Without much hesitation, I shifted the car into gear and sped off. Within minutes, I found myself trapped in a joyous gathering of bicycling protesters. I don't know what's weirder-being stuck in traffic behind those clueless dolts or the fact that I had to honk my horn in accordance with their protests, just so I could weasel my way through the melee. You see, while waiting ever so patiently for 15 minutes, Frisco's finest decided to confiscate one of the bicycles, much to the dismay of those disheveled anarchists. "Give the bike back! Give the bike back!" they shouted. I yelled out, "Just let me through," followed by blank stares and middle fingers. Since that didn't work, I began honking my horn furiously to the beat of their drum (visualize with me): Beep-beep-beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep-beep! And like Moses' parting of the Red Sea, I was allowed safe passage through their waters. Geez-war, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing. But honking, now that really works!
After I maneuvered my way out of that mess, I tried my best to sprint down every street we were instructed to drive on-but I just couldn't. Slow-going it was, yes, but the driving response was surprisingly phenomenal. Kick it to the left and it will; kick it to the right and it obeys. Even though you could run faster than it would take for the xA to accelerate onto the freeway, the fine art of joyriding around town was not sacrificed one bit, thankfully due in part by some ultra-comfy seats and the OEM Pioneer audio package that each Scion will feature. Let me tell you, this system kicks major tail. The head unit is capable of playing both standard audio CDs as well as burned MP3s, not to mention it's satellite-tuner capable, as long as you sign up for the service. There are plenty of speakers placed strategically throughout the passenger cabin and an optional bass tube can be had for additional thump. As it stands, this system is perfect for most Gen Y heads because it has been tuned to play house, hip hop, and other various forms of electronica, crisply and clearly. In fact, Scion's audio gear is probably the best OEM system that I have ever come across, and as a music buff, this is extremely important to me, especially if I want to play my Ibiza Trance Classics Volume 36.
Flip It Over For The B-SideMost of you should be more familiar with the xB model since we recently put one together as a project vehicle for Super Street. We first featured this offbeat U.S. stepwagon last fall ("Black Box," September '02) and as you can tell, this is the perfect alternative to those who are looking for more of an SUV look and feel, without the SUV price. The xB (known in Japan as the bB) is based off the same platform as the xA and also comes equipped with the same 1.5L engine as its Scion brethren. Although it is slightly heavier (just a hair more than 2,400 pounds), the xB maintains an excellent power-to-weight ratio and will deliver EPA city/highway mileage estimates of 30/33 (five-speed manual) and 30/34 (auto), not to mention it's also an EPA-certified low emissions vehicle (LEV). It will also come with all of the same standard goodies the xA comes with, including the Pioneer audio system, full power controls, and a myriad of optional add-on accessories.