Depending on your own take, the boxy Scion xB has been the inspiration or bane of the custom car community ever since it was first produced. Its strange appeal has spawned an unexpected fan base, mostly a young twentysomething crowd with little money to burn, looking for economic ways to trick out a rather unsophisticated compact station wagon.
Enter Rick Ramsey. At 56 years of age, Ramsey has no quarrel about being the exception to the rule. And the uniqueness of his 2004 Scion xB comes not from the age of the owner but the extreme engine work that has even Scion owners shaking their heads in disbelief.
After his son Tyler brought home a Scion xB, Ramsey, who wrestled with socially acceptable mores of adult car ownership, was shamefully intrigued. Ramsey’s initial forays began on Scion forums, where the discrimination was palpable. The question Ramsey recalls most vividly asked was why an “older” person wanted to modify a Scion xB. Undeterred, Ramsey found a donor 2004 Scion xB for sale in Philadelphia on eBay. His plan was to keep the factory “sleeper” look of the Scion but beef up the engine.
After he worked a deal with the owner, he drove it up to Bob Nobile and Advanced Automotive Concepts in Perry Hall, Md. Nobile, who specializes in scratch-built race cars, began looking for the hidden cameras when Ramsey made his proposal: Swap a Chevrolet 350 small-block engine in place of the puny 1-liter engine currently wasting space. When Nobile realized Ramsey was serious, it set the wheels in motion. As far as the two were aware, no one had done it. And the sheer novelty of the project was enough to get the two brainstorming.
By fall 2007, Ramsey proceeded to gut the xB of all its internal wiring and removed the engine. The xB was trailered back to the shop, where Nobile was able to seize upon a 350 with a five-speed automatic transmission that had already been dynoed at 450 hp. One of the major challenges would be creating a custom doghouse to fit the oversized transmission. Ramsey came up with the idea of inverting a wheelbarrow. So after a quick stop at Lowe’s, Nobile cut and form-fitted the wheelbarrow against the fire wall.
The engine dropped in so effortlessly and the subframe was so generous with space, Ramsey and Nobile thought Toyota and Scion must have anticipated that someone would try this transplant. But as far as Ramsey knew, from hours of research on the Internet, only one other person had attempted a similar feat. Even though Ramsey considers himself a Ford fan, he went with the Chevy engine because it creates what he thought was a classier-looking engine bay where the distributor is positioned up front.
The superstructure of the vehicle remained virtually untouched. But to get the most out of the new engine, the configuration would need to be changed from front- to rear-wheel drive. Off the showroom floor, the Scion xB weighs in at 2,500 pounds. Through the transition, the weight increased by 400 pounds. Changing the driveline from front-wheel to a more performance-oriented rear-wheel configuration helped keep the weight of the car down, allowing Ramsey to enjoy as much horsepower as he could eke out of the setup.
Wiring for the car was also rerouted. Turn signals, windows and lights were wired through special relays and run to a separate circuit panel to operate everything. An MSD ignition replaced the Japanese-tuned stock ignition. Ramsey said the speedometer and gas gauge still needed to be worked out since Ramsey hasn’t solved all the bugs with the current ECU pulse signal from the onboard computer. Eventually he hopes to wire everything through the original instrument displays. For now, the xB may as well have magnetic paint, because curiosity seekers line up wherever his car does.
What do you drive? A 2004 Scion xB.
Why do you drive it? That’s a tough one. I guess it’s to show people there are other options. The young kids in the tuner world are just blown away by it.
What makes this car so special? It’s different from all the rest. Anybody can do a Mustang, Chevelle or a Camaro. My girlfriend refuses to go anywhere with me because of the attention it draws. She would rather slide down in her seat and wish she wasn’t there.
What was your most memorable driving experience? We went to a show in Philadelphia last year for xBs. We set up across the street and waited until most of the lot filled up. We started it up and made a U-turn and came in. My xB was an immediate hit. When the show was done and awards were given out, I won best engine modifications. I decided to show off a little bit at the end of the show. I stepped all the way down on the gas pedal but the pedal got stuck on the carpet. With so much horsepower, it wasn’t going to stop and I hopped the curb and traded paint with a brand-new Toyota Tundra. I did a thousand dollars’ worth of damage to the Tundra and another thousand to my vehicle. I looked at my son and said, “I’ll never outgrow the kid in me,” so I’m as vulnerable as anybody else. Lesson learned.
What was the first vehicle you owned? A ’65 Comet Caliente with a four-barrel four-speed.
What kind of music are you currently listening to in your car? I’m a Top 40 guy. A little bit of country, not much. Because of the harmonics created by the dual 3-inch exhaust, you have to keep it cranked up to understand what’s being sung.
And your first ticket? What was it for? It was a speeding ticket. Probably the first five tickets I received were speeding tickets.
