Toyota executives are rethinking some of the basic principles they set out for the brand - how many and what kind of vehicles Scion should sell - as they work to keep it fresh and innovative.

It's unclear whether they can do it, and some industry observers have begun to ask whether Scion was a misstep by Toyota's usually sure-footed strategists.

"Toyota doesn't need Scion," said Art Spinella, president of CNW Research, Bandon, Ore. "They should have spent the money on developing Toyota-branded products," he said, likening Scion to Saturn, which some critics say distracted GM from improving its established brands.

"Toyota's been following the GM model for decades, and they followed it into launching a brand they don't need."

Most of the world's automakers would love to have... // The Olympian