New generation Toyota Camry Hybrid launched in Japan!

New generation Toyota Camry Hybrid launched in Japan!

The new Toyota Camry has been launched in Japan today. You don’t have to look too closely to realize this is yet another ‘look’ for the Camry, different from the one in the US market, but similar to the the one teased by Toyota Ukraine, yet not identical. This is the Toyota Camry Hybrid based on the Toyota Ukraine “Aurion” design.

Interestingly, Toyota has picked the Aurion design for the Japanese market, while for the last generation, the Japanese market shared a design with the US market. Also, the Camry is solely with a hybrid power train in Japan – no other inline-4 or V6 options available.

This is in line with what other Japanese sedan manufacturers have been doing in their domestic market, for example, Honda Japan discontinued the regular Civic before its lifespan expired and continued selling only the Civic Hybrid.

The new Camry Hybrid’s Toyota Hybrid System II uses the 2AR-FXE 2.5 liter Atkinson cycle four cylinder internal combustion engine, which can produce 160 PS and 213Nm of torque on its own. This is coupled with an electric motor that can produce 143 PS and 270Nm of torque. Combined output via the torque split device is 205 PS, which is a nice number for a D-segment sedan.

There are some interesting aerodynamic features that Toyota have added to the body of the Camry Hybrid, such as the “vortex generators” shown above integrated into the wing mirror mounts, designed to help with cruising aerodynamics.

Airflow improving “aero-corners” are strategically placed in front of the front wheels and behind the rear wheels.  The new two-piece front grille design uses a smaller upper grille and a larger lower grille that improve cooling efficiency by enhancing aerodynamic flow via reduced resistance.

The Camry includes a new Hill-start Assist Control (HAC) feature that prevents the vehicle from rolling backward when starting up on a hill, a new Steering-assisted Vehicle Stability Control (S-VSC) system that adjusts power, the electric power steering and braking to retain driver control of the car, and brake lights that specially signal emergency braking to reduce the risk of a collision from the rear.

Anyway, we probably won’t see this launched here in Malaysia as the large 2.5 liter engine does not qualify for Malaysia’s hybrid tax exemptions. Look after the jump for an image gallery of the JDM Camry Hybrid.