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The stylish Camry is one of the most renowned car in the Indian market today. It has gone through major changes and facelifts in the overall design and structure as well. When the Camry was redesigned, it was different, yes, but still conservative some would even say bland, boring. This didn’t stop the Camry from being the best-selling car in the country for the intervening years. But there’s tough competition in the field, and it’s now clear that bold styling sells. Bland may now be riskier than taking a chance on a strong design statement. Finally, Toyota has heard the call.

The Camry redesign isn’t a complete, bumper-to-bumper reengineering job, but it’s substantial. The wheelbase has gained about 2 inches, though Toyota says the turning diameter is now 36.1 feet, a decrease from 36.7 feet in V-6 models but an increase from the earlier four-cylinder’s 34.8 feet. The car’s nose is blunter and sportier, and it trades the 2006 model’s organic shapes for more sculpted, angular forms. The tail recalls the Avalon full-size sedan, and the fenders have shoulders that give the trunk lid a hump, a style introduced on recent BMWs but stolen and executed better by other manufacturers, including Lexus on the GS 300/430 sedan.

Suspension changes abound in the 2007 model, especially in the SE, which in the past has ridden firmer than the other trims but has not been much of a performer. On the street and even on a racetrack, I found the SE to be much more poised than the previous version, with better body roll control. The car handles with more grace when pushed to the limits, but I can’t attribute all of this to the suspension.

Behind the change are firmer springs, shock absorbers, stabilizer bars and bushings. To my calibrated buttocks, the SE still rides more comfortably than the Honda Accord. Toyota says the other Camry trim levels also boast revised suspension tuning, but they’re still more compliant than that of the SE.
As Compared to the 2007, the 2008 model’s base, four-cylinder engine is the same size at 2.4 liters. Toyota says it is significantly improved, though it’s not evident in terms of the output specifications. A five-speed-manual transmission is standard and a five-speed automatic is optional. The optional 3.5-liter V-6, already in service in the Avalon, is an upsized version of the 2007 Camry’s 3.3-liter. Paired with a new six-speed-automatic transmission, it’s claimed to provide a 40 percent increase in acceleration over the 2007 Camry V6. The news here is that the Camry V6 is now more powerful and quicker without hurting the gas mileage. The car accelerates with authority and with the smoothness of the previous V-6. I drove only V-6 and hybrid versions.