Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (accelerator pedal, throttle, sudden acceleration, cruise control).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2006 Scion xB owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
When braking, the accelerator had somehow stuck and moved me ahead instead of stopping and caused an accident; running into concrete posts in the parking lot, which by USAA standards, totaled my car; Actually it didn't, but because they didn't want to repair it the settlement totaled it, causing me lots of issues in finding transportation. This was not the first time. It has happened three times with this car. I never went back to the dealer (too far to find out if there was a fix for it, or a recall.) In searching for one, never found it.
Tl* the contact owned a 2006 Toyota Scion xB. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 50 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated that the vehicle continued to accelerate independently. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The mechanic stated that the throttle needed to be cleaned. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the brake pedal failed to respond causing the contact to crash into a pole. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was not filed and there were no injuries. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 155,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Toyota Scion xB. While driving in a parking lot at approximately 4 MPH , the contact struck a curb. The vehicle experienced unintended acceleration going through several curves, down an embankment, crashed through two metal fences, and landed in a fountain of approximately three feet of water. The front air bags failed to deploy. The stability control system did not activate. A police report was filed and no injuries were sustained. The vehicle was towed to a lot. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.
The spring which brings the gas pedal back up after you push it, fell off it's mounting. So when you push the gas, the gas stays pushed. I went to the dealer and they reinstalled the same spring. But I feel this part should be mounted more securely. I found out about the problem while my car was in "park" in my driveway. Had it happened when I was driving, I could have been hurt or killed. Is this a pattern, are dealerships required to report this. I do not believe there was a recall pertaining to this problem on this vehicle. - thank you [redacted]
When I was pulling up to the car in front of me at a light, having just exited a highway, my car accelerated instead of slowing to a stop. I was able to pull into the next lane over to avoid hitting the car in front of me. Luckily there were no cars coming or in that lane already. I was not hurt nor did any damage. This is one of three instances of unintended aceleration. The other two were while parking. No injury or damage has occurred with any of the incidences.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 Scion xB. While the contact was stopped in traffic with the vehicle placed in park the vehicle suddenly accelerated without warning causing the contact to crash into the vehicle in front of her. No one was injured, a police report was filed for the incident. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealership and there were no prior warnings. The current and failure mileages were 97000.
I was in motion going about 35 miles per hour. I accelerated rapidly up to 40 MPH and when I eased off the gas, the car continued to rev/accelerate. I tried pushing the brake but the car resisted. I changed gears into neutral (I have an automatic) and though it revved really loudly, when I put it back into drive, it was responsive again to the gas and brake.
While braking car started to slid and suddenly accreted what seemed like full throttle. I managed to get the car in park while engine was revving and tired continued to spin. I had to turn switch off to stop car from lunging forward and tires spinning. All of this happened on a city street and I tried to turn left to get car off of main road.
I was pulling into my driveway when my car accelerated uncontrollably. I applied the brake with both feet and could not stop. I hit my other car in the driveway and that stopped me but damaged both vehicles. Since this occurred on private property I did not contact police.
The cruise control does not respond to the on/off reset button being pushed. The events leading up to the failure are difficult to describe because the failure occurs randomly when I am driving on the expressway and engage the cruise control. Once engaged the cruise control does not respond to the on/off button and on at least one occasion the car had to be turned off twice to get the device to reset. We contacted aftermarket quality accessories that installed the cruise control and the dealer kerry Toyota Scion of florence where we bought the car. We were told by aqa there is nothing wrong with the cruise control. The cruise control continues to be a problem with the most recent incident occurring on 12/11/10. …
Related recalls
Vehicle speed control
Certain rostra precision controls' speed controls May have a faulty module. These controls were installed by southeast Toyota dealers or at their vehicle processing center on certain passenger vehicles. When the speed control "on/off" switch is pressed once to turn the unit off, the throttle does not return to idle.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and/or replace the speed control module. The recall began on February 28, 2007. Owners May contact southeast Toyota at 1-800-301-6859.
Vehicle speed control › Cruise control
Certain rostra precision controls' speed controls May have a faulty module. These controls were installed by gulf states Toyota (gst) dealers or at their vehicle processing center on certain passenger vehicles. When the speed control "on/off" switch is pressed once to turn the unit off, the throttle does not return to idle.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and/or replace the speed control module. The recall began on March 7, 2007. Owners May contact gst at 1-800-444-1074.
Acceleration complaints in other xB years
Frequently asked questions
How common are acceleration problems on the 2006 Scion xB?
NHTSA has 27 complaints about the speed control & acceleration of the 2006 Scion xB, 11% of the model year's 253 complaints. The component named most often is cruise control (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2006 Scion xB acceleration problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 07V-048 (vehicle speed control, Feb 12, 2007); NHTSA recall 07V-030 (cruise control, Feb 1, 2007). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2006 Scion xB acceleration problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 52,000 miles, and 38% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 7 crashes, 0 fires and 1 injury to speed control & acceleration problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.