The 2018 Camry: Not Just My Tia’s Choice of Sedan Anymore

Before I started writing about automobiles professionally, the Toyota Camry was always relegated in my mind as that sedan that my Tia always bought. See, my aunt would upgrade her Camry every three years or so to the latest model and currently she is sitting pretty in the 2016 model. Why does only buy Camrys? Because she deemed it reliable and, perhaps most telling of all, sensible. Who can blame her; she wants a car that will not only get her from point A to point B without any hassle but also one that was presentable without being too flashy. The Camry has been her solution and it’s the reason why it’s still one of the most popular sedans in the world.

But it’s a new era in automotive history. Vehicles – particularly sedans – are expected to be not only reliable and sensible but also technologically enhanced, aesthetically pleasing and fun to drive. With the ever-rising dominance of the crossover vehicle, innovation in sedans has to be smarter, creating a vehicle that is attractive to a wider range of car buyers. The Camry has always maintained its stronghold on the market by relying on its customer loyal – a loyalty that was well earned – and dependability. Recently though, Toyota has stepped up their game in order to remain relevant in the dwindling sedan segment. Toyota’s asnwer is the the 2018 Camry and with it, they appear to be making all the right moves.

What I Dig about the 2018 Camry XSE

From blah to stylish – I never considered the Camry to be particularly stylish but rather safely unoffensive. However, since it’s restyling in 2014, the Camry has slowly won me over with its consistent improvement of visual features. This year’s Camry sits lower, longer and wider allowing for these refined aesthetics to shine. The new and improved horizontal, slatted grill is both sophisticated and sleek, setting an overall tone for the visual flow of lines throughout the vehicle.  The thinner, sportier headlights and the angular lines that run from the rear bumper to the trunk are just a few examples of the modern upgrades that work towards Camry’s swagger. My favorite update is a subtle but super sexy one: the swift lift and bulge above the rear wheel well, below the rear quarter panel, that flows towards the rear of the car. Its a super simple but extremely effective touch that visually gives the impression of speed and motion.

The XSE – The XSE desgination stands for Xtra Sport Edition but it might as well stand for Xtra Sexy Edition because the trim adds enough features, both inside and out, to make a car enthusiast swoon.  The Camry XSE V6 model I tested for a week starts at $34,950 – a heftier price than the base L trim that starts at $23,495 – but it comes with some nice bells and whistles. First off, two air intake scoops flank the grill and subtle door sills make for a more aggressive stance overall. 19-inch alloy wheels give the Camry some edgy street cred and the panoramic roof is gorgeous to peer out of. Inside, leather wrapped seats cradle you in for some serious driving and a slew of safety features are added including Forward Collision Warning and Avoidance with Pedestrian Detection, lane departure warning, automatic high beams, and adaptive cruise control.

Next Level Dash Design – You wouldn’t recognize the 2018 Camry from sitting in it – the dash looks so drastically different that it makes what came before it appear lame. A 7-inch touch screen infotainment screen sits in the middle of beautiful sloping lines that cut the dash in an elegant v shape, crossing from the gauge cluster to the passenger side of the center console. This futuristic design not only splits the driver from the passenger is a more striking manner than in previous Camrys but also allows for the gear shifter to be pushed further up and out of the away from both seats.  In fact, there is a minimalist style to the entire configuration that’s appealing and functional. This same style carries over to the gauge cluster which has also been updated to a design style fit for a cockpit.

That V-6 Engine Engine – More and more sedans are opting for turbocharged 4 cylinder engines these days but I’m glad Toyota offers the V-6 option for the XSE trim. Sometimes bigger is better, even if the trade off is in fuel economy. The 3.5 liter engine puts out 301 horsepower and 267 pound-feet of torque; more than enough power for brisk acceleration. Combined with an eight-speed automatic transmission, the XSE Camry offers three driving modes: Eco, Normal and Sport. Flip the car into Sport mode and you’ll be even more thrilled to have 6 pistons firing instead of 4.

Sporty Experiences – Without Sport driving mode enabled, the 2018 Camry moves in all the right ways, with crisp handling and with enough power to handle both the open road and rush hour traffic. Even in ECO mode, the sacrifice in power is barely noticable. Dial up the Sport mode and suddenly the sport-tuned suspension makes itself known. Handling tightens comfortably, acceleration picks up through enhanced gear shifting and the guage cluster animation changes to let you know it’s time for business. It’s not an overwhelming sense of power but much more than the average driver has surely come to expect from a Camry.

What Doesn’t Jive With Me on the 2018 Camry

Paying for the V-6 – With greater power comes great responsibility…to gas up more often. 22 miles per gallon city and 32 highway is not a shabby fuel economy rating but when you consider that the XSE trim without the V-6 gets 28 mpg city and 39 highway, it starts to make a difference. But I’ll say it again: spending more time at the pump in order to produce the horsepower you need on that open road is a trade off I’m happy to make.

Almost Perfect – At the risk of nitpicking, Toyota is just shy of hitting a homerun with the Camry’s stylings save for a few minor gripes. The most apparent design cue that jumps to the forefront for me is the hard ridges that run down the hood. They are are wholly unnecessary on a frontend that is already aggressive enough. It’s obvious the design team was going for strength but it comes off as trying to hard.

Competition is Cheaper (albet for a reason) – Of all the other mainstream sedan across the world, the Honda Accord offers what I consider the be a decent XSE comepetitor. The Accord Sport is almost 10k cheaper than the Camry XSE V-6 but that’s because it offers an 2.0 Liter turbocharged four-cylinder, making 252 horspower. Not as powerful or quite as elegant as the XSE but the fact remains Honda still offers a sporty alternative that is almost as reliable as the Camry.  I’m also fond of Hyundai’s Sonata and it too has a cheaper, less powerful Sports trim. But in it’s latest iteration, it’s nowhere near as visually appealing as the 2018 Camry.

Camrys: Not Just for Your Tia Anymore

It’s always a careful line to walk when innovating towards new customers; you can’t change so much that you lose your core audience. In most regards, Toyota has accomplished the right kind of innovation with the 2018 Camry – there is something for everyone here and with a slew of options to customize each trim, it can become even more personalized. Then again, that’s why the Camry is so popular in the first place: it’s always felt like a personalized mode of transportation. A symbiotic relationship between car and driver where the driver can place a large amount of trust in the car. The Camry doesn’t ask much from the car buyer, giving both value and dependability in spades. It’s why my Tia returns to it, year after year, and why most likely she’ll continue to for as long as she drives.