This Scion IQ EV Is The Cutest Electric Car You’ve Likely Never Heard Of

In 2025, Toyota has only two electric vehicles currently for sale, the bZ and the C-HR. If a little late to the party, both EVs are more than adequate for the task of electrified transportation. However, long before other automakers were making mass-market hits like the Hyundai Ioniq5, and Tesla was only just starting to become mainstream with the first-generation Model S, Toyota’s now defunct Scion division was trying something fairly revolutionary for the halcyon days of 2013. 

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Scion took its adorably compact iQ two door and turned it into an extremely limited-run EV for ride-share programs in the United States. Toyota billed the gas-powered Scion iQ as “The world’s smallest four-seater” and at a wheelbase of 78.7 inches, it was certainly tiny. The gas engine variant wasn’t particularly impressive, with just 94 horsepower coming from a 1.4-liter four banger, but it was certainly efficient at 37 combined miles per gallon.

The electric version was similarly diminutive in specifications. In a press release from 2013, Toyota noted that the iQ EV had a single 63 horsepower motor that gave it a 0-60 time of a tragic 13.4 seconds. It’s not exactly a Lucid Air Sapphire. 

As far as battery range is concerned, it wasn’t too optimistic. It was fitted with a 12 kilowatt-hour lithium battery. For comparison, the 2026 Toyota C-HR has a 74.7 kilowatt-hour battery. That tiny battery gave the Scion iQ EV range of just around 50 miles. That’s laughable today, but back in 2013, it was certainly a cool concept. Now, to be fair to Toyota and Scion, the iQ EV was not meant to be the next Corolla. It was only made in very limited quantities for companies. “Approximately 90” were made, according to Toyota. Given the very limited run, Toyota didn’t publicly announce any pricing for the EV model. For comparison, the gas-powered iQ was priced at $15,665.

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Why was the range so limited? Toyota says that it didn’t need to have a big battery, saying: “Toyota developed the iQ EV specifically as a city commuter, for use in an urban environment, where driving distances are likely to be short, charging opportunities numerous, and its compact proportions beneficial.”

Judging by the fact that not only is Scion no longer around, and it took over a decade for Toyota to finally be modestly competitive in the electric vehicle market, the Scion iQ EV wasn’t much of a success. However, one must applaud Toyota for trying something different, if a little wacky.

Outside factors and mechanical limitations aside, what was the Scion iQ EV like? The gas-powered iQ was a goofy-little tech-forward city car with a big (for 2013) infotainment screen and a fun center console arrangement, with big buttons and dials. The electric model was similar, albeit with a more space-age color scheme. The instrument cluster was analog, with a small digital display to the right that showed range and battery level. It’s not all that exciting, but it’s well laid-out and legible. 

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Toyota/Scion somehow engineered it to stay as a four-seater, despite the extra battery hardware, and in an interesting stylistic move, the electric version has a physical handbrake lever. If you’re judging the iQ EV purely on cockpit legibility and physical controls, it has a leg up on many EVs in 2025. 

It may not have saved the world, but the Scion iQ EV was certainly a valiant effort. It was goofy enough to be fun, technologically advanced enough to be genuinely interesting, and vanishingly rare enough to catch the eye of any well-researched gearhead around. Above all else, it was adorable. What’s not to like?