There's plenty to like about the redesigned xB - Toyota knows there's beauty in the details. I like how the Scion logo on each wheel has a sculpted metal look. It doesn't bother me that the center piece is really plastic but I'd be really bummed as a Scion owner if the paint began flaking off that plastic piece with just 19,000 miles on the clock like it is on our car. Every center cap but one on our long termer is doing the same thing to some degree...
Hopefully Scion will replace at no charge.
Brian Moody, Road Test Editor @ 19,863 miles,
cx7lover says:
06:06 AM, 06/ 9/08
Sexy
kevlang says:
06:16 AM, 06/ 9/08
yowsers. that'll take you down a few places in the JD Power standings.
2002blksle says:
07:05 AM, 06/ 9/08
Ooops.
joefrompa says:
07:37 AM, 06/ 9/08
Wow....how many ways can I say unacceptable? My guess is very poor quality priming.
Joe
johnmarco says:
08:05 AM, 06/ 9/08
That's odd. My Toyota is 4 years old now, and none of the plastic center caps are losing paint.
louiswei says:
08:06 AM, 06/ 9/08
Take it to the dealer and see what they say. This would be interesting...
tasbro says:
08:11 AM, 06/ 9/08
Gosh, if Toyota can't even do a center cap right, what does that say about the rest of the vehicle??
(Had to add this since it would have been the first comment if this was a GM/Ford/Chrysler vehicle.)
joefrompa says:
11:02 AM, 06/ 9/08
Tasbro - It's a sign of poor quality painting procedures, and it speaks to the rest of the car. The wheel paint gets some of the hardest use (brake dust is incredibly harsh on paint). It should therefore be some of the most durable on the car (it should pit before it flakes).
Joe
greenpony says:
12:19 PM, 06/ 9/08
My cousin has a Jeep Liberty with the same problem. I always give her a hard time about it. And she gives me a hard time about the fake scoops on my Stang. Is it a big deal? Not really. Does it make the Liberty look bad? You bet. Same goes for the Scion, if I saw it in person.
cartester16 says:
03:45 PM, 06/ 9/08
No wonder Scion was very low in the JDPA study this year... 27th, just ahead of Dodge, and way behind Hyundai & Kia.
z479 says:
04:01 PM, 06/ 9/08
Toyota's quality is going down the drain if they don't keep trying to cut costs. It's starting to show with a lot of their new models and will be biting them in the *ss in just a couple of years.
cx7lover says:
04:02 PM, 06/ 9/08
Scions never had great build quality though
billt9 says:
04:48 PM, 06/ 9/08
That's horrible!
I've never seen that kind of peeling on modern cars!
firstwagon says:
08:04 PM, 06/ 9/08
While I'm not normally one to spport Toyota, my guess it's just a bad batch of parts from a vendor.
Annoying but hardly anything to get worked up about.
I'll bet they will just replace them for free.
briancam says:
08:45 PM, 06/ 9/08
I feel compelled to restate - I think the xB is a very good car overall. Roomy inside, good fuel econ, iPod connection etc.
the_big_al says:
12:53 AM, 06/10/08
While I am also not one to champion Toyota, I tend to agree with firstwagon. Do I think it's a sign of poor build quality or a sign of what to come for the rest of the car? No, I don't think that this sets precedent for what will happen to the rest of the car.
I think it is more related to the supplier who manufactured these wheel covers. More than likely it was a bad batch that wasn't caught in time and thus they ended up on the cars. It's not like it's a faulty door handle or a recalled fuel rod...
estreka says:
04:47 AM, 06/10/08
"Toyota knows there's beauty in the details"
You kidding me? The xB has managed nondescript and distasteful in a single product.
This product epitomizes 'change for the sake of change'.
stephen987 says:
07:48 AM, 06/10/08
I haven't seen that kind of poor quality since I worked for a Chrysler dealer in 1990.
briancam says:
08:28 PM, 06/10/08
Toyota says they know about the problem and replacing them will be free.
firstwagon says:
09:23 PM, 06/10/08
Thought so.