The Scion badge is finally back in the game thanks to Toyota, but it is now worn by a side-by-side off-roader concept running on Tacoma hybrid tech. The vehicle debuted at the SEMA show in Las Vegas that concluded yesterday, November 7th, and most likely wasn’t destined for production.
The Scion 01 is a side-by-side (SxS) concept designed for off-road racing and “adrenaline-hungry enthusiasts,” per the company. It represents “a platform for expanding borders” and “researching new opportunities off the tarmac,” the statement goes. To that end, the vehicle comes equipped with a winch, meaty off-road tires and a roll cage certified to the SCORE and FIA standards.
Powering the ride is a turbocharged four-cylinder engine and an electric motor jointly rated above 300 horsepower (304 PS / 224 kW). The company doesn’t specify the origin of the powertrain, but Car and Driver reports that it’s the familiar i-Force Max system found in the latest Tacoma truck. It uses a 48V electric starter-generator integrated into an automatic transmission and stores what little electricity it needs in a 1.87-kWh battery. The resulting mild-hybrid setup maxes out at 326 PS (322 hp / 240 kW), which technically qualifies as “above 300 hp”.
Toyota never said whether it planned to produce a side-by-side like this, but repeatedly stated that the Scion 01 was its “creative proving ground” and an “experimentation symbol”. As such, we do not seriously expect it to distill into a production vehicle anytime soon.
