There is no 2019 Toyota Rukus. Toyota Australia sold the Rukus from 2010 until October 2015, when the model was discontinued, and the factory that built it stopped making the equivalent Scion xB at the end of 2015. The Rukus was Australia’s version of the second-generation Scion xB, a boxy five-door compact hatchback that also sold in Japan as the Toyota Corolla Rumion.
What the Rukus was
The Rukus was not a Toyota-designed model from the ground up. It was a rebadged second-generation Scion xB, which Toyota’s Scion brand sold in the United States from the 2008 model year. The same body was sold in Japan as the Corolla Rumion. The second-generation xB was unveiled at the 2007 Chicago Auto Show, built on the E150 series Corolla platform, and it was larger and heavier than the first-generation xB. Toyota said it was 2.8 inches wider, 12 inches longer — including a 4-inch-longer wheelbase — and about 600 lb heavier than the car it replaced.
The last Rukus: engine and specs
Every second-generation xB and Rukus used a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, code 2AZ-FE, producing 158 hp and 162 lb-ft of torque. The engine was shared with the Scion tC and the contemporary Toyota Camry. Buyers chose between a five-speed manual and a four-speed automatic with sequential shifting; there was no other engine option, and all-wheel drive was never offered. The Rukus carried the model code AZE151R in Australia.
| Toyota Rukus / Scion xB (2nd gen) | Specification |
|---|---|
| Production | Rukus 2010–2015; Scion xB 2007–2015 |
| Engine | 2.4 L 2AZ-FE four-cylinder |
| Power | 158 hp |
| Torque | 162 lb-ft |
| Transmissions | 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic |
| Drive | Front-wheel drive |
| Body | Five-door compact hatchback |
Toyota’s own figures for the 2008 xB were 22 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway. The second-generation car’s larger engine and extra weight made it thirstier than the 1.5-liter first-generation xB, which had been rated at 26 mpg city and 31 mpg highway. The boxy shape gave the Rukus generous headroom and cargo space for its footprint, which was the main reason buyers chose it.
A short history of the boxy Toyota
The line began with the Toyota bB, a small box-shaped hatchback sold in Japan from 2000. For the United States, Toyota rebadged it as the Scion xB for the 2004 model year, one of the two launch models of the Scion brand. The first-generation xB ran from June 2003 to December 2006 and was powered by a 1.5-liter four-cylinder with 108 hp. The second generation arrived in 2007 and lasted until December 2015. Toyota added the Rukus to the Australian range in 2010. The xB was facelifted for the 2011 model year with a revised front and rear bumper, a new grille, new headlights and taillights, a revised instrument cluster and new front seats, and it went on sale in Canada for the first time.
Why it was discontinued
Rukus sales did not justify keeping it in the Australian line-up, and Toyota stopped selling it in October 2015. In the United States the Scion brand was wound down and folded into Toyota in 2016, and the xB was one of the models dropped. The small, boxy hatchback segment that the xB helped create was later filled by crossovers rather than by another tall wagon. The Japanese-market Corolla Rumion was discontinued in December 2015 as well, and the final US xB model year, 2015, included a 686-car Parklan Edition. The xB was sold for the 2004 to 2015 model years.
What buyers can get instead
Anyone who wanted a new 2019 Rukus had no equivalent on sale. Toyota’s small and compact models moved toward conventional hatchbacks and SUVs: in the United States the xB’s role was effectively taken by the Scion iM, which became the Toyota Corolla iM for 2017. Buyers in Australia looking for a small Toyota SUV could consider the Toyota Rush, covered on this site as the 2019 Toyota Rush Exterior Design and Release Date. The Rukus itself is now a used-only proposition, and its discontinuation followed other Toyota models that were dropped without a direct successor, such as the 2019 Toyota Solara Price, Engine, Performance.
Safety
The second-generation Scion xB earned the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Top Safety Pick award for six consecutive years. It received an overall Good score in the IIHS frontal offset test and another Good score in the side impact test, with all nine measured categories rated Good, plus a Good score in the roof strength test. Those results carry over to the mechanically identical Rukus.
Price when new
In the United States, the 2011-model xB was priced from $16,000 with the manual gearbox and $16,950 with the automatic, a $150 increase over the previous year. Australian pricing for the Rukus was set separately by Toyota Australia when the model went on sale in 2010. Because the car has been out of production for a decade, any 2019 “price” quoted for a Rukus refers to used values rather than a manufacturer list price.
Rukus at a glance
- Also sold as the Scion xB (US) and Toyota Corolla Rumion (Japan)
- Australian sales: 2010 – October 2015
- Scion xB production: June 2003 – December 2015
- Engine: 2.4 L 2AZ-FE four-cylinder, 158 hp, 162 lb-ft
- Transmissions: five-speed manual or four-speed automatic
- Replacement: none; Scion brand closed in 2016
