Originally Posted By: kb01
We looked at a few Camrys and they were very nice too but the low mileage ones appear to not depreciate and were almost entirely out of our price range.
I think that's mostly accurate. I just bought an '11 Camry for $16,880 (before my trade was even factored in). The difference between mine (base) and the LE is a power driver seat and factory keyless entry. I wasn't going to pay the extra $1,500 for that, and I'm sure they wouldn't have sold me an LE for $16,880 + $1,500 anyway, because they only had these 5 base models at that rediculous price, as loss leaders.
I wouldn't have done nearly as good on a used Camry. The dealer had a few '08 and '09 LE models on the lot with 15-30k miles for more than I paid for mine. I probably could have talked them down some, but they didn't have near as much room on a used one compared with a new one. The big 4-cylinder is plenty powerful, and I'm used to Cadillacs with Northstar V-8s. Modern 4-bangers have really come a long way.
Regarding ride quality, I wouldn't quite put the Camry in the same class as a Fusion, Altima, etc. And that's not just me being pompous as an owner. Every subjective review of the car that I've read places it in a completely different class in terms of refinement and comfort. Consider Motor Trend's comments from their March 2010 issue:
In a category of sedan that can still exhibit the occasional quiver, tinny door slam, and head-scratching control logic, the Camry feels like a Walmart-priced Mercedes with human factors courtesy of Steve Jobs. Says associate editor Carlos Lago, "The interior is well made and nice to the touch. Why can't the other cars in this group deliver such an experience?"
...and...
But it's sure a relaxed ride heading to work -- or across the country on vacation. And the flip side to that relaxed-fit handling is a ride suppleness and interior quietness that no car in this category even approaches. Still -- and we were surprised by this -- if you do put the whip to the car through corners, it doesn't dissolve into nearly the handling incoherence you'd predict. Notes Rory Jurnecka: "On the road, I found myself enjoying the Camry more than I thought I would on the twisty stretches. While the ride is clearly tuned more for comfort than anything else, the car's fairly light weight actually made it feel sprightly." In other words, it doesn't make a fool of itself.
Because the Camry's platform was also designed to be shared by the Lexus ES from the onset, much of the refinement that you feel in the Lexus is inherent to the chassis, and Camry owners benefit from it as well. I wasn't planning on buying a car last weekend when I did, but the drive completely won me over, and the price couldn't be beat. If you can find one in your price range, a Camry is certainly worth a drive.
