Track record: Sedan is a lesson in a smooth ride, spiked with bravado
If you’re looking for similarities between the 2007 Toyota Camry and the Toyota Camrys that will compete Sunday at the Daytona 500, I’ll list them below:
The name.
Of course, that’s the case with the NASCAR Ford Fusion, Chevrolet Monte Carlo and Dodge Charger, too. Front and rear decals that are supposed to look like lights, and plastic side windows that may or may not remind you of the actual street car, and that’s pretty much it. Fans convinced that these are real Toyotas and Fords and Dodges and Chevrolets on the racetrack might also be disappointed to learn that, according to highly placed sources, professional wrestling might be choreographed.
Toyota executives are on record as saying that they are racing the Camry in NASCAR Nextel Cup not so much to sell more Camrys but to sell more Toyota Tundra pickup trucks. If they sell more Camrys, fine, but that might be difficult: Toyota sold 448,445 in 2006, making it, again, the best-selling car in the U.S. The Honda Accord was second, at 354,441. In a year when most everyone posted a downturn, including the Accord, Camry sales were up in 2006.
It’s easy to see why. Perhaps more successfully than any other car, the Camry seeks to be all things to all buyers. The base-model CE, with air conditioning and a good stereo, starts at less than $19,000, and with discounts, sells for even less than that.
At the other end is the Camry XLE, which can be loaded with enough equipment to send the price tag well past $30,000, essentially making it a less-expensive Lexus ES350, which is based on the Camry.
In between the CE and XLE, there’s the meat of the market with the Camry LE, offered with either the 2.4-liter four-cylinder or the 3.5-liter V-6. There’s even a Camry hybrid, and if you want a coupe, there’s the Camry Solara.
The test model was the Camry SE, the sportiest of the Camry sedans with P215/55-R17 Michelin radials on spoked alloy wheels, fog lights and what Toyota calls a “sport suspension,” but it still leans more toward a smooth ride than crisp handling. Certainly the SE handles quite well, but the numb, too-light steering erases the sporty pretense.
The engine and transmission, however, are tough to fault, though in very cold weather the six-speed automatic behaved oddly until the fluid warmed. The V-6 engine is smooth and powerful, and the EPA rating — 22 miles per gallon city, 31 mpg highway — was very close to our actual numbers.
Inside, the cockpit is easily the best of any Camry yet. Leather bucket seats are comfortable, even on long trips. The rear seat is roomy for two adults, adequate for three. Instruments and controls are excellent, but give Honda a decided edge on the optional navigation system. The Camry’s navigation system isn’t as easy to operate, and a couple of times, took us on inexplicable little detours from the preferred course.
With some options, including a power sunroof, XM satellite radio and stability control, the SE’s base price of $24,815 rose to a sobering $31,444, but this was, after all, pretty much a Lexus with a Toyota badge.
To me, the Accord remains more fun to drive, but this new-for-2007 Camry is a genuine step up from the previous generation. How well will its namesake do on the racetrack? We’ll find out Sunday.
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