2007 Scion tC review from North America

Rust spots/paint chips beginning at 8 months.

The interior back-lighting had some issues after about 7 months, dealer quickly rectified.

The performance of the tC is quite adequate, and is probably more than what the average consumer needs. I treat my vehicles well (usually reciprocates), but this car begs to be driven hard. It is VERY fun to drive. The tC handles more like a sports car, and the tires are wide enough to make cornering a dream. The 5-speed is not very natural and takes some to completely master. The wide tires are great when the road conditions are good, but during the snowy winters, the handling is terrible. This could be corrected some with more suitable tires, but with the width being as they are, physics is against traction during snowy and slushy conditions. While it handles like a sports car, the same can be said of the ride comfort. For everyday driving, the suspension is too firm. This, I believe, is what contributed to some of the early squeaking and rattling. Drive one for yourself before buying to see what I mean. Spirited driving, but too damn stiff for everyday.

I usually got about 25-26 mpg with it; satisfying. When driving strictly on the highway I was capable of about 31 mpg.

The standard panoramic moon roofs are a mixed bag for me. They are great when it is sunny and warm. If, however, you live somewhere that gets snow, the two moon roofs tend to get packed snow between them which makes a terrible sound as the body of the car shifts slightly while driving. The first snow was bad this year, and for the next two weeks I got to hear the squeaking nonstop as I drove along. Oh, yea, they also tend to lose a lot of the heat from the car during the winter, naturally.

I think the interior of the Scions is one of its huge plusses. It is refined, and everything screams quality. I like the climate control and audio control systems. The sound system as a whole could use some improvement. It lacks a lot of low end bass and sounds very punchy even with the right settings. Getting a small sub would rectify this problem quickly.

Here is the biggest problem with the car: the paint. It seems that I may not be the only one experiencing this problem. After about 6 months, I noticed more paint chips than I thought there should be. The next two months escalated exponentially. I have a clear bra on the front starting at the hood. This is the only spot that doesn't have chips beginning. When I brought this to the attention of my local Toyota-Scion dealership, they claimed that it was from my driving style, and isn’t covered by the bumper-to-bumper warranty. WOW, my driving style. I have been driving cars for a while now, and this seems to be the worst excuse the dealer could have come up with. I have NEVER experienced anything like this before. Vehicles are machines that will develop problems and you must keep them in good condition if you want the car to take care of you. But after having the car for 8 months, I traded it in because Toyota refused to back their product, and I feel that it is a HUGE issue.

There were also some rust spots developing that seemed to come from out of nowhere. They weren’t located where the chips are, but seem to be coming out from the pores of the paint?? Toyota said it was the spray on wax I was using. They said that Toyota uses this super awesome paint that is perfect in every way possible. Apparently not.

Up to the point of the paint chips, I was mildly satisfied with my purchase. Once this chipping stuff started up, however, I now cannot recommend the car. Paint jobs are expensive my friends, and this is something a new car owner should not be having to think about in the first year of ownership, let alone the first 10 years.

I hope my experience with this vehicle can help some of you get a proper angle on some of the real issues with the tC. If I could go back (even if the paint were perfect) I would have gotten a different vehicle. I now own a Mazda3 iTouring and couldn’t be happier. Where the tC lacked, the 3 has picked up the slack. The tC does have its advantages over the 3: the interior, the rims, the performance, the “cool factor”. Personally, I like the styling on both nearly the same. The tC looks sportier; the 3 looks smarter. The handling is very similar, but the 3 is much more comfortable to ride in. The 3 wins in terms of utility, gas mileage, sound system, engine “feel”, insurance costs, paint and smarts. There are obviously other plusses and minuses of each with one could go on for pages describing, but instead, I will summarize in a paragraph.

The tC is probably a decent choice for some. However, similarly equipped vehicles of other brands are just as capable. Don’t let people tell you that for the money, nothing can touch the tC. I think we are going to find out in the next couple of years that the tC has some paint quality issues of broad scale (maybe this is just limited to those who experience cold climates?) Do NOT purchase this vehicle as an impulse. The tC is as fun as fun gets, but think about whether you are truly going to be happy with this vehicle two years from now. This car is for a specific niche that cares about customization and technology. Look at the other reviews for the tC on this site; they are very short in comparison to other Brands and models (Mazda3 for example). Some of these people purchasing these tC s seem to have not really looked into the negatives of their cars. The negatives are there, and there are tradeoffs to all vehicles, I just find it funny that nobody else seems to point this out. It seems that some people are just posting their positive reviews to help affirm that they made the right choice (I suppose everyone has to deal with their post-purchase dissonance somehow).

Overall, I do not recommend this vehicle to anyone that is planning on keeping it more than a year. 

As much as I thought I would love this vehicle for years, I am going to have to give it a negative based on my experiences.

I will watch this review and it's comments and will respond to questions anyone has. Again, this has been my experience with the tC and doesn't represent anyone's opinions except my own.