PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

The main things that differentiate a sedan significantly from another sedan are the grill (and headlights), profile, and taillights. These three are significantly different between the two cars.

Yes, there are similarities to the Camry and GS, but have you also realized that there are some similarities between Lexus/BMW/M.Benz? People always talk about "Bangle"-inspired cars, even through it isn't BMW.

Try not to worry about the similarities, but enjoy the differences in detail, quality, and luxury...
(Also, by looking at the interior, you can definately tell a Lexus from a Toyota.)

spwolf

front does look like the 6 a bit, however it looks like European Toyota's more. Rear? How does the rear look like Mazda? Mazda 6 has Altezas at back :-), so it is vice versa. A lot of newer Mazda vehicles have copied Toyota European styling as well (Mazda 5 looks like Corolla Verso's sister).

Thing is, Mazda has 6-7 vehicles, while Toyota has 60-70 vehicles...

jrock65

Specs are up.

http://pressroom.toyota.com/presstxt...007Camry_s.pdf

4 cylinder auto: 24/33.

So the Camry 4 cyl. 5 speed auto has the exact same mpg as the Sonata 4 cyl. 4 speed auto (which incidentally has slightly more hp and torque). So what's supposed to be the advantage of the 5 speed auto?

Kinda disappointed that the trunk room (14.5 cu./ft.) has gone down more than 2 cu./ft. from the 2006 Camry (16.7 cu./ft.).

TRDFantasy

Hold your horses. Some of those specs like fuel economy are estimated, and I am extremely confident that interior volume will be up.

Wait for official specs to come out at the car's release.

jrock65

I see no reason to expect mpg or dimensions to go up from these preliminary specs.

spwolf

what they did was enlarge the interior at the expense of trunk space. Their research probably showed that is what people wanted.

as to the mpg, isnt more powerful V6 getting more mpg than Sonata's, while being faster as well? :-).

TRDFantasy

It would logical to think so .. I thought the same way, until the new Rav 4 came along that is.

Initially, Toyota estimated that the Rav 4 V6 2WD would get mileage of 20/28, but turns out actual EPA mileage is 22/29.

Also, I refuse to believe that the Camry SE V6 gets the same mileage as an Avalon, despite having a 6 speed vs a 5 speed auto on the Avalon, and being lighter than the Avalon as well. If the final specs show the EPA mileage as remaining the same, then real world mileage likely will be higher than the Avalon.

I checked the dimensions, and the new Camry in EPA interior volume is 101.4 cu ft compared to 101.8 compared with the outgoing Camry. This is probably due to the new car's lower height. But realistically, interior volume remains about the same, with the drop in height being counteracted by legroom and width increases.

jrock65

Hopefully you're right, but I'm not holding my breath.

spwolf

well, also consider that the way EPA calculates things, long final gear will always bring same results, however cars with more gears will be more responsive.

Same goes for 6 speed in Camry vs Avalon, their final gear (6th/5th) probably has the same gear ratio, which means 6speed in Camry will have one extra gear to make engine more responsive when not cruising.

jrock65

But overall interior volume actually went down by a smidgen. One of the things I really like about the current Camry is its big trunk, which is noticeably larger than the Accord's, which I think is a bit small. That advantage has disappeared now.

The Camry V6 is definitely more sophisticated than the Sonata V6, no doubt.

But with the volume 4 cylinder LE models, it doesn't seem that the 2007 Camry offers any advantages over the Sonata. The Sonata is slightly more powerful, more roomy, has more trunk space and gets the same mpg as the Camry, which would likely cost at least a couple thousand more.

TRDFantasy

The Sonata though has less rear legroom. The Sonata also has less airbags, and less features standard. Let us wait for final Camry specs, as VSC with BA could be standard. EBD is confirmed to be standard on all models.

The Sonata 4 cyl probably isn't as refined as the Camry 4 cyl.

BLK13X

Wow... it looks pretty damn nice!

jrock65

Sonata has more overall legroom, which I think is more relevant.

I don't agree about the features part. While the Camry LE has some stuff like knee airbag and power driver seat (which I really like), the Sonata GLS has more features overall.

Between the Camry XLE and Sonata LX, it's no contest. The XLE is a step up.

But between the volume Camry LE 4 cyl. and Sonata GLS 4 cyl., it's a tough call.

foofighter

I saw 10 of them this morning going south on CA133 in various trim levels. I must say they look great in person very nice...at first it was hard to discern the front end...it was like an avalon/mazada 6 front but as it got closer the logo couldnt be missed. I believe they were doing some sor of magazine comparo or something like that because they were being followed by a Ford Fusion and other cars of that class/price segment.

jrock65

My pricing prediction (including destination) for 2007 Camry:

LE (4 cyl, auto, Base): $21,800
Hybrid (Base): $26,000
XLE V6 (Fully loaded): $32,000

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Will the Hybrid have better passing power than the V6?