It's Official: The Scion Brand Is Dead
Toyota has announced today that the Scion brand is no more. The Japanese auto giant first launched it in 2003 with the aim of attracting younger buyers in the North American market, and it seemed to have worked - the brand has the youngest average buyer age (36) in the car industry, apparently. Regardless, Toyota has seen fit to kill off Scion.
The tC (below) will die with the brand, ending production in August 2016, while the remaining models - the FR-S, iA and iM - will be sold as Toyotas from the 2017 model year onwards. The incoming Scion C-HR will also be getting a Toyota badge.
The 22-strong team of dedicated Scion employees will all be offered new jobs at Toyota USA, while servicing and repairs for Scion vehicles will continue with Toyota dealerships as normal. Meanwhile, people from the rest of the world are still looking at the top image thinking “what’s that weird badge on the front of that GT86?”
UPDATE: Toyota USA has since confirmed to us that the FR-S model name will still be used after the Scion brand is discontinued.
Growing up on a diet of World Rally Championship highlights and lengthy Gran Turismo 2 sessions, a life in cars was as good as inevitable for Matt.
Comments
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I understand missing Mercury but really? I bet you call them “Jap” cars too?
http://www.motortrend.com/news/breaking-toyota-gives-scion-brand-the-axe/
Wait… That should mean that the FRS prices should drop as its now an orphan car?
WOO!!
Does this mean the US gets the GT86 or do i have to join the masses in the US and get a BRZ
Guess Scion FR-S will be valuable in 50 years
I called it years ago :P
A sad day D:
whelp, middle class suburban ricer kids will have to look elsewhere
Toyota GT86 for the NA market when?
So sad, but at least they keep the cars coming…