Copyright SlashGear
Toyota is stealing the show at SEMA this year. The brand is using the annual Las Vegas trade show as a stage to debut some seriously cool stuff, including a concept car that could finally make Camrys cool and a Toyota FJ60 Concept with 389 horsepower. Toyota went in an unexpected direction, however, with its latest concept debuted at SEMA: a side-by-side called the Scion 01. Scion, once positioned as a no-haggle pricing brand, was discontinued in 2016. Now, Toyota is using the name on a high-horsepower, four-door side-by-side. The Scion 01 is an off-roader with massive all-terrain tires, 26 inches of suspension travel, and a modern rugged look. According to Toyota, it's powered by a high-output hybrid system and uses a turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces more than 300 horsepower. This could be the engine that powers the latest Toyota Tacoma and 4Runner, also known as the i-Force Max, though we're not sure just how different the engine is from the production unit in those rigs. If the i-Force Max Tacoma numbers of 326 horsepower and 465 lb-ft of torque end up being anywhere close to what this Scion concept gets, it would outclass just about anything you can currently find on a side-by-side showroom floor today. It's certainly much more powerful than current leaders in the side-by-side market like the supercharged Teryx5 H2 or the wildly fun turbocharged Can-Am Maverick R. Big power is becoming increasingly popular in the side-by-side world, so off-road enthusiasts would likely welcome the Scion 01 into the fold. Vehicles like these need to be more than just powerful, though. Thankfully, Toyota is no stranger to off-roading and has kitted the Scion 01 out properly. Toyota claims the vehicle comes equipped with a "first-of-its-kind" FIA-compliant cage and that the interior is fitted with four bucket seats and racing harnesses. The company hasn't released any details on the construction and specific strength of the cage, but it looks pretty beefy to say the least. Concept or not, the interior of the Scion 01 looks ready for production, with lots of touches that Toyota faithfuls will recognize from the brand's modern trucks. Various screens, suspension adjustment knobs, and even a dashboard full of switches make the concept look much closer to production than many of the thrown-together SEMA concepts we've seen over the years. If it were to be manufactured, its features would have it competing directly with top rivals from Polaris, Can-Am, and Kawasaki. A silent EV-only mode is also listed among the 01's talents, giving it the capability to creep away from the campsite in the morning or go on and off your trailer at home without waking the neighbors. Here's hoping that Toyota will actually build it, if only for the selfish reason that I want to get behind the wheel of a side-by-side with this much power and torque.
