The Michelin Energy MXV4 S8 tires naturally contribute to this lack of directional precision. Not surprising, as they’re stamped with the Green X rating proclaiming their low rolling resistance, chosen with the exact aim of reducing fuel consumption.
The fuel economy game
Once these gripes are set aside, the driver can start having some fun. Two small fuel efficiency indicators located on either side of the speedometer wink irresistibly at you.
The first one, on the left, tells you if the electric engine is solely powering the car, while the other graphically displays your fuel economy performance. Without even realizing it, the use of these two indicators changes your driving habits, sometimes to the point where you forget that the other motorists around you aren’t driving hybrids as well.
By playing this interminable acceleration game, you’re in danger of becoming an annoying plague for the others around you.
What’s more, keeping your eyes riveted on the two dials keeps them off the road…
By driving normally, however, it’s still possible to coax minimal fuel consumption from the Camry Hybrid. The automaker claims a fuel economy rating of 5.7 L / 100 km. Of course, those numbers where achieved in a lab, in ideal conditions. On our test drive, following the flow of traffic and watching our accelerations and decelerations a little more closely (without hampering the other motorists), we achieved a more realistic rating of 6.7 L / 100 km.
To buy or not to buy?
Does this result alone justify buying Toyota’s hybrid sedan? In my opinion, no.
If you can benefit from discounts or tax rebates, then it might be worth it. But reduced fuel consumption alone won’t recoup the higher purchase price.
In fact, at the end of our 400-km highway journey, we’d managed a fuel consumption rating equal to that of the perfectly ordinary 2.5-litre, 4-cylinder Camry LE! For those travelling mostly over long distances, the Camry LE might well be the greener choice.
The fuel economy game
Once these gripes are set aside, the driver can start having some fun. Two small fuel efficiency indicators located on either side of the speedometer wink irresistibly at you.
The first one, on the left, tells you if the electric engine is solely powering the car, while the other graphically displays your fuel economy performance. Without even realizing it, the use of these two indicators changes your driving habits, sometimes to the point where you forget that the other motorists around you aren’t driving hybrids as well.
By playing this interminable acceleration game, you’re in danger of becoming an annoying plague for the others around you.
What’s more, keeping your eyes riveted on the two dials keeps them off the road…
 |
| On our test drive, following the flow of traffic, we achieved a more realistic rating of 6.7 L / 100 km. (Photo: Matthieu Lambert/Auto123.com) |
By driving normally, however, it’s still possible to coax minimal fuel consumption from the Camry Hybrid. The automaker claims a fuel economy rating of 5.7 L / 100 km. Of course, those numbers where achieved in a lab, in ideal conditions. On our test drive, following the flow of traffic and watching our accelerations and decelerations a little more closely (without hampering the other motorists), we achieved a more realistic rating of 6.7 L / 100 km.
To buy or not to buy?
Does this result alone justify buying Toyota’s hybrid sedan? In my opinion, no.
If you can benefit from discounts or tax rebates, then it might be worth it. But reduced fuel consumption alone won’t recoup the higher purchase price.
In fact, at the end of our 400-km highway journey, we’d managed a fuel consumption rating equal to that of the perfectly ordinary 2.5-litre, 4-cylinder Camry LE! For those travelling mostly over long distances, the Camry LE might well be the greener choice.
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