2012 Scion iQ

The world of little cars is upon us, every manufacturer is coming up with their version of a small urban economy car. Scion has jumped into the ring with the Scion iQ, a cute little gas sipper that is designed for urban travel. It is the smallest four passenger micro subcompact that is not even 10 feet long, which makes it the smallest 4 passenger in the market.

Yes it will handle four passengers but the truth be told you could get three adults and a smaller adult or a child. What do I mean? Scion has taken the IQ pushed the wheels as far out to the four corners as possible, moved the power steering to the top of the engine and you have plenty of room inside. Scion engineers even designed the passenger seat to slide father than the driver seat which allows for three large adults to ride in the iQ and a smaller person behind the driver, installed a flat gas tank and a slim A/C unit. Real ingenious.

You get a 1.3-liter inline four cylinder engine that is putting out 94-horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 89-pound foot of torque at 4400 rpm, backed by a CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) which I am not a fan of but I must admit, it works in this car. Fuel mileage is estimated at 36 miles per gallon in the city and 37 miles per gallon on the freeway, that is with an 8.5 gallon gas tank and yes you can run Regular Unleaded. Now you may think the numbers should be higher but when you build a car this small you must add more safety equipment and designs so it can still meet the NHTS and Insurance Institutes standards.

The car comes very well equipped, A/C, tilt leather wrapped steering wheel, steering wheel mounted controls, trip computer, tire monitoring system, AM/FM/CD, folding rear seats just to name a few features.

How did it drive? Great, I love small cars anyway and this little scooter can go anywhere and fit anywhere yet it has plenty of room for six foot drivers and groceries, it handles well in the twisties and stops on a dime.

Price? $15,265 plus tax, license and freight. Safety? Front air bags, side air bags, crumple zones and bars in the doors. Take one for a spin and see if it fitsd your style?