2007 toyota camry

Intelliseek Auto Show analysis finds online excitement high for the redesigned Toyota Camry and reborn Chevrolet Camaro 

According to analysis of online “buzz” about new cars introduced at January’s Detroit and Los Angeles auto shows, when consumers offer recommendations on which cars to purchase this year, the Toyota Camry and the new Honda Fit top the list.

Intelliseek analyzed thousands of online discussions (Dec. 1, 2005 to Jan. 23, 2006) that originated on auto forums and blogs, including “buzz” about production vehicles and concept cars introduced at the auto shows.

And among the top 10 production vehicles, the Toyota Camry captured 17% of buzz, followed by the Honda Fit (13%), Lexus LS 460 (10%), Ford Edge (8%), Chevrolet Tahoe (8%), Nissan Sentra (8%), Jeep Compass (8%), Chrysler Aspen (7%), Dodge Caliber (6%) and Jeep Wrangler (4%).

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USA Today is carrying a story reporting that Toyota will join NASCAR’s Nextel Series racing circuit.  Toyota, which has raced in NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck Series since 2004, will join the Nextel and Busch Series beginning in 2007, the automaker and racing association said. Toyota’s drivers will race with its Camry model.

A Toyota spoekman said, “We look forward to February 2007, when the green flag waves to start the Daytona 500 and the starting lineup features the Toyota Camry.”

The Nextel Series includes such well-known drivers as Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon.

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AdWeek is running a story about atuomaker’s plans for the Super Bowl.  In the story, Toyota said it would break a Super Bowl spot in both English and Spanish for the Camry hybrid.

The 30-second spot by Toyota’s Hispanic agency, Publicis’ Conill Advertising, Torrance, Calif., will feature a father explaining hybrid technology to his son as they drive in the Camry hybrid. The son compares the father’s use of intermixed language with the hybrid engines switching between gas and electric power.

Toyota vice president of marketing Jim Farley said that the spot uses “a unique fusion of language and culture to introduce our new Camry hybrid.”

Toyota has been the No. 1 automaker in the Hispanic market since May 2004 and the Camry is the third-best selling car among that demographic.

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Automotive News has a good piece on the new Camry.  A few highlights: 

Redesign of the Toyota Camry will arrive more than six months ahead of Toyota’s typical schedule.

Toyota planned on a 4½-year cycle for the current Camry when engineers started work on the 2007-model redesign in 2002.

Price of redesigned Camry will be similar to price of current model.  Jim Lentz, Toyota Division general manager says “Knowing all we put into the car, plus increased raw material costs, we’ll have to see some kind of price-up. The current Camry’s base price is $19,025, including destination.
Toyota sold 431,703 Camrys in 2005 - the most of any car in 20 years in the United States.

New base model Camry, the CE, comes with as many standard features as the outgoing mid-range LE trim level.

Lentz predicts the Camry launch “will be the biggest launch Toyota has had in our nearly 50 years of existence.”

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A recent story in The New York Times offers a bit of interesting insight into the new Camry production process:

Acting on suggestions from workers in eight countries where the Camry will be produced, Toyota’s engineers and designers cut its development time from 23 months to 17 months.

Thanks to simplified production methods, devised so that factories around the world can build the car the same way, Toyota’s plant in Georgetown, Ky., will reach full speed in a lightning-fast 15 days, versus the 45 days the plant needed to ramp up production of the previous Camry.

The quicker pace will allow it to ship several thousand more cars to dealers once the Camry goes on sale, a time “when they are dying to get new product,” said Gary L. Convis, president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky and the first American to run a Toyota plant.

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A few photos of the all-new 2007 Toyota Camry:

Autoblog is also running a bunch of great photos of the new Camry along with the official specs.

Highlights from the official Toyota press release:

Refusing to take continued success for granted, Toyota engineers and designers chose to expand the very definition of Camry…Engineers and designers rethought every aspect of the Camry, from its chassis to its body, interior, accessories and drivetrain.

The result is a world-class sedan that not only redefines global standards for comfort, performance and design, but also is available, for the first time, with Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive.

Design
An all-new exterior design provides the 2007 Camry with a visual impact that signals a departure from the upright style of its predecessor. This new Camry shape is athletic and modern, with a long, high-visibility cabin set on a horizontal underbody with strong, rounded planes and elongated structures. The wheelbase now is longer than before, and track is wider, with the wheels pushed out toward each of the car’s four corners.

Styling
The Camry interior was completely redesigned with an emphasis on a stylish design with increases in space, comfort and convenience for front and rear passengers.  Interior upgrades include redesigned seats, rear-seat personal reading lamps, a multi-information display, more storage compartments, improved ease of use of door and instrument panel features, 60/40 split fold-down rear seats, reclining rear passenger seats (XLE only), and much more.

Camry will be available in five grades.  See the full press release for features and specs on the CE, the sporty SE and the premium XLE.

Available Options
Options available on select Camry grades include a tilt/slide moonroof, heated seats, voice-command DVD navigation system, leather-trimmed seating, rear spoiler, Vehicle Stability Control and a Smart Key System with push-button start that allows drivers to lock, unlock, or start the car just by carrying the Smart Key on his/her person.

Performance
The all-new Camry is powered by an upgraded 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine. Fuel economy is also improved with estimated mpg ratings of 24 city/34 highway on models equipped with a five-speed manual transmission and 24 city/33 highway when equipped with a five-speed automatic.

For those looking for more power, a new 24-valve, DOHC 3.5-liter V6 is available in the LE, SE and XLE.  The V6 is mated to an all-new six-speed automatic transmission and will deliver estimated fuel economy ratings of 22 mpg in the city and 31 mpg on the highway.

Safety
All 2007 Camrys are equipped with an Antilock Brake System (ABS), Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist.  Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) with traction control is available as an option. Dual-stage advanced SRS airbags are standard on all Camry models.

Standard seat-mounted side airbags and side-curtain airbags help provide coverage for the length of the passenger compartment.  A driver’s knee airbag also is standard.

Camry Hybrid
Toyota extends its hybrid leadership by making its exclusive Hybrid Synergy Drive available in the 2007 Camry.  The Hybrid Synergy Drive System consists of dual gas and electric power sources that are complementary and produce a combined 192 horsepower.  This system varies power between gas and electric, or both, as needed.

The new Camry will reach Toyota dealers in early March with the Camry Hybrid arriving later this Spring.

Complete press release

The Detroit News is running a nice piece today on the new Camry.  Here are some excerpts:

When Toyota redesigned its best-selling Camry…the Japanese automaker set out to ratchet up the excitement a notch — just enough to hang on to customers who are abandoning traditional sedans without ruffling a large base of customers who like the car’s plain vanilla personality.

The 2007 Camry is “slightly bolder and more athletic than its predecessor and features a more sophisticated interior…”

“The car has gone beyond plain vanilla,” said Jim Lentz, group vice president and general manager of Toyota Motor Sales USA’s Toyota division. “We put some chocolate chips in this time.”

The SE variant has a substantially altered chassis and suspension to offer a sportier ride, and the LE version will offer more safety technology, nifty gadgets and a more refined interior.

The hybrid version of the Toyota Camry is expected to account for 15 percent of total Camry sales, or close to 60,000 vehicles.

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In a story by The Oakland Press previewing the North American Auto Show, Jim Hall, an analyst with AutoPacific, said the 2007 Toyota Camry is clearly the most important vehicle slated at the 2006 show (out of 36 new vehicles being introduced). The Camry has been the top-selling car in the United States, and the appearance of a brand-new Camry only underscores Toyota’s determination to continue to grow, he said.

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2005 figures show that the Camry was the best-selling car in the United States for the fourth year in a row (432,000 sold in 2005), and eight of the last nine years.  It again topped the Accord and other mid-size competitors such as the Chevrolet Impala.

And with a hybrid Camry due out this year and a fully redesigned 2007 Camry set to be unveiled Monday at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the sedan likely will set the bar high for its competitors.

Toyota hasn’t released many details about the new 2007 Toyota Camry, but Jim Sanfilippo, a senior industry analyst with Bloomfield Hills-based Automotive Marketing Consultants Inc. said the 2007 Camry is “going to be a little more expressive in its styling … it will be more powerful.”

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