What’s the need to “review” the #1 selling car in America? It’s like trying to review Bon Jovi, or beer. Whatever anyone thinks of the Camry – and it has its nit-pickers and detractors – you can’t argue with #1.
Regardless, I arranged a week’s test to see what the continued love-fest was about. Within a few minutes, I saw, felt and heard for myself, and I was sold. The Camry’s roomy, comfortable, stylish and powerful, and gets a combined city/highway mileage of 25 MPG. For a sedan big enough to hold a small family, that’s not bad. There’s also a Hybrid model returning about 40 MPG combined city/highway.
So what if the steering is ever-so-mushy for a 6-cylinder, or that every now and then I didn’t feel the road as much as I would have liked when cornering? These are small complaints, especially in a ride that starts at $22,055, and I forgot about them after the week was almost up.
Besides, the Camry’s been completely redesigned for 2012 – a bold move in a world where a single misstep can cost a company sales. It’s got a more powerful engine and better interior materials than in previous trims, for starters, and your front seats are more supportive and have been repositioned to allow rear passengers more legroom. It’s offered in L, LE, SE and XLE trim levels, with the L featuring 16-inch steel wheels, air conditioning, power windows and mirrors, cruise control, a tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, split-folding rear seats, Bluetooth and a six-speaker CD sound system with auxiliary input and USB jacks. The LE trims brings auto headlamps, power locks with remote keyless entry, Bluetooth streaming audio and a central touchscreen interface for audio, phone and car information.
I liked the Camry’s up-to-the-second technology, which was easy to use – good news for the tech-timid among us. Even the base Camry L comes with Bluetooth and iPod/USB connectivity, but if you splurge on the LE for a few hundred dollars more, you'll get a standard 6.1-inch touchscreen interface that controls the stereo and a variety of vehicle settings. If you really want to go nuts, opt for the optional Entune infotainment system, which connects your smartphone with power six touchscreen-based apps - including Pandora. If nothing else, having Pandora in your car removes the choke hold that SiriusXM has on anyone wanting an alternative to the advertising-clogged AM/FM airwaves.
The Camry’s relatively cheap, reasonably roomy, speedy when you need it to be – what’s not to love?
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