[mr2spyderman]

Hello,
I'm new here and looking for some insight from Scion xB owners with kids. My wife and I are in the market for a new car. We like the utility and reliability of the Scion xB.

Can any of you please provide your feedback/thoughts on the pros and cons of the xB with small kids? It would be greatly appreciated.

 

[markio]

There's a LOT of passenger room in the back seats, it makes any similar compact car look sparse. The back windows are stock tinted and "den" like... throw a TV on the back of your head rest and I could see how it would be a good car for little shits.

 

[box monkey]

There's 2 issues I come accross with my 3 year old:
1: More space means more mess..... the interior lends itself for that with the materials chosen for the doors... I now have crayon masterpieces adorning my back door.
2: I'm a big guy, and so my seat is as back as possible, which means she kicks it from time to time but its well patted and difficult to feel.
Other than that, its great. Fits us all and all our gear and is easy for my 3 year old to climb in on her own.

 

[BrickPig]

The xB is very roomy, I can fit myself and my wife and 3 teenage kids in it no problem. Lots of head and shoulder room. Very good utility and trunk space, plus you can lower the back seats. I've transported a 5 foot long table, no problem.

Some have commented on and dislike the harsh ride, so be sure to test drive before you buy.

 

[isk1tz]

A friend of mine and I both have 2 kids and xB's, mine is an 08 and his is an 05.

As far as the seating space goes you'll be fine in either one. The xB also comes with those built in hooks for car seats which is nice and helps keep everyone in place.

The only con is the 05 is there is NO cargo space. The 2nd gen is much better and has plenty of room for groceries, kid stuff, etc.

There aren't any cons to it as a family car, it gets good mileage, runs a Toyota drive train, and the interior is pretty resilient to kids wear.

If you let your kids have crayons in your car that's more your fault, we did recently take the little xB on a 440 mile round trip though so my back seat floorboards are full of crushed up gold fish. That said the front seat slides up and it's just a quick vacuum.

Space is good.
Drivetrain is good
Ride is good.

Don't install a cherry bomb muffler... sorta worried the kids may go deaf but we all have to make sacrifices ya know?

 

[mr2spyderman]

Wow! Great comments everyone. Please keep it coming.

 

[Greg S]

Pros:

Plenty of head and leg room in the rear even with me at 6'3" in the front.

Flat floor is good for sliding out to either side and is a good spot for backpacks.

Reasonably comfortable rear seats.

Engine has enough power to still get up and go with a full load of people.

Good amount of storage in the hatch area for kid's stuff.

Cons:

The rear seat material picks up stains to easily, but that is true of most fabric interiors.

Too many storage pockets for the kids to leave things in.



I regularly haul four kids in mine to school in the morning and they fit fine with their backpacks and my oldest daughters trumpet case. It doesn't hold as much as my Odyssey did, but then again is gets better gas mileage and is quite a bit more nimble. As box monkey said with the front seat all the way back they can kick the seat, or as they get older, as in my kids' case, they tend to put their foot down on the seat belt anchor point pulling it tight on me. That is easily solved though, tell them to stop stepping on it.

 

[BrickPig]

Engine has enough power to still get up and go with a full load of people.

158 horsepower, originally a Camry engine. Same drivetrain as the TC1. The current TC2 has 180 hp and a 6 speed manual or automatic. <jealous>

I wish the automatic had more than 4 speeds. The manual tranny (if you can find one) has 5 speeds. Both are supposed to get 28 mpg, but the highest I've ever seen with my 4-speed automatic is 27 mpg. Most of the time I get 22 or 23 mpg. Guess I jackrabbit too much and/or drive too fast...

 

[Slorocket]

Plus 1 to all the above. Its my 3rd gen2/2.5. I have 3 kids. 5-21. And is a sweet do all car. I have a hitch for trailer and bike rack. A roof rack for all kinds of other haulin. Lots of easy modifications can be done, Performance and cosmetic.

can ya tell why we love our rides?!

 

[zinger]

My only concern with small kids would be cloth seats. I'd buy leather or vinyl seat covers.

As with any car, if your kids are still in carseats, I would definitely take them to the dealership with you. Put the carseats in the car and then put the kids in. See how much room there is for you to maneuver getting everyone fastened in. I would bet the xB would beat most other compact cars.

 

[TartanJack]

Clazzio covers are a good idea

I have three kids, and it gets tight once 2 start to approach teens (with 1 still in a car seat). Still, we have used IT for the vaca car for the last number of years, for all five. That is OVER a Dodge Grand Caravan.

After the last one, however, it might be getting too tight for all the crap everyone wants to bring.

For 2 kids, it is plenty big.
Add a roof rack and a cargo box, there is plenty of room for a crap-load of stuff.

The last vaca included bringing 4 bikes, 4 boogie-boards, plus our crap for a week at the beach.

Here is use leaving for home:

 

[LophatRS6]

I bought mine with the kids in mind. My wife and I also drive an RX330, and the kids love both. Mine are 7 and 4, luckily they aren't too messy, and so my XB doesn't get stained much. I actually get it more dirty than they do probably. I have even shown mine at Hot Import Nights last year with the car seats in it. They enjoy riding in it, I have a pretty stout stereo system, sound deadening and it's pretty darn low, and I take them in it quite often. Now they they are older I don't need to carry a stroller, but I use to carry a double stroller with no issues. And with the sub box I designed I can make regular small trips to Costco with no problems. If I hadn't lowered it as much as I have we would probably take it more often on our weekly trip to see the grandparents an hour drive from our house, the ride home can be rough when they are sleeping in the car, though the ride really isn't that bad even as low as low it is, on average just a couple bad spots.
In stock form it's a great family wagon, just could use some sound deadening , which my coworker who bought an 08 recently noticed. There are other little things I wish it had like my RX has but 30,000 vs 18000 you have to know there are going to be pluses and minuses.

 

[NYxB]

I just got an xB and I have two young children. There's plenty of back seat room for them. One thing I bought that I highly recommend is the Weather Tech rear floor liner it fits perfect and has great coverage.

 

[mr2spyderman]

Aside from the floor mats and cargo mat, what other accessories do any of you recommend?

 

[TartanJack]

Rack & cargo box?

Headrest-mount DVD player?

HEADPHONES!!!

Zipties and a roof box
(Hehehehehe-just kidding)

I do mess with kids calling by Skybox, when on, an "aerodynamic coffin" and "where I put the bad kids."

 

[mr2spyderman]

We have a yakima rack with bike, surf and cargo attachments on our current car that will transfer over to the xB. I'm looking to load the xB up on dealer accessories like leather, TRD muffler, sway bars and bumper protector. Do you know if the dealer accessories include installation in the prices listed on scion.com?

 

[markio]

I think it does include installation, and you might get your old parts too

 

[Dale]

Usually,when you see prices on accessories in the parts dept., they are for the part and not for installation because that is in a different dept.(service). In any case, check with the counter guy for sure.

 

[zinger]

If you are getting prices from the parts department, I'm sure it is for the part only. If you are buying your xB new and selecting options during your purchase the price should include installation because you are ordering your car with those options.

 

[Greg S]

We have a yakima rack with bike, surf and cargo attachments on our current car that will transfer over to the xB. I'm looking to load the xB up on dealer accessories like leather, TRD muffler, sway bars and bumper protector. Do you know if the dealer accessories include installation in the prices listed on scion.com?

If you are a semi-competent DIYer all of those options are much cheaper to buy anywhere except the dealer and install yourself. If you are trying to build them into your car payment then by all means pay the dealer.