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Toyota Camry
Manufacturer:	Toyota
Production:	1980–present
Class:	Large/Medium Family Car
Body Styles:	4-door Sedan 5-door Hatchback 5-door Station wagon 2-door Coupe (Solara) 2-door Convertible (Solara)
Engines:	2.0, 2.2, 2.4 I4 2.5, 3.0, 3.3 V6
Predecessor:	Toyota Corona
Successor:	none
Also known as:	Daihatsu Altis<br<Holden Apollo Toyota Vienta Toyota Specter Toyota Vista
Shares components with:	Lexus ES
Similar models:	Honda Accord Nissan Maxima Nissan Altima Ford Taurus
This article is part of the automobile series.

The Toyota Camry is a large family car manufacured by Toyota in the United States at Georgetown, Kentucky, as well as Australia and Japan. In the United States, the Camry competes directly with the Honda Accord and, to a lesser extent, the Nissan Maxima and Ford Taurus. In more recent years, an upbranded version of the Camry, specifically the hardtop variant sold in Japan, has been exported as the Lexus ES250, ES300, and ES330.

Other than the original Celica Camry, the Toyota Camry has always been an FF-layout vehicle, where the engine is transversely mounted to drive the front wheels. Certain models have, however, been available with all wheel drive.

The Camry name was originally launched in 1980 on the Toyota Celica Camry but an independently named Toyota Camry was launched in 1982 for the 1983 model year. During the Camry's production run, it has been sold primarily as a four-door sedan but has, at times, also been available as a five-door hatchback, station wagon, and two-door coupe. The Camry underwent serious redesign and upgrades in model years 1987, 1992, 1997, and 2002.

The second- and third-generation Camrys were badge-engineered and sold as the Holden Apollo in Australia, alongside the Toyota equivalent. The Holden equivalents were not successful, even though they came from the same factory as the Toyotas.

The Kentucky plant where the Camry is produced has also produced models such as the Toyota Avalon and, from 1997, the Toyota Sienna.

Since 2000, Daihatsu has sold a Camry twin called the Altis.

Model history

There is some dispute over the generational naming of the Toyota Camry. Most sources note the first generation Camry to have been produced as a 1983 model. A fewer number of sources state the first generation to have started in 1980 as a Toyota Celica Camry. This article follows the former convention.

It should also be noted that the Japanese-language version of this article follows another convention that includes the 1980-1982 model and also Japanese-market-only models of the Camry.

Toyota Celica Camry (1980–2)

Originally launched as the Toyota Celica Camry in 1980 for the Japanese home market, this model was essentially a Toyota Carina with a Celica front.

First generation (1982–6)

In 1982, the Camry became an independent model line, and was sold as a mid-sized four-door and five-door sedan. There were limited exports, predominantly to right-hand-drive markets. At this point, Camry was positioned above the Carina and Corona, two other mid-sized models made by Toyota. A twin was announced at this point: the Toyota Vista.

The Camry was available only with a 2.0 liter inline four-cylinder engine but could be purchased with either a five-speed manual transmission or a four-speed automatic. In contrast to the rear-wheel-drive Toyota Celica Camry, the Toyota Camry was a front-wheel-drive vehicle.

The design of the first-generation Camry fit well within the box-shaped trends of the early 1980s. Additionally, the vehicle size and available options were characteristic of Japanese-designed cars of the time; the Camry was a small, inexpensive sedan with solid but spartan construction and competed indirectly against larger American counterparts.

Second generation (1986–91)

The second-generation model débuted in 1986, and included a station wagon although the hatchback was dropped. At this point, it was still regarded as a mid-sized car. In 1988, all wheel drive (called All-Trac) and a 2.5 liter V6 engine were added as options for the first time.

The Kentucky plant also began producing Camrys in 1988, where three trim levels of second-generation Camry were made: the unbadged base model, the DX, and the LE. The 2.5 liter engine and Camry chassis were repackaged as the upscale Lexus ES250. The ES250 was, essentially, the Japanese-market Camry hardtop.

The second-generation Camry was extremely popular in the United States and it is not at all uncommon to see examples on American roads.

Third generation (1990–7)

The third-generation Camry (first sold in 1990 in Japan; in the US as a 1992 model year car) is regarded as the first to break into the large-car market, or what Toyota billed at the time as "world-sized". This model marked the transition away from an inexpensive four-door vehicle into a larger, more luxurious family sedan.

However, in Japan, the 1992 Camry was a different vehicle, which shared its doors and fenders with the exported model, but was limited to the 1,700 mm width required to fit into a lower tax bracket (the 'number 5' bracket). The wider export model was called the Toyota Specter in its home market.

In the United States, automatic transmissions became the only options on all but the very base- and sport-model Camrys, whereas previously, manual transmissions were available on nearly all trim levels.

In that market, both the four- and six-cylinder engines received upgrades in displacement and horsepower: the four was upped to 2.2 liters and 130 horsepower, and the V6 to 3.0 liters and 185 horsepower. In addition to the DX and LE trims, 1992 saw the addition of an XLE luxury trim and the SE sport trim--presumably introduced to compete with the Nissan Maxima SE.

Some other countries followed the 2·2 and 3·0 litre engine choice. Toyota in New Zealand sold these models as the 220 and V6 respectively, the smaller-engined car filling the gap of the departed Corona. The V6 was called the Vienta in Australia, where third generation models were also built.

It shared the rounded-body-panel look of many imports of similar vintage: the Toyota Corolla, Honda Accord, and Nissan Altima, to name a few. This was a departure from the second-generation models which, although they had many more rounded panels than the first-generation Camrys, were nevertheless generally slab-sided in shape. The third-generation Camrys had rounded features and a very curved silhouette.

The Vista continued in parallel, available in addition as a hardtop sedan. This formed the basis of the Lexus ES300 in foreign markets, equipped with a 3·0 litre V6 engine.

In 1994, Toyota released a two-door version of the Camry.

The same year, the Japanese home market saw a revised Camry and Vista, with different sheetmetal, on the same platform. (The Japanese version of this page lists this as a 'fifth-generation' model.)

Fourth generation (1996-2001)

The fourth-generation Camry was launched in Japan in December 1996. It continued as a sedan and station wagon, though the latter model was not sold in the United States. This generation was launched in the US for the 1998 model year. The Specter ceased to exist as the Japanese Camrys adopted the 1,795 mm wide platform.

The Vista began departing from the Camry, remaining 1,700 mm wide and eventually forming the basis of the growing Corolla. In addition, the Vista's sheetmetal resembled a tall, formal sedan, while the Camry became sleeker. This "split" continues today.

The Camry Solara was added in both coupé and convertible form in 1999. The Lexus ES300 was again built from the Camry chassis. In 2000, the sedan models received a mid-model upgrade to the front and rear fascias, but remained otherwise similar to the 1999 models.

In the United States, the old sport model (SE) was dropped and the base model renamed to CE for the 1998 model year. Both the LE and the XLE trims were carried over from the previous generation. The Solara was available in SE and SLE trim, corresponding roughly to the sedan's LE and XLE trims. The XLE was available with either the four-cylinder or V6 engine, although the Solara SLE was available only with the V6.

Horsepower was bumped slightly to 133 for the 5S-FE 2.2 liter inline-four and 194 for the 1MZ-FE V6. Manual transmissions were only available on the CE trim level and any Solara model.

This was the first Camry to be sold as a Daihatsu. The Daihatsu Altis was identical to the export version of the Camry.

Fifth generation (2001–present)

In September 2001, the latest Toyota Camry was released as a larger sedan (taking styling cues from the successful Vitz, Corolla and Solara coupé) only, but without a station wagon for the first time. This model was launched in most export markets, including the United States, as a 2002 model year car.

The styling of the fifth-generation Camry is somewhat similar to the fourth-generation model in that both have gently curved surfaces accented by sharp creases. However, the front end of the car is relatively short, leaving a great deal of the length to the cabin, a technique adopted by compact cars. In contrast to the fairly squat fourth-generation Camry, the fifth generation is a decidedly tall vehicle. It is 2·5 inches taller and has a two-inch longer wheelbase than the previous model.

In the United States for 2002, the base CE model was dropped but the SE sport model was reintroduced. Both the LE and SE models are available with a manual transmission when equipped with the four-cylinder engine (now up to 2.4 liters and 163 horsepower). Any model may be equipped with a V6 or an automatic transmission, although the manual transmission is not available on V6 models.

Minor cosmetic changes came in 2004 worldwide.

Daihatsu continued with its twin Altis model for Japan only.

For 2006, Toyota will create a Hybrid gas/electric Camry.

Worldwide sales

While successful in the United States, Australia and New Zealand, the Camry is sold in more limited numbers in Europe, where the smaller Avensis (built in the United Kingdom) is more popular. The Camry is generally considered bland and undesirable, particularly as Toyota positions it as a BMW 5-Series rival, which is seen to have more cachet. The absence of a station wagon for the fifth generation in markets like New Zealand means that the Camry sedan and the Avensis estate are sold side by side, the Avensis Verso minivan having failed in that market.

Theft statistics

The Camry is reportedly the most stolen car in the United States. This can be attributed to the fact that the Camry has been the top selling car in the U.S. for several years. In 2001, for example, the second-generation Camry was the most-stolen vehicle, whereas the fourth-generation Camry was the 79th most stolen.

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