Scion Ia Reliability by Year
Based on 2M+ real complaints filed with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
39 NHTSA complaints (2016–2016).Complaint rate: 43.1 per 1,000 vehicles.
Should I buy a Scion Ia?
Quick answer from 39 NHTSA complaints · 2016–2016
Scion Ia shows elevated crash or fire rates — buy with caution. 20.5% of reported complaints involved a crash — above the ~4% mainstream average. Most complaints relate to engine problems. Inspect carefully or consider a different model in the same class.
- 2016 Scion Ia· 39 complaints
Keep scrolling for year-by-year complaint trends, recall campaigns, and component breakdowns — or click any year above for a full report.
What Happened to 904 Scion Ias On the Road
Complaints record what owners reported. These are the outcomes actually recorded against 904 Scion Ia VINs built 2016–2016 — accidents, title brands and odometer flags from our vehicle-history database, not from the NHTSA complaint file.
Typical Scion Ia on record: 2.1 owners on average, 87,377 average miles.
Which Years to Buy & Avoid
Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.
Rankings based on raw NHTSA complaint counts. Sales volume data not yet available for this model.
Bottom line: The Scion Ia has fairly consistent complaint patterns across model years.
Avoid These Years
No years with significant complaint spikes.
Average
Better Years
No years stand out as significantly better.
A model's reputation is just the start.
Even within the “good” years, individual cars can have hidden accidents, title issues, or odometer rollbacks. Check the actual VIN before you buy — full history report for $8.99 (vs. Carfax $44.99).
Common Scion Ia Problems
Most reported component complaints to NHTSA. Bar length = volume; color = crash-involvement rate.
Show full table
| Component | Complaints | Crash % |
|---|---|---|
| Engine Problems | 8 | 12.5% |
| Electrical Faults | 7 | 0.0% |
| Airbags | 6 | 66.7% |
| Transmission / Drivetrain | 5 | 20.0% |
| Brakes | 4 | 0.0% |
| Unintended Acceleration | 3 | 33.3% |
Year-by-Year Breakdown
NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
Year-by-Year Breakdown
Tap any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.
Data Sources & Methodology
Complaints: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation consumer complaint database (39 records for this model). Public domain data, updated monthly.
Sales data: Not yet available for this model. Complaint counts are shown as raw numbers.
On-road outcomes: Accident, title-brand, theft and odometer records for 904 Scion Ia VINs in our vehicle-history database. Independent of the NHTSA complaint file — a complaint is what an owner reported, these are what was recorded against the vehicle. Year-level figures are shown only for model years with at least 200 VINs on record.
Rate calculation: Complaints per 10,000 vehicles sold = (complaint count / US annual sales) x 10,000. This normalizes for sales volume so high-volume models like Civic or Camry aren't unfairly penalized.
Year classifications: AVOID = 1.5x+ the model's median complaint count. GOOD = 0.6x or below. Years less than 3 years old are marked TOO NEW (insufficient data).
Buying a Scion Ia?
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