Camry unobtrusively invites you to rest: you can't set the seat back upright, no matter how much you press the electric adjustment buttons. Relax and sleep…Comments (6)
Toyota Camry remains the leader of the business class even after a change of generations. The sedan is still in demand, although Japanese and Korean competitors have stepped up. And what is it really like? We took for a test the most popular version — with a 2.4-liter engine, naturally, with an automatic transmission and in the top 'Prestige' trim.
It happens that after just a couple of kilometers behind the wheel of a test car, your hands reach for the keyboard — you want to quickly write down your emotions from meeting something new on four wheels. True, the new product should also be interesting, otherwise there would be nothing to write about. It is desirable that it has a soul. And if there is no soul, let it at least have impressive technical specifications. But what to do when there is neither one nor the other, but there is... a reputation?
For example, what to do when a Toyota comes for a test? Moreover, almost any model, except for all-wheel drive and 'charged' versions, which are not sold in our country. What to do if a bestseller comes for a fitting, which differs little from an iron or a refrigerator? Such a car will get a soul only by 300 thousand kilometers, and the hundredth owner will be able to 'drive a dream'. But for now, everything is different. With the Camry of the previous generation, a couple of years ago I had only one association — CFS. Chronic fatigue syndrome. It was enough just to look at it, not to mention getting behind the wheel — and you were immediately drawn to sleep. That whole test was remembered as a short quatrain: 'If you bought a Camry, don't die of boredom.'
But the new Camry unexpectedly even appealed to me: if not with its soul, then with its powerful 3.5-liter engine (you definitely won't be bored) and a rather bold, albeit with an eye on the Bavarians, design. The Camry has ceased to look like a nameless household appliance, now it can be spotted in traffic and even tried to compete with it. There is nothing to say about the reputation — it is impeccable. The Camry sets the fashion for sharp slanting headlights, and massive wheel arches, which all world designers now love, according to marketers, symbolize reliability and safety. This is the same male instinct as the reaction to a woman with beautiful rounded hips: the subconscious whispers — 'that means she will be a good mother to my children.' In profile, the Camry has become slightly taller, and the trunk lid, reminiscent of the Bavarian 'seven', is complemented by the same narrow slanting taillights.
And now — the same Camry, but with a 2.4-liter engine and 167 hp, paired with a five-speed automatic. If there were a diesel here, there would be no end to delight, but as it is — the moderately sluggish traction of the gasoline unit, along with stretched gears and sleepy, albeit smooth, gearbox shifts. Again you want to sleep. The Camry insists on rest: you can't set the seat back upright, no matter how you pull the electric adjustment buttons. Relax and sleep. If in the previous version the bedroom induced melancholy, here there even appears some kind of pajama-and-nightcap mood with elements of a high-tech kitchen. The bedroom with kitchen is now arranged in a new way. Turquoise central console on gray plastic and wood inserts — have tea in the 'kitchen from Germany', put on pajamas, kiss your wife and children goodnight, put all the black and white accounting in the spacious glove box — and sleep. By the way, the climate control can now be controlled directly from the steering wheel — a rare and very convenient option.
The optitronic instruments have small sectors, so the dynamics of the needle movement are hidden. The speedometer needle can theoretically deviate by a maximum of 180 degrees, but in practice — noticeably less. The working sector of the tachometer is generally 90 degrees.
The dreary, but, thank God, barely audible howl of the engine works great as a sleeping pill. Under it, the Bedroom with Kitchen accelerates. Without excitement, but confidently — it also confidently goes straight, pleasing with high ride smoothness. Nothing distracts. The Camry responds to steering inputs smoothly and precisely. But this is if you drive calmly and straight. On sharp turns, feedback disappears — the car sways and rolls so much that it seems: a little more — and you'll wake up. However, the non-switchable stability control system quickly and effectively suppresses any deviations from the trajectory, although the very tendency to skid with such a sleepy chassis setup is not at all surprising. And everything in the car discourages extreme driving — the seats have no lateral support in principle. On the sides there are massive armrests with spacious pockets. The rear sofa also resembles a haven for a tired traveler — you sink into the soft seats once and for all. True, it's better to take no more than two passengers, otherwise the middle one will be cramped: it's not about the body size, but the fact that the sofa is molded for exactly two people.
Under the dreary howl of the engine at 4,500 rpm and in fifth gear on the fastest parking lot in the Moscow region, known as Novaya Riga, the 'bedroom' crawls up to 200 km/h according to the optitronic instruments. The pulse does not quicken, blood pressure is normal, money is in the wallet, mother-in-law with the kids is in Cyprus. Even at high speed, the feeling of the car does not disappear — the main thing is to keep straight and not play hero. Before turns, for obvious reasons, it's better to slow down — that's not a gentleman's business...
In a light half-asleep state, I glance with one eye at the onboard computer — fuel consumption is 12.6 liters per 100 km. Not bad for a mode with traffic jams and highway. Thoughts flow smoothly and measuredly. Life is good, and there are still people in the world who are so uninterested in driving that they buy a Camry. A gray, soulless, but so reliable and status car. And such people, by the way, are the majority. And besides, reputation is actually better than soul. At least for adult men tired of life and firmly on their feet — and much less often for women. After all, when the soul gets tired, the reputation remains.
And competitors will never catch up with the Camry. And it's not about the outstanding qualities of the car, although they fully meet world standards. From a technical point of view, it is almost impossible to achieve an advantage in the business class — such are the laws of the genre. It's just that buyers, having driven the required three years under warranty on one Camry, without a shadow of doubt go back to the Toyota showroom, where, handing over the old car in an unfavorable but convenient trade-in, they take a new one — exactly the same bedroom on wheels. If you're lucky, you'll get a fresh version, already with a built-in coffee maker... And if the stars align really well, then it's not far to a luxury-class bedroom — the Lexus LS 460.
Text: Leonid Pavlov. Photo by the author.