Camry hybrid?

[Cobb]

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[D.O.G.]

A friend at work drives a 2012 Camry Hybrid and isn't too pleased with the fuel economy she gets.
I used to get better figures than she did with my Mazda.
I stopped telling her after a while because she was getting upset.

She complained about the relatively poor fuel economy to the dealer and was told that the 2012 models weren't nearly as good as the 2013 in that regard. Not much help.

I showed her the (non-hybrid) Camry speed verses consumption chart that was posted here as a gentle hint that she may have been as much at fault as the car was.

[usmclowrider]

I don't have any personal experience, but my wife used to work at a Toyota dealer and said they always got complaints about the camry hybrid. I have a teacher that claims mid to high 30s with his and he isn't the gentlest of drivers. However, there was someone selling a 2007 over on cleanmpg that said he averaged mid 40s. So I guess it's all in the way you drive. I think high 30s out of a car that size is still darn good.

[payne171]

I think the Camry gets about what it should get: mid-30's mpg. The problem seems to be that people think the word hybrid equals 40+ mpg. It was the first successful "normal" car to get a hybrid drivetrain, as opposed to a purpose-built one. I guess the Ford/Mercury/Mazda SUVs preceded it, but the letters SUV lower expectations. Toyota has rested on its laurels a bit too much with the Camry. I like the Ford/Lincoln/Mercury mid sizes are a better option from a cost AND fuel economy standpoint. My opinion is a bit off, though, as I have an attachment to the first gen Accord.

[Cobb]

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[Thenorm]

Originally Posted by Cobb

I cant say Ive see a hybrid camry, but I have seen quite a few camrys from various years too.

you probably have seen them. they look like regular Camry except for the little "hybrid synergy drive" badge on the back.

I notice tons of them. But then again i live in a major city, so i see a lot of "exotic" cars.

[payne171]

I think Hybrid Synergy Drive is a fantastic system, but Toyota forgot to up the battery capacity along with the weight of the car they put it in. If they bumped the battery by almost 60% when they bumped the car weight by 60%, there would be no complaints. I think this is why the FoMoCo SUVs can get ~30mpg while the Highlander gets low 20s. Ford used a 330V battery while Toyota used a lower voltage and a boost converter. Cobb, you know better than most what a difference extra capacity makes. For all of the advantages of Toyota's system, they can be eliminated with a bigger battery. It's that simple.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Altough I'm not a Ford enthusiast, if I would ever be on the market for a midsize hybrid, I'd go with a Ford Fusion over a Camry.

[Cobb]

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[D.O.G.]

Originally Posted by D.O.G.

A friend at work drives a 2012 Camry Hybrid and isn't too pleased with the fuel economy she gets.

I caught up with my Camry driving friend today.
The car's lifetime fuel economy is down to 6.1 l/100km (about 38.6 MPG), not too bad for mostly (non-hypermiling) urban commuting.
Her 2012 model (with the old 2.4 litre engine) has a combined rating of 6.0 l/100km.


The 2013 Camry with the current model 2.5 litre engine has a much better combined rating of 5.2 l/100km (about 45 MPG).

To put that in perspective, the 2013 non-hybrid Camry with the 2.5 litre engine is rated at 7.8 l/100km combined (about 30 MPG).


Note: These are the Australian (usually optimistic) figures, but they're OK for comparing models.