The Scion XP: The New Vehicle in Toyota's Lineup

Toyota's Scion lineup has been wildly successful, and with the continued expansion of the brand Toyota plans on releasing a new vehicle dubbed the Scion xP--the letter 'P' for pickup of course! And, like all of Scion's other products, the car will appeal to the previously ignored Generation Y crowd looking for a hip, urban vehicle.

The Scion truck is unlike your typical entry-level pickup and is modeled after the Fuse concept car. The xP sports numerous trendy and urban styling features similar to it's Scion counterparts as well as some new and innovative features. Some of the jazzy features include a tailgate that unfolds into a seat for two, rear unfolding speakers, and a beverage cooler in the rear center console. Sketches of the vehicle exemplify an “urban-esque” pickup with, aggressive styling features, a low and tall body profile, and even a hood scoop. The engine specs are quite conservative for the truck--a 161 horsepower, 2.4 cylinder engine is under the hood, which should provide reasonable fuel economy for an entry level pickup.

According to pickuptruck.com, the MSRP starting price of the xP is estimated at around $12,000 which is considerably cheap for the features, options, and styling the coupe sports. Most analysts are predicting that the xP should do quite well in the entry-level pickup segment as the only "real" competitor is the Ford Ranger--a small pickup that hasn't seen any improvements for quite a few years now. Another benefit for Toyota, is that once they hook some of the younger buyers with the xP, they can than transition them to their "more mature" Toyota Tundra. This will enable them to keep long, satisfied customers coming back for more.

The Scion xP is scheduled to be released in 2010. It would not be a surprise to me if the vehicle outsold the Ford Ranger, and helped Toyota to further increase their market share over it's "Big 3" rivals. The test of time will tell, and consumer response will soon unfold after the 2010 mark is soon reached.

Ryan Lawson is the owner of various automotive sites including a store offering Scion TC parts and another for interior dash covers.