Toyota’s substitution for its well-liked hybrid sedan comes along with the systematic renovation of its entire Camry line. After years of cars that were reliable, efficient, and seeming by some to be boring, Toyota wants the new model to be reliable, efficient, and fun to drive.
Toyota is selling the new Camry as being an emotional choice, not just a rational one.The all-new car is the first to totally embrace Toyota’s new global architecture, or TNGA. The platform was first seen under the 2016 Prius, but the Camry is the first to use the new engines, transmissions, and double wishbone rear suspension that make up the ethos of TNGA.
The new Camry Hybrid uses the new Toyota Hybrid System II, the descendant to the Hybrid Synergy Drive system. The engine is a 2.5-liter inline four that has variable valve timing, runs on the Atkinson cycle, and has a near-diesel 14.0:1 compression ratio. It also uses new super lightweight 0w16 grade oil that additionally diminishes internal friction and losses. Toyota touts greater than 40-percent thermal efficiency for the new engine.
The gas engine, By itself, generates 176 horsepower and produces 163 lb-ft of torque over a wide range from 3,600 to 5,200 rpm. The electric motor makes 188 horsepower and 149 lb-ft, for a total system output of 208 horsepower.
Like the Prius, it uses either a 4.0 amp-hour, 259-volt lithium-ion or 6.5 Ah 245-volt nickel-metal hydride battery pack, depending on trim. But where the Prius uses the li-ion battery on the more expensive Eco trim, the Camry puts the lithium battery on the base LE trim.
Toyota believes that the people most concerned with fuel economy and value will be buying the base trim. The SE and XLE are more costly and heavier, so eking out every last tenth of a mile per gallon isn’t the main concern. Putting the lighter li-ion battery in what is already the lightest car makes a full-size blow on fuel economy.
The Camry Hybrid LE has a Prius-beating EPA-rated 53 miles per gallon highway. The city number is remarkable too, at 51, with 51 mpg combined. Sportier SE and luxury XLE models get 44 city, 47 highway, 44 combined. In my drive loop in an SE model, the computer reported 53 mpg on mostly rural highways. That was maintaining the speed limit, but not really trying to hypermile.
Both battery packs are novel, and smaller than before. United with the new platform, the packs go under the seat instead of in the trunk. The Camry hybrid has the same 15.1 cubic feet of trunk space as the gas-only car, and has a full-size opening when the rear seats are folded over.
