2025 Toyota Camry gets new style, standard hybrid power

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- For the ninth time in 40 years, Toyota is rolling out an all-new Camry, an icon of the brand.

Though years ago, new versions landed into a market that was still dominated by 4-door sedans. Some brands have jumped out of that segment completely in recent years, but not Toyota.

"It still has a surprisingly strong market, at a time when conventional wisdom basically says everybody's going to SUVs," said industry watcher Paul Eisenstein, editor-in-chief of the web site Headlight.news.

If there's one thing Toyota knows, it's the company's loyal repeat buyers. Especially loyal repeat Camry buyers - close to 300,000 people bought them last year.

"They really like the size of a mid-size sedan, and they like the comfort that it brings," said Mark DeJongh, Toyota's chief engineer in charge of the Camry.

What does the new Camry offer?

The new Camry offers more power, and now the option of all-wheel drive. Prices start at just under $30,000.

Of course, the designers and engineers have to walk a fine line and bring new style and other improvements, including the latest technology. But there's been some pushback in the market about too much technology, literally right in the driver's face. With the 2025 Camry, the interior doesn't overwhelm in that regard.

"We still have a lot of hard buttons, and we really tried to lay it out where everything is where you'd expect it to be," said DeJongh.

Anyone who's owned a Camry, whether the most recent prior generation or one from an earlier time, should feel right at home in the driver's seat.

When the 2007 Camry came out, the big news that time around was that for the first time, there was going to be a hybrid version of the car, and there's been a hybrid version of every Camry generation since, but no more. For 2025, there's no more 'hybrid version,' because all Camrys now get standard hybrid power.

Toyota is truly doubling down on offering hybrids across the board.

Increasingly, as the only choice.

When the Sienna minivan was redesigned a few years ago, it went hybrid-only. Hybrid power is not the mysterious unknown it once was.

"Today, they're mainstream, and you know, you just put gas in it and drive it like a normal car, and you still get this great fuel economy," said DeJongh.

To the tune of up to 51 mpg combined, with no plugging in required.

The Camry still aims to please people who still want a sedan, and of course, people who still specifically want a Camry.