Toyota Camry Hybrid

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Comments

  • gromgrom Member Posts: 1
    On the front bumper of the TCH, there's a little squarish cutout on the passenger side near the center, and it has a cover over it (or plug in it) in an attempt to blend in with the bumper surface. Anybody know what this is? It's not on the non-hybrid 2007 Camrys.

    Thanks.
  • wvgasguywvgasguy Member Posts: 1,405
    I believe if you pull that plug out you'll find the anchoring connection for when they tie them down on the ship for shipping to the states. The non-hybrids are made in KY and aren't for export.
  • njeraldnjerald Member Posts: 689
    It's on all Japanese made Camrys.

    Also 2 removable tiedowns under the rear bumper.
  • tinatinatinatina Member Posts: 388
    Actually, I got it from the Toyota Dealership. They told me of those two packages in my area. When I priced one online through the "Build a Toyota" feature, I only got Package A as a choice. So, the online information with respect to available packages in my area also appears to be incomplete. Reading from posts weeks ago, indicates that there may be 3 packages in some areas. However, in the SF Bay Area, there are only those 2 packages.
  • climateerclimateer Member Posts: 14
    I got four airplane rollaboard suitcases in my TCH trunk. Not huge, but can get a family of four on a plane.
  • climateerclimateer Member Posts: 14
    I got four airplane rollaboard bags in my trunk, with room to spare for misc stuff as well. They were on their sides, with the long axis parallel to the car's long axis.
  • fullofbeansfullofbeans Member Posts: 33
    I had the same question. The salesman showed me. I think the Prius had it too. In the trunk by the spare there's a closed loop c- hook type bolt. The little plug cover pops off the bumper and you twist in this bolt. The salesman said it's used to help secure and strap down the car when it's on the boat coming from overseas. The prius and hybrid camry should be towed on a flat bed truck not a conventional tow truck. Not sure if this plays into it too. I saw the c hook type bolt. It's about 6 inches long.
  • xiatxiat Member Posts: 2
    I got my camry hybrid last night at Lithia Toyota in Springfield Oregon for $30,000. It includes all options (FE 50 stats Emission, CQ Comfort and Convenient Package, LA Leather Package, NV Navi with JBL, SR Moon roof w/... and CF carpet/trunk mat set ect). MSRP $30,589 includes $580 delivery and handling fee. I also bought life time oil change package (4 times/year) for $399. Enjoyed the car very much. I liked xle v6 inside a little bit better. But hybrid inside is very nice too. Thank you all for posting here. I have got all good info from this board. :)
  • fullofbeansfullofbeans Member Posts: 33
    Anyone know if the Ontario Provincial Sales Tax Rebate proposed increase was passed in the new budget? It used to be $1000 CAD max. for hybrids and was proposed to increase to $2000. Not sure if it actually passed in the budget though. Tx
  • stevevillatorostevevillatoro Member Posts: 30
    I moved to the head of the line, by a fluke circumstance, and got exactly the color and equipment that I had hoped to find: gray/ash, fully loaded.

    The car was delivered with 37 PSI in the tires. I did a controlled 18-mile freeway loop before bringing the car home, and got 39.5 MPG at a steady 65 MPH.

    Then, I raised the tire pressures to 46 front and 44 rear, and repeated the identical test loop. This time, I achieved 42.3 MPG.

    I can't believe it's sitting in my garage tonight. Love the car so far!!!
  • stevevillatorostevevillatoro Member Posts: 30
    First order of business with my new TCH was removal of tacky badges that said "hybrid" and "Camry." It looks much better now, in my opinion.

    If you need details on how to perform this five-minute elective surgery, see my post at greenhybrid.com.
  • hybridriverhybridriver Member Posts: 77
    Then, I raised the tire pressures to 46 front and 44 rear, and repeated the identical test loop. This time, I achieved 42.3 MPG.

    Did the quality of the ride change noticeably? Also, do you know if such an increase in pressure (24%) is safe for the tire? I overinflate my Insight tires by maybe 10% for gas mileage, but have never really tried anything more.
  • camryhybrid2camryhybrid2 Member Posts: 13
    I have checked the tires on my TCH. It is rated for 51 PSI. I am concern of increasing tire pressure to 46 PSI because the tire pressure could increase to over the maximum 51 PSI
    during prolong driving on the freeway due to heat friction on the tires. I think 10% increase to 40 PSI is safe for me.
  • heathinsdheathinsd Member Posts: 24
    So I came across several websites that say the TCH is Toyota's first Hybrid to be made in the U.S. (http://www.soultek.com/clean_energy/hybrid_cars/hybrid_car_types/Toyota_Camry_h- ybrid_car.htm)

    Did things change? Is it really made in Japan or KY? Hmm
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Until Oct they are all from Japan. Beginning in 4th Qtr they will come from both locations; 4000 units a month from Japan and 4000 units a month from KY
  • studio69studio69 Member Posts: 7
    I ordered my Camry Hybrid 2 weeks ago. This will be my 5th Toyota. The most important thing about this new Camry is not that it's a Hybrid but that it is a Toyota. My vehicle now is a Camry with 265,000 kilometers and it still runs like new. I have never been let down by any Toyota that I have owned. I am 100% sure that myself and all the others that have ordered without even testing it first will not be disappointed. Happy Motoring and Go-Green.
  • berg32berg32 Member Posts: 56
    My dealer guesses that the Camry Hybrid color "Jasper Pearl" is very close to the Avalon "Silver Pine Mica." Is he right about that? Anyone?
  • rob_whitehillrob_whitehill Member Posts: 13
    Just door trim strips and alarm. Still waiting for dealer to get one to test drive..
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Similar, yes but distinctly different. Jasper is much greener!!
  • berg32berg32 Member Posts: 56
    Not only is the Camry Hybrid less expensive than the comparably loaded V6 XLE, you don't have to look at that blond fake wood. :)
  • berg32berg32 Member Posts: 56
    Thank you for telling me that Camry Hybrid "Jasper Pearl" is greener than Avalon "Silver Pine Mica." Does any other Toyota have a green color closer to Jasper Pearl?
  • gandyfiregandyfire Member Posts: 36
    In my opinion, Jasper Pearl resembles a "Granny Smith" apple. Hope that helps
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Actually I've never seen any other auto on the road in this shade of green. It's unique for sure. With this Camry Toyota is getting much more edgy ( definitive?) in the styling. A matter of confidence?

    This is a Camry.

    This is a Hybrid Camry.
  • berg32berg32 Member Posts: 56
    I'm eager to see the Hybrid in Jasper Pearl, it being the only color unique to the Hybrid. Has anyone seen one in the NYC metro area?
    PS. We ordered a Camry Hybrid over a year ago, we are #4 on the list here, so color decision is imminent.
  • berg32berg32 Member Posts: 56
    Does anyone know where a Jasper Pearl (green) Camry Hybrid can be seen in the Northeast US? Thanks! :)
  • bmgoodmanbmgoodman Member Posts: 102
    the 265 is now down to 181! I have been told more allocations will be coming out on 17 May, so I hope to see that number get bigger once June shows on the list.

    (If an entire multi-state region can only move 84 cars through the channel in 3 weeks, I can see how people will be waiting months and months for cars!)
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Careful on these numbers. If there are say 150 stores in GST and each has between 2 and 10 'firm' orders on the books for the TCH the 265 number and the 181 number are not truly useful.

    What it designates is that at the regional level, GST, all that they know is that 181 units remain not reported; i.e. no RDR's yet. All these may have been on the road for a week now. Since yesterday was RDR-day throughout the system the local stores haven't yet sent the reports to the regional office. It's not real-time it's batched.

    Now today if 290 more show up in GST on the new allocation I'd guess that all of these are spoken for as well using the same '2-10 firm orders per store' criteria thoughout the region.
  • spiff72spiff72 Member Posts: 179
    I put a deposit down today at a nearby dealer, but it sounds like I am about #13 on their list.

    I called another dealer about 45 minutes north, and they think there are only about 4-5 people on the list there. I will probably put in a deposit there too.

    I just want to make sure I get mine before the end of September. Is is safe to assume that the tax credit gets cut in half starting in October?
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Unless Congress extends the program... yes that is a safe assumption.
  • chasgoosechasgoose Member Posts: 12
    Just got called by my dealer. My fully loaded Titanium/Ash Camry hybrid is coming in on Monday! I was offered a base Jasper Pearl if I wanted one tomorrow, but my dealer (who is a friend) said it was the ugliest color he has ever seen in all his years of seliing cars and I wanted one with all the toys. I am more than happy to wait a little for a better match.
  • alp8alp8 Member Posts: 656
    I guess he hasn't seen the new pink Lexus!!!
  • houtex1houtex1 Member Posts: 82
    I've been reading the Prius Problems and Solutons Forum and one thing I came across was the following.

    "Check the manual - the car must be started at least every 2 weeks for at least 30 minutes"

    anybody know if this is the same for the Camry Hybrid?

    Thanks.
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Most likely yes this is true. You charge the main traction battery by driving the vehicle.
  • wvgasguywvgasguy Member Posts: 1,405
    I have just driven my new hybrid for about 100 miles

    You're going to drive more than that to get a feel for how this mpg's thing works. I've got about 1100 miles so far and here's what I've observed. You'll want to look back in this forum at my other comments as well as others. Someone was concerned that on a test drive they only got in the 20's. There is a lot that can affect this in such a short test. Jackrabbit starts, pulling out quickly onto the road, a hill or grades, etc. On my first 2 (light fill)tanks I got 38+. Then after the third I drove home up a steep hill and pulled into the garage and I had 26 mpg. I only had 4 miles on this tank. I had to drive several other small trips to get the average back up. Had I drove this route with 300 miles already on the tank with 38+ then I would have lost maybe a tenth off of the average. Just as it goes down slowly it will go up slowly.

    Actually my freeway driving is around 36 to 37.5 (driving between 70 and 80. It's when I drive on rural roads and in town (w/o a lot of traffic) that I'm able to keep the average up. (I was running 40.5 for a while on one tank with 300 miles on it)

    What you have to consider is this: Yesterday on a trip my wife drove while I napped. I woke up and she was doing 80mph and getting 36 mpg. I griped at her but when we got home I did a quick calculation and figured the difference on that trip between 36 and 38.5 mpg was less than 1/2 gallon.

    I would not worry about any average I'd see on short intervals. There are times you're getting 10 mpg(watch the instant readout gage) and times you're getting 60 mpg (or on full battery power). It all averages out. If you're in a mode that in the 20's watch the gage and see what the instant readout is. If you're getting 10 or 20 notice why. Is it a grade, pulling out too fast, etc...
    I believe (and I'm new to this) to get the good city milage you start out slow on battery power and avoid the engine kicking on as much as possible. You may want to stay in the right lane.

    To end this story,I have found that the difference in 36 and 38 is very small in terms of gas saved. I'm eventually going to turn the gage to another display and just enjoy driving knowing I'm going to average between 36 and 38 and it really doesn't matter which because it's all better than the 16 I used to get.
  • wvgasguywvgasguy Member Posts: 1,405
    It's a way off, but I live in hilly country that sometimes has significant snowfall. I want to get extra wheels and snow tires rather than changing out tires each season. Is it possible to "turn off" the tire pressure monitoring system and drive without the sensors or will I need to purchase 4 sensors for my winter wheels and have them "registered" in my system?

    Also once registered can I switch back and forth between winter and summer without going back to the garage?

    There are already decent deals on ebay for wheel and tires for people changing out. I assume most of them are keeping their sensors.

    Now that these are being mass produced (on all Toyota's) are they cheaper? Should I only use (or am required to)Toyota Brand sensors.

    I'm not in the market yet for winter tires but I may get something in Chrome for my stock tires and later put the winter tread on the stock wheels.

    I've got a set of 17" chrome Nissan wheels w/ tire from my old 350Z. They have the same overall diameter and the same bolt circle but I don't know about measuring offset. If the wheels would work I would consider narrower tires and possibly run these rims. Know any where to find fitment info?
  • kdhspyderkdhspyder Member Posts: 7,160
    Yes the order of magnitude is very significant. :shades:
  • bmgoodmanbmgoodman Member Posts: 102
    My salesman, at one of the two dealers where I have a deposit, just called and asked if I would take a base silver, white, or blue that should be in by 15 June. I have to let him know by tomorrow. I really want the magnetic gray, so I may hold out. Anyway, sounds like the allocations came out a day earlier than I had been told. Where all all the gray ones getting shipped?? :mad:
  • kevintlutzkevintlutz Member Posts: 9
    I picked up my base Camry Hybrid yesterday. I've logged 75 miles on 5 trips in town. My average thus far is 40.5 MPH (if the onboard computer is reliable).

    We went with the base model and added after market leather from Katzkin (www.katzkin.com). A lot of the Chicago area dealers that I spoke with order the cars without leather and then add the after market leather.

    This was an inexpensive ($1,000) way to get the Hybrid I wanted. Leather is a must for me on any car, but I wasn't willing to pay $30,000 for the navigation, sunroof and other features I don't care about. This is top quality leather make to manufacture specs.

    So far, we love this car and the milage is beyond our expectations. Tomorrow I will be doing some highway driving. Of course, the trunk is much smaller that we would like. If they could fix this one flaw, I would give the car an A+ all around.
  • spiff72spiff72 Member Posts: 179
    I am in the same boat, although I just ordered mine today (and yesterday) - 2 dealers is better than one!

    I asked for the Magnetic Gray with ash leather, Navi, moonroof, convenience package (actually ALL of the available factory options).

    I still don't think I understand how the dealers order these cars.

    Are they placing an order with the factory to build "me" the car? Or are they simply putting my preferred car/color/options on file, and waiting to see if one shows up?

    Dealer #2 (the one where I am #7 on the list) says that they are supposed to get 2 hybrids this month. As they sell them, they are allotted more in the future. Are they really just approacing the people with deposits (in order) as these cars come in (essentially randomly)? The saleswoman at this dealer was telling me that they only build about 10% of them with Navi, so there might be people on the list below me that didn't ask for Nav that could get one first.

    I think I would prefer that they just built them to order (if that isn't how it is being done).
  • jaxs1jaxs1 Member Posts: 2,697
    Does Toyota do the custom orders for the Camry Hybrid like they did with the Prius, or do you have to just take whatever options Toyota pre-specs the cars in your region with (like most other Toyotas) and just wait for one to appear with options close to what you would have chosen yourself?

    Also, why isn't this message forum in the Camry Hybrid area under the index instead of just plain Camry?
    I did a search for groups under the Camry Hybrid option and it said there were no discussions.
  • heathinsdheathinsd Member Posts: 24
    I was thinking about this the other night... What do you do if the battery dies? Or does it? I mean, I guess you can't just hook it up to another car and "jump" it off right?
  • alp8alp8 Member Posts: 656
    Toyota HAS solved the trunk issue. It's called the Lxus GS450H.

    :-)

    Seriously, I wonder how much bigger the trunk is in the GSH.
  • alp8alp8 Member Posts: 656
    36 mpg at 80 mph???

    SWEEEET!!!

    (I wonder how the GS450H does at 80)
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    Seriously, I wonder how much bigger the trunk is in the GSH.

    I believe I read that the GS450h is slightly smaller than the TCH.
  • njeraldnjerald Member Posts: 689
    You believe wrong.

    14.5 - 15.0 '07 Camry Gas
    10.6 '07 Camry Hybrid
    12.7 GS450h

    19.8% bigger than the TCH and the same size as the gas GS450.
  • gampagampa Member Posts: 78
    This is what concerns me about the Hybrids... both Camry and Prius... Both cars just do not get the mileage on the sticker for city driving...and that's what stares you in the face a big "4-0"
    ... it seems in most cases, at least for city driving, the actual mileage is 30% off the estimate.
    Sure... maybe with a fully charged battery on a Dyno meter gets it gets 40 mpg, but in real world drive city - country - rural driving ( 0 to 40 mph), with no highway... if all it gets is 26 - 28 mpg then one might be better off with the basic Ce/Le 4 cyl... or maybe the Corolla.
    ... or maybe they should change the way they achieve estimates.
    Don't get me wrong... I still think the Camry is a great car for those who need one now, the ride is great and it has that "look" but...
    Has anyone been able to achieve the 40 mpg with city driving before I throw down $30,000 for something that does not get better gas mileage the my nine year old Corolla?

    Gampa
  • hybridriverhybridriver Member Posts: 77
    Has anyone been able to achieve the 40 mpg with city driving before I throw down $30,000 for something that does not get better gas mileage the my nine year old Corolla?

    If you are strictly making the decision on gas mileage per dollar, the TCH is not the car for you. However, having picked mine up this morning, I will say that it affords a fine level of luxury that, combined with the world-beating FE in its class, makes it a one-of-a-kind automobile. I have a feeling I'm going to love owning this car...
  • jrock65jrock65 Member Posts: 1,371
    The GS450h trunk capacity is 8 cubic feet. The Lexus site is wrong.
  • climateerclimateer Member Posts: 14
    I've had mine for 2 weeks and 300 miles. I'm averaging 35 mpg overall, up from 32 mpg for the first 150 miles. On many of my trips, I get over 40 mpg. On others, I get under 25 mpg, judging from the bar chart meter. The instantaneous mpg meter is very useful, and I watch it more than a tach on a regular car. Some interesting notes...

    I can start off from a dead stop and get up to 25 mph on the battery only, some of the time. This involves a pretty slow creep start, so I don't do it if someone is behind me out of courtesy. Sometimes when I try this, the gas engine kicks in. I can't figure out pattern yet.

    The car has a really nice sweet spot for city driving at 35 mph. I can drive on level ground for a mile or so on the battery only. This is good, because this is my city cruising speed.

    My son had it at 60 mph and 60 mpg for a mile on the freeway the other day.

    It's very interesting to drive. Once you use the gas engine to get up to speed, you can back off on the throttle and maintain that speed. You can watch the mpg meter increase from 20 mpg to 60 mpg, and still maintain your speed.

    Also, coasting is big. You can get the gas engine to turn off entirely on a slight downgrade, while you recharge the battery.

    All in all, a great car. I'd be surprised if I didn't average more than 35 mpg in the city. Plus, much of my driving is in 2-3 miles stints, in which nothing really gets warmed up and things are less efficient.
  • climateerclimateer Member Posts: 14
    My son was driving it on the freeway a couple of days ago, and had it at 60 mph -- the fastest traffic would allow -- and the instantaneous mph gauge read 60 mpg. He did this on level ground for over a mile, before traffic tightened up and we had to slow down.
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