It’s one thing for a car maker to withdraw a model if it’s not cutting the mustard, but it’s unheard of for sales to be paused because it is selling too many vehicles.
Yet that’s the fate of the iconic, long-serving Camry, one of the market's best-known offerings.
Toyota has announced that sales of the family five-seater will be “paused indefinitely” - quite possibly until an all-new Camry model takes its place later in 2024.
There have been times when some critics would have jumped at the chance to shelve the Camry, often a target of derision because of its rather boring persona. "Whitegoods on wheels," they have sometimes been called.
But the Camry has persisted to the point it might have the last laugh.
The Camry is marking its 43rd year (yes, 43), and is soon to roll out its eighth generation. That’s some kind of loyalty - even if many owners use the car as a taxi, for ride-share, or work for state government.
It’s not clear whether the move to freeze hybrid models is because of the demand for hybrid engines (and Toyota’s are good ones) for vital models like the Kluger and market-leading RAV4.
What’s more, they’re reportedly sitting on a list of back orders for the next two years - meaning those who have ordered a superseded Camry may be offered the flash-looking eighth-generation model instead.
Why? Because Toyota has already announced that the new model will have only one engine choice. That's right - a hybrid.
The long-standing six-cylinder format vanishes from the next model as does the normally-aspirated 2.5-litre four, leaving the Hybrid as the only Camry on the market.
The hybrid drivetrain has been part of the Toyota arsenal for more than two decades, originally in the green-tinged Prius and, more recently, powering a version of almost every model - from the baby Yaris and Yaris Cross, right up to the Kluger Hybrid.
That means only the thundering Land Cruiser 300 and the sporty GT86 don’t offer a hybrid option.
The Camry Hybrid has become something of a fallback position for new-car buyers who aren’t quite ready to take the electric vehicle plunge. The model tested here is the Hybrid Ascent (base model) with the full “taxi-pack” - cloth seats and a peeled-back list of tech features.
With its frugal fuel consumption and minimal emissions, it’s become the Claytons Camry - the EV for cautious buyers.
Despite its dull, conservative reputation earned across five decades, the truth remains that this is a very easy machine to live with. Its ride and handling are decent, and while technology is a little light on in this base model, its hybrid engine is more engaging than expected.
Buyers can rely on a couple of decades or more of reliable, safe and fuss-free driving. And that can’t be a bad way to spend money.
Shake off any snobbery for a minute and it quickly becomes clear why so many buyers choose this machine.
It is the very essence of comfortable and efficient motoring.
Despite that most recent swoopy design of the outgoing version, the Camry is spacious, quiet and completely without vice. The boot is massive, the back seat equally capacious and the cockpit delivers thoughtful, uncomplicated transport.
The 2.5-litre four-cylinder is, for the time being, available with conventional internal combustion, or the peppier, even more economical hybrid which adds a few kilowatts of takeoff and overtaking punch. Including some highway driving, this test of almost 500km returned an average consumption of 4.4L/100km.
There was a further 547km of available driving range on the trip computer. That’s a pretty smart set of numbers.
At $33,490 the Hybrid as tested adds $2500 to the cost of the basic 2.5-litre petrol automatic version, with prices running as high as $46,990 for the flagship SL Hybrid.
There’s one optional extra, a satellite navigation system costing $1000, and that's only in the Ascent.
No doubt the upcoming new model will add to that options list.
TOYOTA CAMRY ASCENT HYBRID
* HOW BIG? The Camry gives plenty of space front and back with a huge boot.
* HOW FAST? The hybrid electric boost kicks in to give surprisingly quick acceleration for a car not designed that way.
* HOW THIRSTY? Officially the Camry Hybrid sips a modest 5L/100km. This test did slightly better across 500km - averaging 4.4L/100km.
* HOW MUCH? Another welcome piece of information: a new Camry is available for $30,990.
