2.5 VVT-i Hybrid Design CVT 2WD 4dr

I like it a lot, but..

It's a really good car in so many ways, excellent value for what you get which is basically a huge hybrid cruiser, but as much as I do like it, it has some drawbacks. Firstly, way too much road noise. In fact I would go as far as to say it has the most road noise of any car I've ever driven, ever! Similarly, when grit, stones or other road detritus gets thrown up into the wheel arches, it's the loudest sound I've ever heard in any car, ever. It's like Toyota just didn't bother with any sound insulation. Also the suspension isn't great. On good, smooth, pristine asphalt it's absolutely fine, plush even, but poorer road surfaces are not handled well, and over sharp bumps or ridges it's positively brutal. I've had passengers who would have been thrown out of their seats were it not for their seatbelts, and more that one cup of coffee has ended up in the roof lining. You get violent shocks through to the cabin sometimes, and I've never known a car like it in that regard. It's not a car for bumpy back roads. For one, it is huge, and it's just much happier as a cruiser on good smooth motorways. Going back to road noise again, I think because it's designed primarily for the American market where their national speed limit is 50 or 55MPH I believe, I guess Toyota didn't feel the need to add better sound proofing. Consequently, at 50MPH in the Camry, you get the same levels of noise that you might get at 70MPH in a European car. At 70 in the Camry, it's more like 100 in a Euro car. Not good. Going around the concrete sections of the M25 at 70MPH for example, you would have to shout very, very loudly to have any sort of conversation with a passenger. Having said all of that, it's very nice to drive, everything is light, and for such a big car, it's very easy to handle. Around town and in urban traffic it's fine, and say at 30MPH in EV mode, it's very, very quiet. Outstanding fuel economy. I get 65mpg average and that's in normal mode, not eco.

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