'23 Camry rental car review

[fdcg27]

Had to rent a car this week for four days while the HAH underwent repair after my encounter with an unfortunate groundhog.
I had reserved a Mazda 3 since I wanted to drive one based upon the many favorable reviews of the car I had seen. I was instead "upgraded" to the Camry. I have to say that after a couple of hundred miles of use I came away impressed.
Ride was firm and well controlled with good compliance over minor road irregularities. The brake pedal was firm to the touch and easily modulated. Cornering was good on the OEM Bridgestones, even with me bending the car through a few hard corners. Acceleration was strong and the engine was pretty smooth, although with a somewhat agricultural note. The bunch-o-speeds automatic worked well with very smooth shifts. Between it and the engine, daring uphill two-lane passes were brisk and smooth. Fuel economy was north of 35 mpg with no real effort on my part to get there and there is no stop-start nonsense.
It has been said that it's easy to build a performance car while building a daily driver/commuter that is reasonably good at everything and bad at nothing to a price point is a greater challenge. Toyota has engineered this car to work well under all circumstances while maintaining a reasonable purchase price and maintaining long service intervals with no exotic tech nor service fluids required that also promises a long and reliable life.
To me, this is the result of careful development and while this car might be considered unexciting, it would make a good commuter/daily driver for anyone for many miles to come.
I have gained respect for Toyota even though I am basically a Honda or Subaru guy.

 

[TheOilWizard]

Thanks for the review. I think it's really difficult to find fault with a Camry. Probably the worst I've heard is they are "boring"... but that seems to be changing recently. Relatively speaking.

 

[fantastic]

I take it phil went packing and didn't see his shadow.
Thanks for sharing and I think the upgrade was a pleasant surprise it seems.

 

[mcrn]

How did it do as a direct comparison to the Accord?

 

[fdcg27]

How did it do as a direct comparison to the Accord?

The Camry has the edge in ride comfort, with much better compliance over road irregularities like expansion joints. I'd give the Accord the edge in cornering. I also prefer the brake feel of the Accord. The Accord is quicker than the Camry, but the Camry does have quite adequate acceleration. The Camry has a narrower driving position and footwell than does the Accord, although still perfectly comfortable. I'd rate their driver's seats about equal. The Camry does have a lower beltline and larger greenhouse, lending the interior a more airy feeling and improved outward visibility.
While the Camry is quite economical in daily use, it is well behind the HAH in that respect, but that's an apples to oranges comparison.
Overall, I'd say that the Camry would be a very reasonable alternative to the Accord, and the driver of either would not be disappointed with the other. The base cars do take a different approach to engine design, with Toyota favoring a large displacement DI/PI NA four while Honda went with a smaller displacement DI turbo. Both deliver roughly the same power and fuel economy but I'd say that Toyota made the better choice in this regard.

 

[Delta]

The 8th gen Camry is one of the most ho-hum sedans out there. Boring, but reliable. I know this, as there's one in my garage

However, it consistently gets almost 40mpg. Oil changes are stupid simple. It just works. They did improve braking and technology over the 7th gen, which we had as well.

 

[panthermike]

Had one of these for a week when I was in Texas. Same sentiment for me, very compliant if not a bit boring. But did the job!