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Despite the deadly off-the-line performance, there’s simply no reason to justify racing against rag-tag economy sedans. Even my temperamental nature is calmed inside the Camry’s ultra-quiet cabin. At this point, I begin to think of letting the hoi polloi skirmish through the congested roads like little cockroaches. I’m quite pleased staying behind the wheel of the Camry for an extra few minutes, thank you very much. I’ve been expecting the worse possible combination of ride and handling from the relatively simple MacPherson Strut / Independent Dual Link Strut set-up—as previous experiences with the last generation Camry would suggest. Thankfully, this time around, the cathedral-quiet interior is complemented by the best real-world suspension set-up I have ever felt. Though it still can’t run around my current driver, a 1998 Honda Accord VTi-L, the Camry finally does what it’s told to do. Handling is safe and understeer is controlled. The steering gives decent feedback, but is still a bit sluggish—a fact that’s disconcerting when traveling at triple digit speeds. On the positive side, bumps of alls hapes and sizes are absorbed in the most convincing of manners, making the ride as soft as a baby’s newly moisturized skin. For the heck of it, I usually take pockmarked Paseo de Roxas (near the Makati Triangle) at full speed just to test a car’s bump absorption capabilities. This one passes with an A+ grade. One thing I didn’t like about the suspension set-up is tires' difficulty with putting all of the car’s torque to the road. The Yokohama Aspec 205/65 HR 15 tires are obviously there as low-rolling resistance tires, and because of this primary function, they squeal heavily during a fast-bend turns. Making things worse is that this relatively new set of rubbers lost traction accelerating out of a traffic light. If you buy a Camry—take my advice and change the tires! It doesn't take an Einstein to find out that this car is mechanically superior to its rivals—but what about its styling and creature features? For the outside, I find that the design is slippery smooth and well proportioned. The tall stance is hidden well with the use of large quad-beam headlamps and a high shoulder line. The minimal use of body cladding gives it some hints of sportiness as well. On the down side, I’m joining the countless others in the anti-Camry’s-rear club. The rear-end styling isn’t appealing from almost all the angles. It looks far too detached from the rest of the flowing sheet metal. I have this ominous feeling that there was an attempt to spruce up the back and make it look like a certain German luxury saloon—the effect isn’t nice as there’s a lack of surface detail here. |
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