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CE manual and auto - no increase
SE 4 cyl, - +$150
LE, XLE 4 cyl. - +$275
LE, XLE, SE V6 - +$300
No price increases on options and packages.
This might be new?
IZ - Fleet Convenience Pkg - $0 - Front License Plate Bracket
Until otherwise proven it's main problem is that it is a Chevy and this excess baggage is difficult to unload.
Just by posting that buyers should consider a 5.3L V8 engine shows that you might be out of touch with the market. Did you miss the memo 12 years ago that the US market is looking for ultra efficient 4c midsized vehicles?
You are trying to fit a square peg into a round hole by trying to induce the midsized buyer to get into a V8! It's a common failing of the detroiters over the last 15 years as evidenced by their plummeting market shares ( see Ford memo to employees yesterday ).
The Impalla SS V8 is likely a nice vehicle. But after they sell 1200 units to the die-hards how do you fill a factory with this vehicle?
LOL!
Thanks -- Tidewater.
Hopefully the Toyota engineers are working on the hesitation problems some I4 owners are having.
The dealers are caught in the middle.
They get blasted from the owners but don't know what to do without a TSB or guidance from Toyota.
The "market" is less a reflection of what people think they want than the degree of success of Madison Avenue advertising hype which Toyota has been enjoying in promoting its mediocre cars as "quality paradigms."
I could care less about a crappy 4 cylinder engine. I already have one of these in a Subaru Outback and it gives poorer highway fuel mileage than my Impala SS sans the breathtaking acceleraton and smooth automatic transmission perfectly mated to the car's power plant.
Your perception of GM is based not on their present level of quality but the "reputational baggage" of the '80's and '90's whereas today's GM car is a far cry from then in both quality and features. The most amusing thing, however, is that while GM's quality curve is rising, Toyota's is falling as evidenced by the many complaints on the automotive boards and their escalating number of vehicle recalls but this fact has not yet become widely known to the market as the company still enjoys the quality reputation of the 80's and 90's. That will change in due time as it eventually did for Mercedes.
Continuing debate about other vehicles doesn't belong here.
Thanks.
since well over 60% of all midsized vehicles are 4c models, and possibly as much as 75% taking the Prius, Corolla and Civic into account, your view of the wants of the American buying public are about 25 yrs out of date.
This is not a 'Toyota-sponsered' Madison Ave conspiracy to emasculate the detroiters it's simply a reflection of what the public wants across every product line; Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, Subaru, VW and now even Ford and GM. Niche vehicles like the SS are nice have a limited shelf life.
As I said, I could care less about what you perceive to be the general public's appetite for whiny little 4 cylinder engines. However, I am gratified by GM's consideration in catering to my particular driving tastes by making a scrumptious 8 cylinder masterpiece in the 5.3 liter variable displacement V-8: 4 cylinders if I want to creep along, 8 if I want a real engine.
Niche vehicles like the SS are nice have a limited shelf life.
Limited shelf life, huh? Are you aware just how many decades GM has been making available cars with the SS designation? As long as Toyota has been selling cars in the U.S., that's how long.
And, oh yes, more about that legendary Toyota quality:
"Andrew Phillips of Nikko Citigroup stated "Toyota's resources have been stretched quite a bit by the big increases in volume." Shinsei Securities analyst Yasuhiro Matsumoto lays the blame for Toyota’s declining quality squarely on Katsuaki Watanabe’s shoulders. He claims the CEO’s constant focus on cost cutting has created devastating production glitches. The resulting quality issues have become so alarming that Watanabe recently admitted, "I take this seriously and see it as a crisis."'
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/?p=2043
A perceived crisis for Toyota might be the norm for other manufacturers. There are some growing pains (much to the delight of some). The difference between Toyota and the others is money. Toyota has approx. 20 billion in cash, time deposits and marketable securities. They have the funds to fix the current glitch.
If you want the truth about cars, read this unbiased article.
C:\Documents and Settings\lascep\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\OLK38\article.htm
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000101&sid=aGEj8tQXXupw&refer=japan
We appreciate your taking the time to participate in a Camry discussion. Your unwarranted passion for GM's antiquated OHV technology is at least an amusing diversion in this discussion. But the real proof of the pudding is that people are voting with their wallets at car purchase time - and have been for the past two and a half decades. No amount of jingoistic chromed or blackened geegaws plastered on exposed body panels harking back to better times for GM is apt to change that fact. You enjoy your 5.3L OHV V8 behemoth. I'll wave as my whiney 2.7L DOHC 6-cyl glides silently by while you're filling yours up at the gas station.
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060818/FREE/60816004/1024/L- atestNews
http://www.holden.com.au/www-holden/action/vehicleentry?vehicleid=4
And as I've mentioned previously, comparos are welcome, but they should be set up in their own discussions at this link: Toyota Camry.
Thanks!
Just wanted to share this with you all.
I made the plunge, and i now have 20thousand something miles on the vehicle, and NO hesitation. In fact, it has been an excellent vehicle.
I hope you haven't made a decision based on comments in this fourm. It is imperative that you drive the exact vehicle you plan to buy, and test it in your regular everyday driving patterns to correctly know if it is right for you.
Good luck
PS: I bought a 2007 Camry HYBRID to add to my Highlander. and love it, altho it is a bit more $.
As you guys are saying, I am more sad now about breaking the deal. I need a vehicle very soon. I waited for this camry for so long, went on 8/7 and made a deal. OTD was 21800 which was not great, but it was a ok deal.On 8/8, one of my friend told me about this forum, and I was scared after reading all these issues. I just graduated this May, I have a new job and I never bought a new car. I live in a city. I do not have anybody to come with me and test drive the vehicle. If this car has any problem, I will be screwed, mentally and financially, apart from the fact that I may be involved in an accident because of the car (if there is any problem.
Well, as I said, it was very painful. I saw the car and saw my name on it in paper and still could not decide what to do! Finally, went inside and cancelled.
No agrument that it is a big decision, but I doubt that you will be "scr%#ed". If the car you end up buying REALY has a serious defect, and you interact with Toyota rationaly, they will be very accomodating.....
One thing bothers me! Some people are saying that the problem developed after 800, 1700 or even 5000 miles. I got more scared about the problem beacuse that can come later.
Please suggest.
I read the exact same words on these forums a year and a half ago about the Highlander...As I said, 20,xxx miles later absolutely NO hesitation. I even posted that in the forums, and the folks who were the loudest and most frequent posters would say that THEY would be able to detect that hesitation in my car!
I tried to make my Highlander hesitate, over and over again, even asked the posters who experienced it to give exact steps to get it to hesitate....I never did get that hesitation.
Please understand that there are folks who are very upset with their cars, and may or may not be rational about it posting on the internet. I once had a car that I was totaly happy with, until i read on the internet that the steering wheel was slightly off-center to the drivers seat. I hadn't noticed, but now, i noticed it every time I drove that car. LOL power of suggestion
Some years ago, I had a toyota with a problem. (not serious, just rattles, but it was a brand NEW car, and expensive for me), and the dealer kept saying "normal", or "can not duplicate"...i got very annoyed, and perhaps was not rational with my dealings with them. Long story short, I went to another dealer, with a much more tempered approach, and got the issues resolved.
From a longer viewpoint the first thing I do to my new cars, although I usually buy used cars, is 'key' my own vehicle. I never have to worry about dings, dents, scratches or road debris ever again. It takes a lot of the emotion out of the process.
Suggestion: buy a good Certified Used vehicle that you can drive til it turns to dust. It will have its own character and flaws but you will likely save a good chunk of money.
Or...
If you are not going to drive that many miles, abt 15K or so, consider leasing a new Camry. Then if it's not performing to your liking you are only 'on the hook' for 3 yrs. You just give it back. Buying new vehilecs is way overrated and way too emotional.
It's four circles of rubber carrying steel and plastic all of which will be worthless in 12-15 years at which time it will look a mess.
Yes, it had a few dings and broken interior trim (much of which I eventually replaced with junkyard parts), but it served me reliably for 21 years.
The upshot is that in 2003 when I sold it, there wouldn't have been any difference if it had been a 1982 model instead of a 1980.
One big downside is that the car would be nearly impossible to sell, but if you keep it forever like I did with my Volvo, that won't matter.
Go with your manual - 5000 (3 zeroes) miles or 6 months, which ever comes first.
http://online.wsj.com/public/us
It's obviously getting increasingly difficult to overlook or deny the company's snowballing quality issues.
Without the whole article as reference, your comment about snowballing quality issues... becomes YOUR opinion, and should be stated as such.
I am not a subscriber either so I can't post the whole article but here is some more from the carconnection.com:
"Toyota Cutting New Products?
Toyota may be slowing down the number of new products it is developing in response to an increased number of recalls, the Wall Street Journal reported in its online edition Thursday. The report says the slowdown might only equal six months or so in the company's product cycle, but would be a major acknowledgement that even the world's richest car company may be expanding too fast. The paper cites several major, recent recalls including those on Tundra pickups and the Prius hybrid as influencing the discussion at Toyota. Vehicle lines that could be affected include the Sienna minivan, Avalon sedan, and Camry Solara coupe. Last year, Toyota recalled 2.38 million vehicles in the U.S., or about 120,000 more than it sold in the year."
http://www.thecarconnection.com/Auto_News/Daily_Auto_News/Daily_Auto_News_Aug_25- _2006.S173.A10797.html
No, it's not simply my opinion so don't try to twist the words around.
"Last year, Toyota recalled 2.38 million vehicles in the U.S., or about 120,000 more than it sold in the year."
If a car company has to recall more cars than they sell during the entire year, most objective observers would say they have a problem, denials of the aficionados notwithstanding.