• by Karl Greenberg , May 24, 2010

Scion is launching its next-gen tC compact car with an online competition, called "Unlock the tC Road Trip." The eight-week long campaign mixes the web with the real world in virtual cross-country drive meant to elaborate on the Scion brand driver that the cars are meant to be accessorized. The effort dangles a 2011 tC as grand prize. Starting next week at UnlockthetC.com, there will be daily prizes leading to the real-world event where four finalists will be flown to Los Angeles and compete against one another for the chance to win a tC. Pre-register here. In the game, at UnlockthetC.com, players virtually navigate cross country from New York to Miami, with a final destination in Los Angeles. As players go, they can upgrade the vehicles to make them cooler and faster. To buy things like skirts and spoilers, one has to spend currency called tCoins, which are earned by the number of friends one gets to join the game via Facebook Connect, which is part of the game platform. The latest version is also the second generation of the tC, which first launched in 2004. In each of the eight weeks there is a different road trip and 140 daily prizes. Leader boards will track player standings. At the end of the online competition, four (4) finalists will be flown to Los Angeles for a VIP event on August 14 to compete in a real-world competition where one winner will receive a 2011 tC. The effort is via Haley Miranda Group, which developed the contest and the website, social media marketing agency American Pop, who will be promoting the program on social media campaign, Beyond Marketing Group, and PR firm Rogers & Cowan .