Friday, September 19, 2008

Toyota Camry

The Toyota Camry is a mid-size car, formerly a compact car manufactured by Toyota since 1980. The name "Camry" comes from a phonetic transcription of the Japanese word kanmuri (冠, かんむり), which means "crown", a tradition started with the Toyota Crown in the 1950's, and continued with the Corolla and Corona, which are also latin words for "crown".
There is also a coupé and convertible derivative sold first as Camry coupé from 1994-1997 and later spun off into its own line as the Camry Solara when reintroduced in 1999. The Solara development lags behind the sedan by a couple years and it was not updated to the 2007 current sedan platform, with production scheduled to end in 2008. For the East and Southeast Asian markets, high specification Camry models are seen as executive cars. Since the sixth generation SXV30 model, the Camrys sold in these markets have sported revised front- and rear-end treatment. For the seventh generation SXV40 series, the same was done, although the Australian-designed Toyota Aurion which is based on the seventh generation Camry was the donor model. The Aurion features revised front- and rear-end treatment and changes to the interior, but is fitted with the same powertrain. An up-branded luxury version of the Camry was sold in Japan as the Toyota Windom until 2006; the related Lexus ES shares major chassis and drivetrain components with the Camry.
In the United States, the Camry's largest consumer market, it has been the best selling car for nine of the last ten years starting in 1997, with the only exception being 2001. The Camry also sells very well in Australia, Canada, and a number of Asian markets—in particular Cambodiawhere the vast majority of cars are Camrys. Despite its success, it has often been criticized for its bland design and lack of sportiness compared to its rivals. It has not sold as well in Europe and its homemarket Japan; as its design is ill-suited for European and Japanese tastes.

Current seventh generation Camry:


The seventh generation Camry was introduced at the 2006 North American International Auto Show alongside a hybrid version and went on sale in March 2006 as a 2007 model. The 2007 Camry was significantly redesigned and featured a 2-inch longer wheelbase. Overall length and passenger volume remained equal to the predecessor, while trunk space decreased by about 1.5 cu-ft.
Power came from a choice of four- and six-cylinder engines. The 2.4 L 4-cylinder engine was carried over from the past generation and produced 158 hp and 161 ft·lb. It came with a 5-speed manual or 5-speed automatic. The 3.5 L V6 engine in contrast came with a 6-speed automatic only and produced 268 hp and 248 ft·lb.
The Camry came factory-equipped with frontal airbags, upper body-protecting side-impact airbags for the front seats, head-protecting side air curtains for front and rear seats, and a driver's knee airbag. Other standard safety features included a tire pressure monitoring system, ABS, Brake Assist, and EBD.As a result of this comprehensive safety equipment, the Camry fared excellently in crash tests.
The IIHS awarded the Camry sedan a rating of Good on both "Frontal Offset" and "Side Impact" crash tests.


Camry hybrid


The seventh-generation Toyota Camry is the first generation in which the Camry has been available as a gasoline/electric hybrid. The Camry Hybrid utilizes Toyota’s second generation Hybrid Synergy Drive and contains a 4-cylinder engine with 147 hp (110 kW) in conjunction with a 40 hp (30 kW) electric motor for a combined output of 187 hp (139 kW). The Camry is currently the third Toyota model to be offered as a hybrid, the others being the Toyota Prius and the Toyota Highlander.
Camry Hybrids were initially built solely in Japan, though the majority of production has since shifted to Toyota’s Georgetowe, Kentucky plant, which is projected to produce 45,000 of the vehicles per year. In June 2008, Toyota Motor Corporation has announced that the Camry Hybrid will also be built in a Thailand plant in 2009 and in Melbourne in 2010 with an annual production capacity of 9,000 and 10,000 respectively.
EPA fuel economy estimates for the 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid are 40 mpg (US) (5.9 L/100 km/48 mpg imp) (City) and 38 mpg (US) (6.2 L/100 km/46 mpg imp) (Highway).EPA’s revised method of estimating fuel economy for 2008 and subsequent model years, which now considers the effects of air conditioning, rapid acceleration and cold temperatures, estimates 33 mpg (US) (7.1 L/100 km/40 mpg imp) (City) and 34 mpg (US) (6.9 L/100 km/41 mpg imp) (Highway).

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