Toyota to stop production of Scions

TORRANCE, Calif., Feb. 4 (UPI) -- Toyota's Scion brand, established to lure younger buyers into Toyota showrooms, will shut down in August.

Scions were produced starting in 2003 as quirky, low-cost vehicles aimed at a generation of post-Baby Boomers in the United States, many of whom regarded the Toyota nameplate as stodgy.

Scions are van-like small cars and entry-level sports coupes with notable sound systems. They typically sell for under $20,000.

"The Gen X buyers were speaking very loudly, and their attitude toward mainstream brands was taking a divergence from their boomer parents," said Toyota Senior Vice President Bob Carter. "We created Scion to attract those young buyers."

In a statement, Toyota said the scrapping of the Scion nameplate is less a closure than a blending of Scion into the Toyota culture, adding the customers for which Scion products were designed have grown older, making them ideal potential customers for Toyota's current lineup of vehicles.

"This isn't a step backward for Scion; it's a leap forward for Toyota. Scion has allowed us to fast track ideas that would have been challenging to test through the Toyota network. I was there when we established Scion and our goal was to make Toyota and our dealers stronger by learning how to better attract and engage young customers," said Jim Lentz of Toyota Motor North America.

Sales of Scions hit a peak in 2006, when 173,000 were sold. In 2015 only 56,000 were sold.