaker still sees it as a tool to attract young buyers, but sales of the eye-catching vehicles have been slowing.

[Marketing misstep]

The mistake was upgrading the look. It was another Beetle in the making.

[mjddjm]

Jap Crap; Buy American, it may be your job you save!!!!

[A1ACharles Sees Hypocrisy]

A car with gas mileage like that certainly aint American - neocons saw to that.

[Reality Bites]

Marketing misstep wrote:

The mistake was upgrading the look. It was another Beetle in the making.

The first xB was so ugly it was cute, looked like a Chevron Car. They updated the look, sales fell off. Couldn't leave a good thing alone. And, yes, Toyota's are made here...

[Truth Hurts]

mjddjm wrote:

Jap Crap; Buy American, it may be your job you save!!!!

Yup, buy union made stuff. Why does an American car cost $45K? Unions. They had their time and were truly necessary then, not now. The guy that cleans the bathroom at the plant makes $32 hr. They strike when they don't want to work. Burn down Management's houses, then complain the raises when they go back. Get it? Clearly you don't...

[the only ABSOLUTE truth]

Truth Hurts wrote:

<quoted text>
Yup, buy union made stuff. Why does an American car cost $45K? Unions. They had their time and were truly necessary then, not now. The guy that cleans the bathroom at the plant makes $32 hr. They strike when they don't want to work. Burn down Management's houses, then complain the raises when they go back. Get it? Clearly you don't...

Your the same type of person who probably shops at Wal-Mart also causing mom and pop shops to go out of business cause they cant compete..idiot..and thats the Truth whether you like it or not.

[BRT]

the only ABSOLUTE truth wrote:

<quoted text>
Your the same type of person who probably shops at Wal-Mart also causing mom and pop shops to go out of business cause they cant compete..idiot..and thats the Truth whether you like it or not.

It's called capitalism. Get over it, moron.

[Bud Lite]

I drive 2 Chevies, 1 Ford, and shop at Target.

[John]

After you add the additional $100,000 medical policy you need to drive this matchbox, the low price no longer looks so good.

[Mangler]

People buy large SUV's to feel safe ... because people buy large SUV's. I can't wait to watch the SUV finally die and get buried. People don't need 6,000 lbs.+ to drive to Publix. They are complaining about burning through hundreds in gas per week and high maintenance costs. I laugh.

John wrote:

After you add the additional $100,000 medical policy you need to drive this matchbox, the low price no longer looks so good.

[FSU1]

Scion TC is a decent looking car and easy on the gas. It is onlhy a 4 cylinder (162 hp) it is very spacious and folding down the back seat you get plenty of space. It looks modern and with the up grade 18 inch wheels....looks even better. Actually people think that loooks like an Audi.
From a distance of course! It si only 20K....

[Santiaguero]

The XD is a 5 door Yaris and much better looking. And yes I drive Jap cars. I would never buy another POS from Detroit. I make it a point not to buy from the so called big 3. Makes me feel good when I buy a foreign car. It is my way of sticking it to the unions and the greedy CEO's.

[Kay]

Santiaguero wrote:

The XD is a 5 door Yaris and much better looking. And yes I drive Jap cars. I would never buy another POS from Detroit. I make it a point not to buy from the so called big 3. Makes me feel good when I buy a foreign car. It is my way of sticking it to the unions and the greedy CEO's.

AMEN...look what unions did for Eastern Airlines

[GAD]

the only ABSOLUTE truth wrote:

<quoted text>
Your the same type of person who probably shops at Wal-Mart also causing mom and pop shops to go out of business cause they cant compete..idiot..and thats the Truth whether you like it or not.

Mom and Pop stores are failing because they can't compete. They can't compete because of an array of reasons, and many of these reasons can be blamed on Mama and Papa. For example, if Wal-Mart opens a store near a Mom and Pop store, then Mom and Pop should employ various strategies and tactics that allow them to compete. And I'm not talking about price. Most likely, that's not gonna work. But not everybody shops on price alone, and those are the customers that Mom and Pop need to focus on.

However, Wal-Mart has a right to sell products in the marketplace just like Mama and Papa. Like the one poster said: it's Capitalism. If you don't like it, then maybe you need to think about communism as your choice of government.

As for buying American cars - well, I would like to agree. But, even though American cars are much better than they were a few years back, they aren't where they need to be as a true "value" purchase. Americans need to get the best bang for their buck, and if American companies aren't providing that, then maybe they should bring more value to consumers. I mean, Toyota and Honda are doing it....why can't Chevrolet, Ford, and Dodge do that same???

[Ignorance Central]

Truth Hurts wrote:

<quoted text>
Yup, buy union made stuff. Why does an American car cost $45K? Unions. They had their time and were truly necessary then, not now. The guy that cleans the bathroom at the plant makes $32 hr. They strike when they don't want to work. Burn down Management's houses, then complain the raises when they go back. Get it? Clearly you don't...

Would you rather give the money to an American union worker or mail the money to another country, weakening your own money?

Stop sweating the small stuff and look at the bigger picture.

[Ignorance Central]

Reality Bites wrote:

<quoted text>
The first xB was so ugly it was cute, looked like a Chevron Car. They updated the look, sales fell off. Couldn't leave a good thing alone. And, yes, Toyota's are made here...

Yes, Toyota's final assembly is here in the US. It is not meant to make you feel good or employ Americans. It is to escape the taxes of importing an entire car. All this while paying low wages to those that do the assembly.
Worse yet, the profits go straight overseas.
And what exactly, do the Japanese buy from us so that money re-enters our economy?
Just like I told the other poster, stop sweating the small stuff. Look at the bigger picture.
Some may say that even Detroit outsources a lot of manufacturing. They do, but the bulk of the profits and salaries paid are spent in the US.

[Ignorance Central]

GAD wrote:

<quoted text>
As for buying American cars - well, I would like to agree. But, even though American cars are much better than they were a few years back, they aren't where they need to be as a true "value" purchase. Americans need to get the best bang for their buck, and if American companies aren't providing that, then maybe they should bring more value to consumers. I mean, Toyota and Honda are doing it....why can't Chevrolet, Ford, and Dodge do that same???

If Washington stopped giving the imports subsities and tax breaks they might be able to squeeze some value into the same sticker price.

[SugarCracker]

The problem with American automobiles is that they are not exciting at all. The compact models are all very boring and they always fall behind the Japanese models in gas mileage or reliability or some other important measure. Americans build great trucks, I own one and I love it. If somebody really wants to make headway into a market they should build a small diesel pickup. Put a 6 cylinder diesel into an F-150 that gets 35 mpg and see how many buyers line up for it.

[Marketing misstep]

I actually drive a 90 Caravan with the Jap engine. After 200,000 the plugs have never been changed, the mileage never wavers. Too bad the paint peeled off the roof and the sliding door fell off.

[I Wonder]

I wonder how much better the US economy would be if Walmart and their suppliers bought and sold US made merchandise. They may be good at selling at the lowest price to the unwitting consumer, but the true cost to the US is the loss of jobs and the competition for resources with China, India, and Mexico. In a similar way, outsourcing to India and China only makes the US weaker. Outsourcing might be a good cost savings strategy in the short term, but in the long term it does nothing but make CEOs and corporations richer and the American public poorer and poorer. It's about more than competition and the short term bottom line, it's about preserving our way of life and keeping the US a strong nation. Please don't tell me that Walmart is good for the nation because it buys foreign goods and keeps prices low. Also, please don't tell me that outsourcing our jobs is good for the US economy, it's clearly not.

Everyone in the US that has a job has that job because of the state of the US economy and the need to sell goods here and overseas, it's that plain and simple. Stop buying US made goods and continue to send money and jobs overseas and the US economy crumbles and becomes dependent on foreign interests, weakening the US. Keep buying those foreign goods and the job going overseas will be yours sooner than you think.

That Scion, Toyota, or Honda may be cute (beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder) but in reality American cars are far better for the American economy, are built for American roads, and are cheaper to repair.