Since 1983, Toyota has been defining what a sedan ought to be and they have sold millions of class defining Camrys. Now, thirty plus years ago, it was almost too easy for Toyota to redefine the American automobile because there was so much junk out there. These days, with everything being great, the Camry appears to be skating by on image more than continuing to define or at least redefine what a sedan is or can be. Remarkably, the Toyota Camry has become just another car.
It's all about the seat of your pants experience. Despite its Tupperware grade interior, I liked the flinty ride of my 2002 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS better than the 2012 Camry my wife had as a company car a couple of years ago. I thought that Camry, which is mechanically identical to this car, a wonderfully screwed together automobile with a really nice interior but I loathed taking it on long trips. It was floaty and vague and I never felt as though I had complete control of it. It felt numb to minute details of road holding and it did nothing to keep me focused on driving. I blamed that base model's soft suspension and smaller wheels and tires for most of that but the more research I do on Camry's, the more suspect I am of the "sportier" SE and XSE models handling the same way. It was bullet proof reliable, though. Not a thing went wrong in over 60,000 miles. Wish I could say the same for my Monte. As much fun as it is, it's been a handful to maintain.
All, or I should say most cars are remarkably reliable these days and perform at levels that are better than what sports cars could perform at years ago. Much of that has to be attributed to Toyota and we thank them profusely for that. However, now that the students have caught up to the teacher if not past him, what's Toyota going to do with Camry next?
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