New 2018 Toyota Camry screams 'bold'

By Christopher A. Sawyer
The Virtual Driver

(January 29, 2017) Like the latest Prius, the 2018 Camry — which was unveiled at the Detroit auto show earlier this month —  is built on the modular TNGA (Toyota New Global Architecture) platform. A clean-sheet design, the new Camry lowers the hip points of the front and rear seat passengers by 1 inch and 1.2 inches., respectively, drops the overall vehicle height by 1 inch, and lowers the hood 1.6 inches.


The beltline is lower, the sweeping instrument panel more compact, and the hood, cowl and instrument panel height have all been lowered for improved forward visibility.

The entire package is a bod departure from Toyota's traditional design language for the best-selling sedan in the U.S.

The styling was created in Japan under the direction of an American from Toyota’s CALTY design studio in California. it features creases on the C-pillars that are meant to suggest motion, and also act as a lower boundary for the optional black roof band. On the sportiest model, black vent motif cuts through the taillights and rear bumper like a gang member’s tear tattoo, adding a gentle curve in an area intersected by sharp creases.

The front fascia has large ducts below the headlights, and an upper and lower grille area tailor made for a Lexus spindle grille. This should make porting the ES 350 grille a relative cinch.

The 3.5-liter V6 and six-speed automatic transmission are carried over from the previous model but the inline four is new. The 2.5-liter Dynamic Force Engine (no, really) has a long stroke, high compression ratio, multi-hole direct fuel injectors, the latest generation of Toyota’s Variable Valve Timing-intelligent Electric (VVT-iE), variable cooling system, and high-tumble in-cylinder air-fuel charge.

It’s mated to an eight-speed automatic with direct lock-up on all but first gear. The same engine is at the art of the Camry Hybrid, mated to a CVT that can simulate six sequential shifts in Sport mode. To improve handling and trunk space, the battery pack has been moved from the trunk to beneath the rear seat.

The Virtual Driver