The 2016 Scion iM is evidence that one of the youngest car brands out there — and one aimed specifically at young drivers — is maturing gracefully. Here is a compact hatchback with a certain degree of class and sophistication, all at a keen price.
It’s based on a Toyota model sold elsewhere in the world as the Auris and shares platform parts with the Scion tC compact coupe. Scion has a worrying and confusing tendency to describe the iM as a subcompact, but calls the Ford Focus a rival. If it’s the size of a compact and competes with compacts, then it’s a compact — and should be evaluated as such.