Visitors look at a Toyota Camry during the Bangkok Auto Salon 2019 in Bangkok, Thailand, July 4, 2019. Picture taken July 4, 2019. Portal/Athit Perawongmetha ACQUIRES LICENSE RIGHTS
DETROIT, Nov 14 (Portal) – The next generation of the Toyota Camry, the U.S. market’s best-selling sedan, will come with only a gas-electric hybrid powertrain, the Japanese automaker’s boldest move yet to push hybrid technology at its heart of the US market.
The 2025 Camry will combine a 2.5-liter gasoline engine with an electric drive system tuned to deliver more power in both the front- and all-wheel-drive versions of the car, Toyota said.
Compliance with stricter U.S. fuel economy regulations was a factor in Toyota’s decision to make the new Camry a hybrid-only lineup, ditching four- and six-cylinder combustion models that accounted for about 85% of sales in the current model year, David Christ, chief of the Toyota brand in North America, told Portal. Another factor in the decision was “the performance we were able to get out of the hybrid,” he said.
Although Toyota has advanced the development of electric vehicle technology, it continues to expect demand for hybrids and plug-in hybrids to remain robust as the automaker takes a “multi-pathway” approach to meet customer needs across all markets to satisfy.
The hybrid powertrain and a new electronic all-wheel drive system deliver a combined 232 horsepower – nearly 15% more than the previous Camry with a mechanical all-wheel drive system, Toyota said.
Toyota executives unveiled the ninth generation of the Camry midsize sedan Tuesday in Los Angeles ahead of the Los Angeles Auto Show, which opens Friday.
The new Camry will compete in a segment largely abandoned by Detroit brands, with the exception of General Motors’ (GM.N) Chevrolet Malibu. Aside from numerous compact and midsize SUVs, the new Camry’s direct competitors include a few remaining sedans such as the Honda (7267.T) Accord, the Hyundai (005380.KS) Sonata and the all-electric Tesla (TSLA.O). Model 3.
According to the California New Car Dealers Association, the Tesla Model 3 outsold the Camry in the first nine months of 2023 in California, a key market for Toyota.
Toyota hasn’t announced pricing or fuel efficiency numbers for the 2025 Camry, which is scheduled to arrive in showrooms next spring. The cheapest Camry hybrid model currently costs about $2,400 more than the cheapest combustion engine Camry.
Most hybrid powertrains sell at a $1,500 to $2,000 premium over combustion models, Christ said. “We believe the value the hybrid powertrain brings is worth this premium.”
A current Camry hybrid gets 52 miles (84 km) per gallon in combined city and highway driving, compared to 32 mpg for the traditional four-cylinder Camry. According to U.S. government fuel economy data, the hybrid saves $650 per year in fuel costs compared to the combustion model.
Toyota previously switched its Sienna minivan to a hybrid-only powertrain. The Sienna is “our second fastest car and the car we have the most reservations about,” Christ said.
Reporting by Joe White in Detroit, editing by Matthew Lewis
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