2025 Toyota Camry review
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TechTranscript
00:00A car this boring has no right to be this brilliant.
00:03It's the updated version of the Toyota Camry, it's not an all new model, but it is all hybrid
00:08this time around.
00:09There are three versions to choose from, and this one here is the entry grade, just under
00:13$40,000 before on-road costs, and well, it is the epitome of boringness.
00:18But hey, there are some other versions that I'll tell you about in this review, and some
00:21alternatives too.
00:22So if you haven't already, please like, subscribe and ring that bell, and let's get to it!
00:30The Camry is now a fully hybrid line-up, there's no petrol model anymore, and the brand knows
00:35that it sells in big numbers to fleet customers.
00:38The prices have all gone up, and you do have to spend a little bit more to get into a Camry
00:42these days, but the entry-level price for the Ascent, which is this one here, is $39,990
00:47plus on-road costs, and it's still getting plenty of standard specs and tech.
00:51Things like full LED lighting around the car, you've also got 17-inch alloy wheels, there's
00:56power folding mirrors, you've got a nice cloth interior trim with manual front seat
01:01adjustment, you've got some decent tech in the cabin as well, including a 7-inch digital
01:06instrument cluster, there's also an 8-inch touchscreen media system with wireless Apple
01:10CarPlay and Android Auto, it's got sat-nav, Bluetooth, DAB radio and a 6-speaker sound
01:15system, plus there's 5 USB-C ports as well.
01:19If you spend a few thousand dollars more and get into the Ascent Sport, you're getting,
01:23well, a few extra features for that cash, including better high-grade LED lights, you
01:28also get LED front fog lights, and that one also comes with power driver's seat adjustment,
01:33power driver's seat lumbar adjust, there's a leather-accented steering wheel and gear
01:37knob, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, which you don't get in the base model, which is
01:39a bit pov-o, plus there's also a wireless phone charger, and a 12.3-inch touchscreen
01:45media system, which does look a lot more fitting for a modern-day model like this.
01:50And the top-of-the-range model, well, it's definitely the one that will be seen most
01:55at golf courses, it's the SL grade, it's just over $50,000, so you're talking almost
02:01Lexus money, and it is basically the Lexus-spec version of the Camry that's available.
02:07So it comes with things like 18-inch alloy wheels, it also gets heated exterior mirrors
02:11with memory settings, there's front and rear camera washers, as well as the surround-view
02:16camera, which is standard on all grades, you also get a panoramic glass roof, leather
02:21seat trim, 8-way power adjustment for the passenger seat, memory settings for the driver's
02:25seat, heated and ventilated front seats, there's also paddle shifters, a 12.3-inch digital
02:30instrument cluster, a digital rear-view mirror, so it's a camera instead of a mirror, and
02:35there's also rain-sensing wipers, a heated steering wheel, a head-up display, and a 9-speaker
02:41JBL sound system for that grade.
02:43So that definitely has more tech and more spec, there's no doubt about it, but it is
02:48a fairly expensive mid-sized car, but hey, I've got some good alternatives that you might
02:52want to consider that might be a little bit more friendly to your budget.
02:58If you just want a hybrid sedan and you don't care if it's this big or a little bit smaller,
03:02and you just want it to be super-duper efficient, well you should go and check out the Hyundai
03:06i30 Sedan Hybrid.
03:08It might not suit everyone's tastes in terms of the styling, but it is a far more modern-looking
03:12vehicle in my opinion, and it does have a bunch of different versions available from
03:16a much lower price point, and I think that it does stack up really, really convincingly
03:22if you are looking for a hybrid sedan, still with plenty of space in the back seat and
03:27still with a huge boot too.
03:29Now another car that you might want to consider if you're thinking, well, why go hybrid, why
03:32not go fully electric, well, go and have a look at the BYD Seal.
03:36The entry-level version in particular starts under $50,000, it is fully electric, it has
03:40more than 400km of EV driving range, and it has heaps and heaps of tech.
03:45I reckon that that car stacks up really well from the value perspective, and look, I think
03:50that if you are looking to go electric, it might be a really simple step into that world.
03:55But hey, if you're not into electric, and you're not necessarily sold on the whole hybrid
03:59thing, well what about the Skoda Octavia?
04:01The entry-level version of that car has plenty of wow factor.
04:06It's a fantastic thing to live with, really nice to drive, and it's available as a liftback
04:10sedan or a wagon, which could be the big decision maker for you.
04:15There's not that many cars that are available as a liftback sedan and as a wagon, so it
04:20could be a really good choice for you, it's super duper practical as a wagon as well.
04:24Tell me which one you would pick in the comments.
04:28So as I mentioned, this one is the entry-level version, the Ascent, and you can tell it apart
04:33from the other models because it's got slightly less wow factor headlights, it's also got
04:37these almost like European Mondeo spec wheels, which I don't really like personally, but
04:44you might be a fan of.
04:45And it's still obviously the same silhouette as before because it is just a big, big facelift
04:50for this model.
04:51It does have a new rear end design, so you can see the taillights have been reshaped,
04:57and look, it's still got a massive boot.
05:00The whole point of this car is basically the boot and the buttons over there, in case you're
05:04wondering, not underneath the M where it might usually be.
05:06You can see for yourself just how much space there is available to you in this car.
05:12It has a massive boot, and obviously part of the reason is that it's been designed to
05:16be able to cope with golf club bags, because that's one of the things that lots of Japanese
05:20brands tend to focus on.
05:22Now, let's have a look in the boot at some of the features.
05:25So you've got these pull tabs to release those back seats.
05:28Yes, it does have 60-40 split-fold rear seats.
05:31They're not folding because they don't actually fold, you have to go around to do that, so
05:35let me do that.
05:37See there is a bit of a portal there, so you can load longer items through if you need
05:41to, and on the sides of the boot you've also got these little shopping bag hooks, which
05:45is pretty handy.
05:46There's pretty sizable gaps on the side as well.
05:49This one also lifts up, so that's where your 12-volt battery is if you ever need to access
05:54it.
05:55You probably won't.
05:57And there's also, on this side, another shopping bag hook.
06:01There's a light under there too, which is a very dull halogen light.
06:05Down here you'll find this little handy instruction, so you can lift up this part and hook it onto
06:10there if you need to access underneath the boot floor.
06:14And if you do need to get under the boot floor, you'll also find that you've got a space saver
06:18spare wheel under there, which is pretty handy.
06:20So definitely very practical, definitely very clever.
06:24Now let's take a look inside and see if it's any good.
06:27Rightio, so like I said multiple times already, this is the base model, and bloody hell does
06:34it feel a bit basic for $40,000?
06:37Like a plastic steering wheel, no auto-dimming rear-view mirror, and this tiny, tiny little
06:43screen.
06:44It's an 8-inch touchscreen media system, and it is very, very underwhelming.
06:50I mean it does have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto wireless, which is a good thing to have.
06:55No doubt about that.
06:56It's relatively quick, but it just looks so small and so out of place for a modern day
07:01car.
07:022024 people, almost 2025!
07:05And yes, it doesn't necessarily tick my box.
07:08But it does have a few things that you might want to keep an eye on, like there's an energy
07:10flow meter thing there.
07:12You've also got detailed trip info available to you on this screen here, and yes, it's
07:17got Bluetooth, it's got all the things you would expect, and I think that, I mean, it's
07:22OK, but it doesn't have buttons to use down the bottom.
07:25It does have a dial, which is good, but thankfully there are some other nice buttons.
07:30And I know that's so stupid to say, but I love that there are buttons in here.
07:34You've got climate control down here with a dual-zone setup.
07:37You've also got a simple button to turn on your re-circ if you want it on, and yes, your
07:43off button for the fan is there too if you want to turn it off.
07:45And if you do want to adjust the fan, there's a little toggle for it.
07:48So all of that is very, very, very, very, very simple, and I love that about this car.
07:53And there's also nice, easy controls on the steering wheel as well.
07:58These don't take much learning at all, and it is great to see that, well, Toyota hasn't
08:03necessarily gone all crazy on us and done something weird with its controls, because
08:07this is pretty simple to use.
08:09There's a digital instrument cluster up here, as you can see, you can adjust some elements
08:14of the car on the screen there using those controls on the steering wheel.
08:18And just here is your driver monitoring camera system, so sometimes you can see those little
08:23purple lights.
08:24You can only see them on a camera, yes, they keep an eye on your eyes to make sure that
08:30you're not being distracted.
08:31And I get it, it's supposed to be smarter and, well, have more tech than before, but
08:35it does feel a bit cheaper.
08:37Plastic steering wheel, plastic gear knob, and the storage down here is actually not
08:41too bad, but there's no wireless phone charger, which is a disappointment.
08:45There's a box here, and a little tray there as well.
08:48You've got USB-C ports down there, and you've also got decent sized cup holders.
08:52Here is where you'll find some more buttons.
08:54You've got your drive mode buttons, EV mode if you want to use it, and your park brake
08:58is an electronic park brake, and there's a big centre console area as well with a 12
09:03volt port.
09:04One thing that I do like about it is this fabric seat trim, and it's kind of like Skoda-ish
09:10in some ways.
09:12So, I like that about it.
09:13Another thing I don't like about it is that it doesn't have a light headliner.
09:15It makes it feel a bit dark and gloomy in here, and it doesn't sort of live up to the
09:21sporty vibe that you usually get from other cars that have dark headliners.
09:25There is a flip down little unit here for your sunglasses, and you've also got an SOS
09:32button up there.
09:33That means this car has connected services, and look, if you want to subscribe to services
09:39beyond just having SOS, like vehicle tracking and so forth, then you can do that, but it
09:44costs you a monthly rate.
09:45You'll see the numbers on your screen.
09:47Alright, let's check out the back seat space.
09:49I mean, the camera's always been good at that, hasn't it?
09:52There's a good reason that these cars are very popular with rideshare drivers and taxis,
09:57because well, they are super duper practical.
09:59For the size of the car, there's plenty of space back here.
10:02I've got lots of knee room, a decent amount of foot room sort of tucked in a little bit
10:05underneath there, and there's mat pockets on the seat backs, and headroom is also pretty
10:11good.
10:12As you can see, I'm six foot, and I do have enough space back here to be pretty comfortable.
10:15If you're 6'4 or 6'5, you might find it a little bit tight, but not everyone is that
10:20tall.
10:21Now, there's also ISOFIX points in the window seats and top tethers as well, as you can
10:26see up there on the parcel shelf.
10:27So there's one for each seat.
10:29You don't have adjustable headrests, though.
10:31That's something that some parents might find a little annoying.
10:34There's also a flip-down armrest.
10:36Even in this base grade, you get a flip-down, more of a flop-down armrest with cup holders
10:42in it as well.
10:43And down here, you'll find you've got USB-C ports as well as a pair of directional air
10:50vents.
10:51So that all adds to the easy nature of this backseat experience.
10:55It's pretty comfy.
10:56You can fit three across if you need to.
10:58There is a transmission tunnel intrusion, but it's not too bad, and the seat comfort
11:02isn't too bad either.
11:03So, yep, as expected, it is definitely a Camry.
11:12All Camry models come with a 2.5 litre petrol-electric hybrid system.
11:16So you've got a 2.5 litre petrol engine with 138 kilowatts and 221 newton metres, which
11:22is teamed up to an electric motor with 100 kilowatts and 208 newton metres.
11:27Now, if you were doing the maths there, you would have got a nice big number, but the
11:32combined maximum number is actually just 170 kilowatts, and Toyota doesn't quote any
11:37torque figure for a combined number.
11:39Now, it does have a CVT automatic transmission, and it's front-wheel drive, and the battery
11:46pack is a 4 amp hour lithium-ion system, and this car can tow a little bit.
11:52There's a 400 kilogram towing capacity for both unbraked and braked trailers for the
11:58new Camry.
11:59So, what's it like to drive?
12:01It's got a bit more power and a bit more efficiency on its side.
12:03Let's see if it's real-world efficient and decent to drive.
12:10Now, Toyota says that they've made this car more powerful, more efficient, and better
12:15to drive than the previous version.
12:17Now, the previous one was already pretty good to drive.
12:20This one is better, though.
12:22It does have a nicer behaviour to it in most situations, and part of that comes down to
12:27the fact that it's been basically recalibrated with extra power.
12:32This powertrain now has 170 kilowatts combined, and like, it didn't feel like it was short
12:38of power before.
12:39It's a 10 kilowatt bump, but now it just has a little bit more effortlessness when you
12:45do need to get on the throttle, and it pulls away pretty quickly.
12:50And look, you've obviously got the petrol engine, the electric motor, all working together
12:55to try and keep things moving efficiently, but also powerfully.
13:00And yes, the engine can run basically as a generator to help use the electric motor and
13:05the battery pack more, and can also assist the electric motor if needed to.
13:10So look, it's a very, very good solution to this sort of application.
13:17There's easily enough grunt, and it is quieter and more refined than before, too.
13:23Now you will notice that this hybrid system will basically shuffle between whether it's
13:28using the petrol engine, whether it's just using EV mode, the little EV indicator on
13:33the dashboard will tell you that, and it also goes silent, but otherwise it's pretty hard
13:37to hear the petrol engine when the hybrid system is running, especially at higher speeds.
13:42At lower speeds you can sort of hear it whirring away as a generator, or assisting the battery
13:47pack and electric motor to push you along.
13:50It is a very, very smart and smooth system, like it just interchanges between EV mode,
13:58petrol mode, hybrid mode, all of those really, really cleverly, and I'm so impressed with
14:04it.
14:05I mean, the existing Camry Hybrid and any other car with this 2.5 litre hybrid system
14:10has been a good thing, and this one, yeah, continues that theme.
14:15It is good, in fact it's great.
14:17And another thing that I really like about it is that they seemingly have improved the
14:21brake pedal responsiveness and the feel to the brake pedal.
14:24Yes, it's still got the regen braking system, so it will basically be able to feed a bit
14:30of potentially lost energy back into the battery pack, but it's also got better feel to the
14:35top of the pedal now.
14:36Previously it had this sort of graunchy, whiny sort of feel to it, but now you can basically
14:42just have the assuredness that you want when you do need to press on the pedal and it will
14:47come to a pretty quick stop.
14:50It's still on that same platform, so that means that it's still got the same sort of
14:53driving experience as before as well, but it feels just a little bit more mature, a
14:58little bit more comfortable, and it's still very easy to drive as well.
15:03Steering is very accurate and easy to judge, and the ride comfort I think is exceptional
15:09for a car like this, and I've just done, well, almost 100km's this morning, and including
15:17some urban driving, some freeway driving, and it's very, very calm and quiet on the
15:21freeway.
15:22It's also really, really manageable in urban situations like I'm in right now, and it is
15:29very hushed as well, which is one thing that is really appreciable about this car.
15:34You can hear yourself think.
15:36It's not loud in most situations, and certainly the engine is quieter now than it was in the
15:43previous version of this car, because it could get a little bit raucous before, but
15:47now it's actually pretty well sorted in terms of the refinement, and on the whole, I'm just
15:53impressed with this car.
15:54I just think that if you need a hybrid sedan and you don't want it to be annoying in terms
16:01of the safety tech, because that's another big plus about this car, none of the safety
16:04tech is annoying, so thumbs up for that, but it is just a really easy to live with car,
16:10and that's exactly what a Camry should be, in my opinion.
16:16Now it is a Toyota hybrid, so it should be efficient, right?
16:19Well, the official combined cycle number is very impressive, 4 litres per 100km.
16:25That's less than the previous version, and it is, well, as good as you could probably
16:30get of a car of this size that isn't a plug-in hybrid or fully electric, and yes, obviously
16:36those are different options to this.
16:38So 4 litres per 100, what did I achieve?
16:40Well, you'll see the figure on your screen now for a mix of different driving situations,
16:44and I am impressed with that, but you need to keep in mind that it does need 95-ron premium
16:49unleaded petrol.
16:50It's got a 50-litre fuel tank, so you should get a decent amount of k's out of a tank.
16:58The updated Camry just got the maximum 5-star ANCAP safety rating based on 2024 testing,
17:03and it does have heaps of standard safety spec and tech to achieve that score.
17:07Things like autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian, cyclist, motorcyclist, junction
17:12and oncoming vehicle detection, there's adaptive cruise control with lane keeping assistance
17:16and a traffic jam assist feature, so it will actually stop, start and steer for you in
17:20some situations, there's blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert, a surround view
17:25camera system is standard on all grades, you've also got other things like a speed sign recognition
17:30system and a driver monitoring camera.
17:32So some of those things in other cars can be really, really annoying, but I haven't
17:36found it to be too frustrating in this car.
17:39Now there's also 8 airbags fitted to this car, including dual front, front side, front
17:43centre, driver's knee and full length curtain coverage.
17:49Toyota Australia offers a 5-year unlimited kilometre warranty for its models, and if
17:53you maintain your car with the brand, that extends out to 7 years of warranty for the
17:58powertrain, and if you have a hybrid and it gets a health check every year, that will
18:03span out to 10 years for the battery pack in terms of warranty cover.
18:07Now servicing, yes it does have a capped price servicing plan, your intervals are every 12
18:12months and 15,000 kilometres, and over the first 5 years or 75,000km, you'll see the
18:17average cost per visit on your screen now, that is very impressive.
18:21One thing about Toyota though, it doesn't throw in roadside assistance for no cost,
18:25you have to pay extra for it, it's not a big deal, it's about $120 a year or something
18:29like that, and it might be worth spending that little bit extra and having that little
18:33bit of extra peace of mind.
18:37Yes, it is a bit boring, particularly in this spec, but it's also brilliant.
18:41As I said, this car has a fantastic reputation as both a family car or a fleet vehicle, and
18:46you can see why.
18:47There's plenty of space, plenty of tech, it's all usable, and it's very, very efficient.
18:51So tell me what you think about it in the comments, would you choose a Camry, or is
18:54it a bit too bland for you?
18:55I'd love to know your thoughts, if you haven't already, please like, subscribe and ring that
18:58bell, and I'll see you when I see ya!