The Eco Warrior

The all-new Toyota Camry Hybrid makes a great case for itself as a luxury car that’s also easy on the environment.

- Pablo Chaterji

THE NEW TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID is not… subtle. This is somewhat surprising, given that the Japanese automotive giant tends to stay on the ‘safe’ side of things when it comes to design, but there you go. Call it the influence of Lexus if you wish – modern Lexus’ have front ends that I wager can be spotted from space - but the fact is that the 2019 Camry Hybrid is a far more arresting sight on the road than its predecessor, principally because of its gigantic, ribbed front fender, which sits below a reasonably slim grille. Clearly the idea was to give the car ‘sporting’ and ‘aggressive’ intentions, to which end the exterior has prominent creases and edges, a sloping roof, an integrated boot spoiler, slick LED lights, 18-inch wheels and the like. Does it work? Yes, in the way that a little excess sometimes does.