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Image courtesy of Scion |
Fast forward about two weeks later, I found myself at my local Scion dealer, looking to test drive the six-speed manual equipped iM hatchback. Of the two new Scion vehicles, the iM had more power and, to me at least, looks better than the iA. From certainly angles, it actually looks pretty cool, and gives off the vibe that it could potentially be a pretty quick vehicle. The cool looking exterior did leave me wondering which Toyota the iM is built off of, since pretty much all of Toyota's current offerings are about as exciting as a pair of plain white socks. A brief wikipedia search led me to the Toyota Auris, which is essentially just a hatchback version of the Toyota Corolla that we do not get here in the US. In the brief description of the iM, the wikipedia article states that the Scion iM is essentially a five-door Auris hatchback with a body kit, lowered suspension, and some pretty neat looking 17 in wheels.. Those three changes are what make the iM look way better than any Corolla could ever dream of.
The interior of the car is good...surprisingly good. If the car came with leather seats, I probably could have been fooled into thinking this was a car for Scion's sister company, Lexus. In fact, there are certain touches in the iM, such as the leather stitched parts of the dash and the "not as flimsy" plastic, that make me believe this interior is actually superior to the last Lexus my brother and I drove, the IS250. Of course, this is truly one of those instances where seeing (and feeling) is believing, as my pictures of the interior probably do not do this car justice. I am also very glad Scion decided to go with an easier to learn, touchscreen infotainment system rather than Lexus' weird stationary mouse deal. While the infotainment system is not built in-house (it's actually a unit from Pioneer), it is far easier to use and navigate than pretty much any in-house programmed and designed touchscreen infotainment system I have ever used. Maybe this is what car manufacturers need to start doing: sourcing their infotainment systems to companies that build car audio systems for a living.

While I am glad this car comes with a six-speed manual, it is not actually a very good manual. The throws are long, the gates feel vague, the clutch pedal is ridiculously light, and clutch engagement feels very vague as well. If there is one positive thing I can say about the transmission, it is that once you do get the lever into the gate, it does provide a good "thunk," and does not feel plasticky like some of the other manual transmissions I have had the displeasure of experiencing. It does make me wonder if the transmission was built in-house, or if it was sourced out to Aisin (which Toyota apparently owns a large share of). Seeing as how the excellent transmission in the FR-S/BRZ twins was built by Aisin, it leads me to believe that the one in the iM was not built by Aisin. My last gripe with the transmission has less to do with the transmission itself, but more with pedal placement. The brake and gas pedals are placed further apart than I expected, making it difficult to heel-toe downshift. This problem, combined with the shifter's long throws means I was "granny" shifting when I needed to downshift.
Steering, handling, and braking can be considered the brighter points of the driving experience in the iM. The steering has a nice weight to it, but like a large majority of cars with electric steering these days, offers pretty much zero feedback through the steering wheel. The brakes in this car certainly are not bad. They do a good job of bringing the near 3000 pound hatchback to a halt fairly reasonably, with a firm and progressive feeling pedal. Handling seems to be this car's brightest point, being one of the few bargain cars on the market today that still has a double wishbone suspension set up (though just for the rear apparently). Even though the car is lowered from the factory, Scion managed to strike a good balance between comfort and handling. At no point did the car exhibit any excessive body roll, nor did I feel nervous or uneasy attempting to take a corner quicker than the average person. I have to admit that the car's sluggish acceleration probably had something to do with the ease of handling. Some better tires would definitely make this car handle even better, but MPGs are more important than G-Forces for most manufacturers these days. Driving the car over some of the more uneven and pothole filled roads near the dealer, I was very surprised at how well the car soaked up the bumps and rattles normally associated with driving on terrible roads.

Oh, and by the time most of you read this, Scion will have put out a new iM commercial featuring Jaleel White driving around with a wax Steve Urkel (Jaleel's character from the 90s sitcom Family Matters) in the passenger seat. It is quite amusing, though a bit creepy too since the wax figure looks a bit unsettling.
*A special thanks to DCH Toyota in Torrance for allowing me to spend time with their bright green Scion iM!
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