A CAR OUT OF SCIENCE FICTION
Week behind wheel of Toyota Camry sold Calgarian on what hybrid power is about
Perhaps the most entertaining aspect of the Camry SE hybrid is the noise it makes when applying the brakes.
Test driver Richard Phillips said the sound — the result of the regenerative braking system unique to the hybrid powertrain — is “not unlike a science-fiction film sound effect.” It was something the Calgarian enjoyed during his week with the 2017 Toyota.
“Overall, the brakes were very good, with a firm feel and progressive response,” Phillips said. “And the noise they make was quite fun.”
Toyota’s Camry is the best-selling mid-size car in North America. The automaker’s 2017 model is the last of the seventh-generation vehicle, with the eighth-generation 2018 version debuting earlier this year at the North American International Auto Show.
Toyota offers nine Camry models, from the base LE with its 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine and six-speed automatic transmission to the top-of-the-line XLE V-6. In that range there are also three hybrid Camrys:the LE, SE and XLE.
It was the hybrid SE (it stands for sports edition and runs $33,748.47 with destination charge) that Phillips got to experience. Its list of standard features includes a leather-wrapped tilt-and-telescopic steering wheel.
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t a heated wheel,” said Phillips, who first got into a Ford Escort in the U.K. when a learner.
He’s owned numerous vehicles that were unavailable in Canada, including a Hillman Imp and a couple of Citroens. He moved to Calgary in 2002 and bought a new Ford Focus. He now drives a 2008 Volkswagen Golf. The Mazda Miata he once used as a summer car was recently sold to make way for his kid’s vehicles.
Did the Camry hybrid SE, with its 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine and continuously variable transmission, meet his expectations?
“I thought the Camry was a goodlooking car, and the front end and grille really set it off,” he said. “I don’t think it was a bland design, with that deep honeycomb grille, and the paint (pre-dawn mica grey) helped the car stand out.”
Phillips stands five foot 11, but said it wasn’t difficult to get into the car. And once inside, he said, the fit and finish was of good quality.
“There was soft-touch plastic on the dash, suede material and leather on the doors and seats and restrained use of chrome trim,” he said.
He found it easy to get the eightway power-adjustable driver’s seat positioned to his liking, and felt the car’s controls were intuitive to use without resorting to the owner’s manual.
“This was my first experience with a hybrid, and it was just a little different than conventional,” he said. “You push the start button and things light up, but nothing really happens — you just see a sign that says ‘ready.’ It’s not until you press on the accelerator that you hear anything.”
Phillips said the Camry had adequate power in both city and highway driving. But it was out on the road where he found his greatest disappointment in the SE model. The ride, he said, was somewhat harsh, and it wasn’t made up for in the handling department.
“You felt every bump, yet there was plenty of body roll, even at moderate speeds, when taking an on or off ramp,” he said.
Handing back the keys, Phillips said he wouldn’t refuse the hybrid SE as a rental, but it’s not a model he would consider owning.
However, he said, the car “opened my eyes to hybrid technology and how seamless it is, and I’d recommend a Camry hybrid, but would suggest looking at either the LE or XLE models first.” It has a rear-view camera but no sensors to give an audible or visual warning if you are getting too close to something. The sun visors have slide-out panels to fill that annoying gap above the rear-view mirror but no lights for the vanity mirrors.
Day 7: Although the Camry was economical, generally comfortable and no doubt reliable, it didn’t do anything well enough to make it something I would consider buying. It is not particularly well equipped compared to some of its competition and, in the SE version, neither the ride nor handling benefit from the sports-tuned suspension.