I Test Drove A 2007 Camry XLE I4 Today!!!

[LunarMist]

Ok so I had to take my 2002 Camry LE to the dealership (Fitzgerald Auto Mall/Lakeforest Toyota in Gaithersburg, Maryland) to get regular service maintanence. I found out once I got there that they had moved their service center to another facility up the road. As I was preparing to leave what should I see??? Two brand new 2007 Camry's came flying down the lane and pulled damn near right beside me. Everyone inside the FitzMall showroom began clapping when the Camry's pulled up. One Camry was Titanium Silver and the other was a Cashmiere Beige color. I immediately left my car and walked over to the new Camry's. I was in shock and awe.

The sales people at Fitzgerald are so nice and they didnt mind when I hoped in the silver Camry to see and feel all its glory. The interior was beautiful (albeit the wood was ugly in color as most seem to agree). The car is really roomy and basically its a Lexus now. I really wouldn't be able to tell the difference if I didn't know better.
I asked could I take it on a test drive and they were more than happy to accomodate my wishes. If you live in the Maryland/Washington,DC area I would highly recommend Fitzgerald Auto Mall. They are a thousand times better than the typical Toyota dealerships.


Here are some observations about the car:

• The halogen projector headlights seems a bit more yellowish than I would tolerate so if you buy this car you might wanna swap em out for some SilverStars or whatever is compatiable
• The auto-headlight feature is nice but sensative. As I drove under several overpasses the lights sensed the darkness almost immediate and turned on the full nighttime lights but I didnt mind. The dash and speedometer lights stay illuminate constantly and its a beautiful purplish-white color and the lights get even brighter when you turn on the low-beams
• The taillights are beautiful. In addition to the red-colored glass on the brake lights there is a 2nd clear plastic covering on top of that that you can't really see on any of the online photos. This covering is what makes the headlights look "bubbly" and it looks really nice.
• The speedometer panel and info display is NICE! I can't describe what it looks like so you'll have to see it for yourself
• This is really cool...when I turned the car on the center display came on and scrolling text came across the screen that said "WELCOME TO CAMRY"
• Both rear seats have a manual reclining feature
• As everyone pretty much expected, when we pulled back the trunk mat we found a crappy ass temp spare/donut...everyone was in an uproar about that
• Neither cars had the navigation system but the standard system is wonderful enough and it did indeed has a botton marked "Satellite"
• The interior is nicely laid out and very comfortable. The car really is the same size as the Gen 5 in outward dimension. The car looks very classy on the outside and commands respect and says "luxury"
• The light-colored wood trim is kinda nasty in the grey interior silver Camry but inside the beige Camry it flowed together sort of well
• I was dead set on getting a V6 but after test driving that Camry XLE I4 on the highway, when I hit that gas we were gone!
• The ride was smooth (of course), very quiet, and the handling seemed tighter than my Gen 5
• The car I test drove was going from a little more than $24,000

**I apologize for the pics because they really don't show what everyone hasn't already seem but I thought I'd post em anyway. There were no LE's so I couldn't get pics of that interior. Hope you find this little bit of info informative**

[tearin]

Nice pictures and I like the beige XLE next to the one you test drove probably the color that would suit my mom lol!

Oh yeah I forgot to ask and to lazy to press edit, anyways since it was a four cylinder did it have the fraichir cloth (because if it did how did it feel)or did it have the leather option?


Mod edit: ^

[02whiteLE]

Still not liking the exterior too much, but that interior is

[LunarMist]

Originally Posted by tearin

Nice pictures and I like the beige XLE next to the one you test drove probably the color that would suit my mom lol!

Oh yeah I forgot to ask and to lazy to press edit, anyways since it was a four cylinder did it have the fraichir cloth (because if it did how did it feel)or did it have the leather option?


Mod edit: ^

Both of the Camry's had the leather option but the dealer did tell me that leather is optional on ALL 4-cylinders but STANDARD on ALL V6's

[RAV4EVR]

What is the story behind the Manual Transmission??

Which model gets it? I have seen different reports everywhere.

Thanks for the nice pics.

[LunarMist]

Originally Posted by RAV4EVR

What is the story behind the Manual Transmission??

Which model gets it? I have seen different reports everywhere.

Thanks for the nice pics.

You are quite welcome. I have NO idea about manual transmission but than new 6-speed auto was pretty nice. The shift lever is a bit tricky at first but you get used to the zig-zag design.

[Mike Gerber]

Thanks for the pictures. I agree the woodgrain looks funky with the gray interior.

By the way, I think you meant shift lever.

Mike

[BlueFusion6851]

Originally Posted by RAV4EVR

What is the story behind the Manual Transmission??

Which model gets it?

SE 4cyl gets a 5-speed manual.

[RAV4EVR]

Originally Posted by BlueFusion6851

SE 4cyl gets a 5-speed manual.

I hope SE doesn't come with too many wind deflectors/spoilers all around UNDER like the S and XRS Corolla. I am not a great fan of those.....
Thanks.

[BlueFusion6851]

Anytime
The new SE has bigger roll-bars, lowered suspension and diffusers underneath...
Just the way you like it.

[V6LE_CAMRY]

Is it a hybrid? or automatic?

[Phatfantom68]

You lucky bastard. Maybe I should hit up a few of the Toyota dealerships around here and see when they're gonna get some V6's to test drive. The only thing that sucks is the nearest Toyota dealer that has half-decent customer service is over 20 miles away.

[LunarMist]

The accessories on the new Camry is amazing! 18" rims are going to be available this summer and you can get body side moldings added to your car!!! And you have an option of Sirius or XM satellite radio. And a remote-start keyless entry option is available. Go to www.toyota.com to see the updated website and go to the accessories link.

[camrycoupe95]

Cool pics. Still haven't seen one in person yet. Looks nice though.

[Ruffrydasean]

I'm goin to Toyota of Bowie to test drive the SE V6 Sat. I'll let ya know whats up then.