Thread: Anyone using a Scion XB

I'm thinking of buying an XB, but not sure my 17' Little Giant will slide in. I use a Highlander now, and with one side of the rear seat down, my ladder slides in great.

Time for a Test Drive.

You need about 6 feet of cargo space for the LG, right? I need about 70" for my Jaws.

I traded a Ford Ranger with the 6 foot box for a Ford Escape SUV. The Escape has the same 3.0 L V6, but gets better mileage with AWD than the 2WD Ranger ever did.

I can get the 22' Jaws ladder into the 5 foot cargo space of the Escape by leaning the front of the ladder up on a Tupperware tote and strapping it down with bungies. So I need 5 feet of cargo space at least.

Originally Posted by Jack Feldmann

I'm thinking of buying an XB, but not sure my 17' Little Giant will slide in. I use a Highlander now, and with one side of the rear seat down, my ladder slides in great.

The 17 foot Little Giant is not very long closed up, maybe about 4'6" to 4'9"? If you can find a 5 foot long cargo area then it should fit.

48" for the Scion from the hatch door to the backs of the front seats. You'll have to lay the passenger seat down. You need 55" plus an inch or two for clearance.

Originally Posted by John Kogel

48" for the Scion from the hatch door to the backs of the front seats. You'll have to lay the passenger seat down. You need 55" plus an inch or two for clearance.

That might work with the ladder propped on up something, the standard 90 degree triangle of 4 ft base with a 3 ft height would make the diagonal 5 ft (the 3-4-5 square) - how high up can it go? It would not need to up the full 3 ft as it would not require the full 5 ft hypotenuse of the 3-4-5 ... just some thoughts - of course, if the back of the front seats were angled back that would mess up the 3-4-5 measurement anyway.

Also, is that 48" with the passenger seat all the way forward?

In some ways, the ladder is better on the roof rack. The Escape has tinted glass so people can't see what I've got back there. I know they like to see a ladder when they meet the inspector, so I will leave it out for the walkthrough and then don't have to reassure them that I did indeed walk the roof.

The LG is 4'7" long. I made a 5' long tray with vertical uprights to carry the ladder. I store my 4' level on the side of the verticals, and they also keep the ladder from flopping around. I need to just go find one and try my ladder in it.
I had hoped I would find someone on here that had a Scion XB and a LG. I have half of the passenger seat folded down in my Highlander now, and it works great. My daughter in Seattle has a Scion, but I always forget to bring my ladder with me when I visit.

Originally Posted by Jack Feldmann

I'm thinking of buying an XB, but not sure my 17' Little Giant will slide in. I use a Highlander now, and with one side of the rear seat down, my ladder slides in great.

Jack I looked to buy a new vehicle this summer and almost got that Scion however after test driving the Kia Soul I made the right decision and went with the KIA.
WOW do I love my Soul.
No comparison.

Jack,

I went with a Subaru outback and the 22' LG fits in, subie21small.jpglaying flat. Its AWD and averages 26mpg. I got the windows tinted as dark as legally allowed and add company lettering to the rear glass. Had it since 2009, have 92K miles on it and other than a set of tires, a battery, brake pads and oil changes its gone non-stop. A huge change in cost from my Expedition. I don't know about the Scion reliability but Subaru is a rockstar in my opinion.

I used a Scion xb and carried my shorter Werner Multi ladder inside and on days that I needed the bigger ladder, it went on the luggage rack. I loved it, one of the easiest vehicles I have worked out of including my current F150. Carrying the larger ladder on the roof was easy due to the low height but it did cut mileage and was noisy. I think I used the 17' werner but I am a bit foggy on that.

Originally Posted by Rick Bunzel

A huge change in cost from my Expedition

I had to move up from the standard Expedition to the EL model due to a shortage of floor space. Even though the 14 MPG adds to operational costs having a fully equipped truck makes quite an impression on people and in that sense is good for business.

This was my inspection vehicle the last 4 years or so before I retired.

Thanks Jim, thats the info I needed.
I appreciate the other comments, but I am really only interested if the Scion XB will carry my ladder.

Originally Posted by Jack Feldmann

Thanks Jim, thats the info I needed.
I appreciate the other comments, but I am really only interested if the Scion XB will carry my ladder.

Mine was a 2005 model before it grew up a bit. I'm pretty sure I carried the Werner 17 (about 5' folded) inside with the back seat folded. I was tight but it fit. I carried my LG 23 (about 6' folded) on the roof rack.

Originally Posted by Rick Bunzel

Jack,

I went with a Subaru outback and the 22' LG fits in, subie21small.jpglaying flat. Its AWD and averages 26mpg. I got the windows tinted as dark as legally allowed and add company lettering to the rear glass. Had it since 2009, have 92K miles on it and other than a set of tires, a battery, brake pads and oil changes its gone non-stop. A huge change in cost from my Expedition. I don't know about the Scion reliability but Subaru is a rockstar in my opinion.

You are at the age and milage where you are about to find out that Japan makes great tire rubber but there rubber seals and gaskets suck! CV boots will split soon, valve cover gaskets will leak and spark plugs will be soaked in oil, power steering gets very stiff on cold mornings, transmission hesitates or fails to go into forward, engine oil leak (not yet found). All between 100,000 and 120,000 miles.

Vern, don't tell him the front doors start to sag too. And the sunroof costs $350 to have the gutters cleaned.

I used the Outback for winter backup vehicle and had yes about 6ft of floor space.

Ps, Vern, do American vehicles all run American parts and rubber? Amazing.