Scion, Toyota Motor Corp.'s youth-focused small-car brand, has decided it is too hot for its own good.

The brand is on track to beat its 150,000-car-a-year sales goal by 25,000 vehicles in 2006. That is a big reason why Toyota has surpassed DaimlerChrysler AG this year to become the No. 3 auto maker in the U.S. in sales.

But instead of riding that momentum to increase sales still further, Scion plans to throttle back production to keep sales from going above 150,000 vehicles next year. It is part of marketing strategy to keep the brand special and, above all, cool.

Lyly Lao, who works in sales at West Covina Scion in California, approves. "I agree with the strategy," she says. "Everybody is trying to be different, so it's important for Scion to not put too many cars out there, or they will be everywhere."

Scion also plans to retire the tiny xA hatchback and the current generation of the boxy xB wagon, dubbed "The Toaster" by some fans. Sales for both models are up about 20% for the first 10 months of this year, according to Autodata Corp. The xA is gone, but the xB will return in a next-generation form, although Scion would not disclose details about the new model, which will be introduced next year.

To better position it as an "underground" brand, Scion over the past year has reduced its television advertising -- never very significant to begin with -- to a narrow range of late-night and obscure programs, like shows on Cartoon Network's late-night "Adult Swim" programming. (On the Oct. 29 episode of "Frisky Dingo" on "Adult Swim," a Scion tC was talked about by the show's characters.) Now it is re-evaluating that strategy and may completely get rid of television advertising so it can focus more on experiential marketing, including event marketing and branded entertainment. Scion already launched its own music label for emerging artists and its own clothing line called Scion Release.

Simon Needham, co-founder of Scion's agency ATTIK, says that in today's digital-recorder age, traditional television commercials aren't very effective and are even less so with Scion's target audience. "I literally TiVo everything so I don't even watch my own commercials," he says.

Scion is so concerned about being up to the moment and beyond that it has moved its online social-networking marketing focus from myspace.com to secondlife.com because it viewed the News Corp. property as too mainstream. "Because we no longer have to focus on brand awareness, we can be even more edgy and more risky," says Mark Templin, vice president of Scion.

George Peterson, president of marketing research firm AutoPacific Inc., applauds Scion's moves but questions whether dealers will support Scion's sales decision to put a lid on sales. Mr. Peterson estimates Scion could sell as many as 250,000 vehicles a year if the brand lifted production controls.

"How can you get off the drug when you have really popular cars like the xB?" Mr. Peterson asks. "It's a bold strategy because it will be tough to hold their volumes."

Ms. Lao of West Covina Scion says her dealership has waiting lists for Scion vehicles. "We are selling them as soon as we get them," she says.

She also knows that Scion dealers are helped by the additional profit gained from the sale of accessories. Most Scion buyers customize their vehicles, and Ms. Lao says many of the dealer's customers come to the store once a month to purchase a new after-market product such as body-side graphics and roof racks for snowboards or bikes.

For Toyota, Scion's importance isn't so much added volume as it is bridging the gap to younger buyers who consider the company's mainline Toyota brand vehicles too stodgy. About 80% of people who buy a Scion have never had a Toyota. And when Scion owners trade in their vehicle, eight of the top 10 vehicles they opt for next are either Scions or other Toyota models.

In its continuing efforts for ultimate coolness, Scion has been concentrating on developing a presence on secondlife.com, an online 3-D world that is created and owned by secondlife.com users, who are represented by avatars. But now, General Motors Corp.'s Pontiac brand has discovered secondlife.com and has created Motorati Island, which offers users a place to build a car culture in the online community.

Mr. Needham of ATTIK says it's a "24/7 headache" to constantly come up with the new thing that most people haven't heard about yet. "Today it's cool, but tomorrow it's not," he says. "So we have to move that quickly to retain credibility. As soon as I start hearing about something too much, I'm over it."

But Mr. Needham says the challenge is tempered by Scion's Mr. Templin, who "has the guts to put his feet into something that might not work."