Soon to be gone? The Scion xB.

Scion has always tried to think out of the box, and now it likely will abandon its boxy xB model as part of a product line shake-up designed to reinvigorate Toyota Motor Co.’s youth-oriented brand.

The xB is one of several models that reportedly will go away, according to various reports, while the Japanese brand will get several new models, including a version of the Auris hatchback sold in Europe and other parts of the world under the Toyota badge.

Gone is the strategy of limiting Scion to just a handful of products designed to bring first-time buyers into showrooms, the brand’s top executive recently confirmed to TheDetroitBureau.com.

Scion could use the shake-up. Only a few years back considered among the hottest brands in the market, Scion has lost significant momentum in recent years and was one of only a handful of brands to see sales slide during the first half of 2014.

The Toyota brand has spent a good year looking at its alternative, going so far as to consider the possibility of abandoning its original concept of targeting young opinion leaders and moving up-market as a sort of near-luxury brand just below Lexus.

The Scion FR-S, the result of a partnership between Toyota and Subaru.

Scion will continue its original mission, according to a report in Automotive News. But that will require an aggressive shake-up of its current line-up. Among the products going away will be the little iQ microcar. The commuter vehicle, borrowed from Toyota’s European line-up, simply failed to connect, and after a lackluster start saw another 47% decline in sales in June.

(Consumer Reports trashes Scion iQ. Click Here to check out the list of Cars to Avoid.)

Scion itself isn’t doing much better. The brand saw a 27% decline in demand overall last month, and is off 13% for the first half of 2014.

Even some of its once-popular models have lost momentum, notably including the boxy xB which, at least according to Automotive New, will go away by next spring, to be replaced by an American version of the European Toyota Yaris hatchback. In keeping with Scion strategy, however, it is expected to adopt a two-letter name for the States.

The trade publication reported that parent Toyota has sought trademarks for a variety of new model names, including iA, iD,iM,tD,tK,tR,tS and tZ – though that doesn’t mean any, nor all, will ever be bolted to a production vehicle.

We should get a sense of what’s coming at the Los Angeles Auto Show, in November, Scion VP Doug Murtha recently told the Bloomberg news service, suggesting that, “We’re going to show the first of three new products that will come to market within a 24-month period.”

He declined to say what models will come and which will “sunset,” but among other anticipated changes, the Scion xD is reportedly set to be replaced by a new hatchback to come from a joint venture with Mazda. It will share the underlying platform with the Mazda2. Meanwhile, Toyota has apparently decided to go ahead with a next-gen version of the sports car it developed with Subaru, marketed here as the Scion FR-S. (Subaru has already confirmed it will have a second version of its BRZ model.)

(Scion FR-S named one of the Best Cars for the Money. Click Here for the full list.)

As for the Scion tC, that hatchback also is due for a big change, though it is expected to remain in the line-up after a redesign. According to Automotive News, a Scion version of the Toyota Corolla may also be in the works. And it may also add a new crossover, even smaller than the Toyota RAV-4.

Significantly, Scion has now firmly broken from its original strategy, which was meant to limit its line-up to just three products. The goal was to have just enough of a line-up to lure in young opinion leaders – who had largely been ignoring the parent brand – without overwhelming Toyota. In a bid to keep Scion from fading to black, apparently, all of the old rules are now being rewritten.

(Smart reveals two new models, the Fortwo and Forfour. Click Here for a closer look.)