EXCLUSIVE: 9th Generation Toyota Camry Review: The Best Camry Yet?

This is the 9th generation Toyota Camry, and this is a hybrid. In fact, unlike the last car which came in non-hybrid and even a V6 variant, this one just gets two hybrid options – front wheel drive and all-wheel drive. Camry is derived from the word crown in Japanese, and it sure rules its segment in most markets. 

In the US market, they call these mid-size sedans. Yes, in India we've always thought of them as full-size or luxurious big cars. Now, here it takes on the likes of the Honda Accord and the Nissan Altima. But, think about it, it's a segment, at one time used to be really hot here in the US, in India too to some extent. Now it's kind of tapered off, the SUVs have taken over. But we will get this new generation car in India too. Now, with the 9th generation, you find that the Camry doesn't look like a large, floaty boat. I mean, the last three generations especially really look large and wide and you know, that's nice when you want a chauffeur-driven car. But, when you want to drive the car yourself, looking a little sporty is a nice thing. So, it looks more taut, it looks more compact in a way, and it just looks closer to the ground.

9th Gen Toyota Camry Review: Design

While you may think that’s not necessarily great in the Indian context, it does look extremely sexy and very modern. And that’s especially due to it Lexus-like face. The styling up front is that hammerhead design that we've seen with the Prius and the C-HR in other markets. In fact, the Prius won World Car Design with this overall styling direction and this language. So, you can see it's got really sharp LEDs, very, very sharp in terms of not just the execution of the lighting, but even how it cuts through the metal, very nice. The grille, well, this one is a little bit more stylistic. You can get this in a more simple bumper pattern in some markets. So, we'll have to wait and see what we get. But this is the most expressive. It's very Lexus-like and it gives the car a lot of character. It also looks nice and wide in the front, which is something I think in our market, people will like a lot. In terms of proportion, like I said, the car tends to look nice and compact. It also has a decent roofline that kind of starts to taper off here. And what's nice is that there's actually a little bit of direction given over here. So, even though it's a wide piece, this roofline coming down, it has this little embedded line in the middle, which gives it a little feeling of agility and compactness and makes the car look faster. Again, the use of this two-tone here of the roof, again, gives the car a sportier profile. At the rear, it's very sharp again LED treatment through the taillights. This one is the hybrid, which is what I'm expecting we will get also. In fact, they don't really make the regular Camry for most markets anymore. It's only hybrid from here on, is what Toyota says. Again, you see black treatment back here. I'm scared that we'll get a lot more chrome and a lot less black. But otherwise, in terms of this colour, in terms of this spec, and even that nice, sexy alloy wheel pattern, I hope this is the car we get.

The Ocean Gem colour is fantastic too and looks pretty cool with the optional Midnight Black dual-tone roof.

9th Gen Toyota Camry Review: Interior & Tech

Now last year when the Toyota Prius got to being one of the most beautiful cars in the world, that was a shock. With the Camry being good-looking or stylish, it shouldn't really come as a shock because this car is meant to sort of play that role of being the mass flagship and so the outside styling didn't really surprise me, I'm happy to see it of course because I don't think the previous two Camrys were very good looking.

The cabin is roomy and well-appointed as you’d expect. The XSE trim here in the US is a bit sporty and so the all-black you see here is unlikely in India. The wheelbase remains almost unchanged – just 5 mm more than before. 

While the base gets an 8-inch touchscreen, on the higher variants it is this 12.3-inch screen with wireless smartphone connectivity, and the expected levels of infotainment and apps. The optional 9-speaker JBL sound system is also pretty good. This is also a connected car. Though, that exterior design will become its biggest talking point. 

But it's on the inside too I think that the cabin, while it doesn't surprise, it's reassuring to see the best of what Toyota is doing pop up in this cabin, so you've got lots and lots of technology and you've got pretty much everything that car buyers today are looking for. The only thing though I have to say, it's all driver-focused. Now of late, we've been getting the more luxurious Camry as compared to what the US gets, so while it's the same generation, it's the same car, it has a slightly different appeal, it has a very different back seat, it also has some of the features that are more oriented towards the back seat driver or the owner. I'm guessing that's what will happen again of course but like I was saying earlier, this car is studded with technology and so you get all the ADAS, you've got lane keep assist, you've got hands-free driving, adaptive cruise control, you've got crash alerts and then of course what you expect from the Toyotas, the little cliche bit about what's happening with the hybrid system, you know is the power coming from the battery, is it being fed back into the battery, you still see all of that, while it's not as gimmicky as it used to be, the graphics are better, it's typical Toyota territory. What's nice though is that it's a complete instrument cluster that has gone virtual, it's not just little bits or little, small screens anymore that you're seeing.

Yes, the graphics are finally looking slicker and more modern too. The screens are responsive and good on resolution too. And it’s all looking like a generational leap for real. But it’s not still as sexy as the exterior is. 

9th Gen Toyota Camry Review: Safety

The car is big on safety. That ADAS suite gives you many features including collision avoidance with emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane change assist, and more. You also get 8 airbags, antilock brakes with electronic brake force distribution, traction and stability control, 3-point seatbelts with pretensioners and reminders, an optional 360 camera, parking sensors front and back, and child seat anchors. 

9th Gen Toyota Camry Review: Performance

There are a few carryovers from the last generation to this one and that also includes the performance in some ways. The car feels a little bit lighter not in terms of its weight but in terms of how it moves. It feels a little more manoeuvrable as well, not as boat-like. So, handling has improved and the overall refinement that you expect from a Toyota is very much there. 

What hasn't changed though, yeah, you don't get that instant pick up when you just sort of drop-down and slam the gas. That's always how it's been. It has this sort of a comfortable feel. The car accelerates okay but the focus is all about efficient refined performance not about sportiness and honestly for a sedan like this one that's okay.

The Camry gets the same 2.5-litre petrol mated to a hybrid as standard worldwide now. A few exceptions like China and Vietnam also get a 2.0-litre hybrid. The numbers are healthy and on the all-wheel drive version there’s an extra motor at the rear axle – and this gets you an extra 7 horses of power. The gearbox is refined and a CVT always works well on a hybrid system, making the transition smooth and uninterrupted.

When it comes to the drivetrain, I'm expecting a similar setup as what we are seeing here in the US, I mean the Camry has sort of consolidated its overall engine lineup for global markets and it's not just the Camry that's happening across models. Now what I do hope we definitely get is the way more improved handling. The steering is more precise than it was on the previous car and the car will go around corners just a little bit sharper. That's great.

While I don’t care that the petrol-only non-hybrids are gone, I do miss the last generation’s awesome V6 which was powerful and very refined. But sign of the times I guess. 

9th Gen Toyota Camry Review: Price & Verdict

In many ways the Camry is dare I say, it's an entry car for many people here in a market like the United States. In India, it serves a more luxurious purpose and so I expect the trim and hopefully even the plastic quality to be better than what I'm seeing here. This is acceptable but at the kind of price points we operate at, it needs to be way better than acceptable.

And that is because I reckon the Camry is going to blow past the ₹50 lakh mark on-road for sure. It’s crazy where prices have gone, and especially for a car like this – which should ideally be super approachable. But it will operate in the luxury space – and so volumes will remain limited in India.

Photography: Anand Malepu