Cool Camry - Toyota's New Large Saloon Is Surprisingly Snazzy

Forget about describing it as an “uncle’s” car – the striking new Toyota Camry is no longer a fuddy-duddy.

The Toyota Camry has always been renowned as a spacious and reliable saloon. But image-wise, it has also always been seen a relatively safe (read: boring) choice for folks who aren’t into cars. These are the drivers who are not concerned with design, performance or handling.

The latest Camry, however, is going to polarise opinions. It is by far the most striking one that Toyota has ever produced. Indeed, the adjectives “conservative” and “staid” no longer apply to this model. We subject this newcomer to a comprehensive review by three Torque regulars: writer Wong Kai Yi, along with our key contributors

Lynn Tan and Tony Tan. Lynn will draw on her expertise as an architect to rate the Camry’s design, while Tony will focus on the car’s practicality and user-friendliness. Kai Yi, on the other hand, will analyse the Camry’s performance and handling attributes.

The Design Factor

Where design is concerned, it is often the good and the bad that get our attention. Copacetic tends to be as exciting as say, onigiri.

The Toyota Camry has always been quite like the onigiri – loaded with good stuff such as quality, space and comfort on the inside, but the plain ol’ rice and seaweed exterior is simply not as visually captivating as the extensive varieties of sushi or maki, with their mouthwatering displays of fresh and colourful ingredients.

However, the conservative formula has worked well for the mid-size sedan, going by its worldwide success since the first generation was introduced in 1982.

Throwing out a tried and tested design template that has worked for almost four decades seems like a huge risk.

But it would appear that the gamble has paid off. The new Camry has undergone a total design transformation and it has never looked better.