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2006-2014 · 8 model years

Scion XD Problems by year

Owners have filed 38 complaints about the Scion XD across 8 model years, and it has 7 recalls. The 2009 has the most complaints once its age is allowed for (23), while 2006, 2013 have far fewer than a typical year. The most reported problem area is the electrical system, followed by the engine & cooling.

Most complaints for its age200923 complaints · 6 recallsSee the 2009
Complaints
38
Recalls
7
Crashes
6
Fires
6
Injuries
15
Deaths
0

XD complaints by model year

Highlighted: the year with the most complaints for its age. Older vehicles have had more time to collect complaints - the Safety Index grade allows for that.

YearComplaintsRecallsCrashesFiresTop problemGrade
20144003Engine & coolingC
20132000SteeringA
20125022AirbagsF
20113110SuspensionC
20100400-C
200923631Electrical systemF
20080500-D
20061100Engine & coolingA

Most common XD problems

Scion XD recalls 7

Latest XD complaints

2014 Scion XDEngine & coolingFuel systemFire

I had just traded cars with my daughter so I could babysit my triplet 14 month old grandchildren. I drove my 2014 Scion Xd without any issues for 3 hours (from Bath, Maine to the border of Vermont). I traded cars with my daughter, mother of triplets, and she drove off with her husband to attend a reunion. Approximately 10 minutes after my daughter and her husband left, she called and said the car made a loud pop sound and she had to pull over. Then, a man ran across four lanes of rt 89 to tell her the car was on...

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fire. My husband fielded the call from my daughter who screamed, 'The car is on fire!' - then the call went dead. I had to drive my husband and triplet grandchildren in the direction of the car, visible by the black smoke plumes, while not knowing if my daughter and her husband were alive. The fire department, a state trooper, and local police were on the scene and I am thankful everyone was safe. Needless to say, this situation was very traumatic for my family. My daughter reported the oil light and the engine coming on, as well as a dash symbol she didn't recognize, right before the car caught on fire. The right hand lane of route 89 had a 1/4 mile streak of oil leading up to my burned out Scion Xd.

Filed Incident Unknown or other · Engine · Fuel / propulsion systemNHTSA 11738246
2014 Scion XDEngine & coolingFire

On 6/27/2025 my car, 2014 Scion Xd, was serviced at Lee Toyota of Topsham, ME for brakes, tire rotation, recommended oil pan reseal. Who was driving? I had just traded cars with my daughter so I could babysit my triplet [[redacted]] grandchildren. I drove my 2014 Scion Xd without any issues for 3 hours (from [[redacted]] to the border of [[redacted]] ). I traded cars with my daughter, mother of triplets, and she drove off with her husband to attend a reunion. Approximately 10 minutes after my daughter and her...

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husband left, she called and said the car made a loud pop sound and she had to pull over. Then, a man ran across four lanes of [[redacted]] to tell her the car was on fire. My husband fielded the call from my daughter who screamed, 'The car is on fire!' - then the call went dead. I had to drive my husband and triplet grandchildren in the direction of the car, visible by the black smoke plumes, while not knowing if my daughter and her husband were alive. The fire department, a state trooper, and local police were on the scene and I am thankful everyone was safe. Needless to say, this situation was very traumatic for my family. My daughter reported the oil light and the engine coming on, as well as a dash symbol she didn't recognize, right before the car caught on fire. The right hand lane of route [redacted] had a 1/4 mile streak of oil leading up to my burned out Scion Xd. GEICO insurance company took over possession of the vehicle and processed the insurance claim. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Incident Unknown or other · EngineNHTSA 11738244
2009 Scion XDSuspensionWheels & tires

Drove car and heard loud noise issuing from the passenger side rear. Upon viewing the wheel was angled in at the top. After removing the wheel I found the rear crossmember subframe axle had a complete break in the weld holding the angle from the straight part of the beam to the wheel and suspension plate. After going online to see if similar issues happen on the same side of the vehicle, I found many reports of weld failures on the same side at the same joint. This is an EXTREMELY dangerous weld failure--if it had...

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happened during highway travel the potential for catastrophic injury or death is high, in my opinion. Please investigate other reports to the NTSB about this make and model, and please search model years on or about 2007-2012 as other scion owners have had the same issue. This is a one owner car, we purchased it new in 2009. The opposite weld is also showing signs of stress, but not broken or cracked.

Filed Incident Suspension · Wheels · Unknown or otherNHTSA 11655620
2011 Scion XDSuspension

Right rear axel is cracked and broken, wheel is rubbing on inside weel well, car is un driveable until it's fixed and has a very large cost to repair.

Filed Incident SuspensionNHTSA 11653014
2009 Scion XDSuspension

A major safety structural defect has developed in the rear axle beam. About 50 percent of the welds failed where the passenger side swing arm attaches to the rest of the axle. The lack of support ended up creating about a three inch stress crack across the width of the swing arm tube. This could have led to a complete failure of the swing arm, had I not found the problem. Had this failure occurred on the highway, it might have caused a serious accident. A month prior I started hearing a pop from the rear of the car...

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each time I would back out of the driveway and the first time I went forward. I crawled under the car within about two weeks and checked things over but found nothing. I thought it might have been a coil spring shifting in its seat or a shock absorber with an internal problem. The noise continued and was getting a bit louder each time it occurred. I ended up lifting the back of the car and pulling the rear wheels. I first found the stress crack across the swing arm tube. Upon further inspection, I realized a portion of the welds had failed. The car is 14 years old and has 159k miles. There is rust that is contributing to the deterioration of the connection, yet the design of the swing arm and its connections seem as though they are barely sufficient when it was new. The design of the swing arm connections does not appear sufficient to be exposed to normal wear and tear of winter driving. In searching for a replacement part, this same exact swing arm is also used on the Toyota Prius C and a Yaris model. So this issue could be occurring on those models as well.

Filed Incident SuspensionNHTSA 11522154
2011 Scion XDSuspension

Read axle beam broke on the right side. Appears to have rusted through.

Filed Incident SuspensionNHTSA 11503127

Questions about the Scion XD

Which Scion XD years have the most problems?

By the number of complaints owners filed with NHTSA: 2009 (23), 2012 (5), 2014 (4). Allowing for how long each has been on the road, the 2009 stands out most. Complaint counts also rise with sales, so compare years of the same model rather than different models.

Which Scion XD years have the fewest complaints?

Among model years that have been on the road for at least three years, 2013, 2006 have the best Safety Index - the fewest complaints, crashes and recalls for their age compared with other XD years. Always check the exact vehicle's recalls by VIN before you buy.

What are the most common Scion XD problems?

Across every model year, owners report problems with the electrical system (9), engine & cooling (7), fuel system (5) most often.

How many recalls does the Scion XD have?

NHTSA lists 7 recalls across all Scion XD model years. Each year's page lists the recalls for that year; check your own vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether the repair has been done.

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked daily. Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

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