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Question: Does the 1st Gen Camry Hybrid really only get 34MPG?

Discussion in 'Toyota Hybrids and EVs' started by masterjorn, Jun 15, 2020.

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  1. masterjorn

    masterjorn New Member

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    I was looking at the Camry hybrid (1st gen cause it’s cheap) and I was shocked that it only got 34MPG? The 2nd gen Prius which I could get for a similar price gets much better MPG (which is to be expected). But I was wondering if it could get more than that? That seems waaaaay to low for a Toyota hybrid, even if it’s from 2009. I really like the design of it, so if it does get better mpg, that would be neat. (Especially the crystal blue infotainment)

    Also, if there’s any other information about the Camry hybrid, that would be appreciated. (Seeing “Camry hybrid recall” while putting the tags worries me)
     
    #1 masterjorn, Jun 15, 2020
  2. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Were you getting the 34 mpg average from Fuelly? The peak of the curve is indeed 34, but a lot of spread, 35~36 doesn't seem much of a stretch:

    2009 Toyota Camry MPG - Actual MPG from 64 2009 Toyota Camry owners

    A little weird: there's a 2.4L and an L4 filter, both hybrids. Not sure if they're the same car? Or were there two displacements?? (I doubt it.) The latter filter (L4) has fewer cars, but higher numbers.

    It's a heavier car, larger engine, lots of reasons.
     
    #2 Mendel Leisk, Jun 15, 2020
    Last edited: Jun 15, 2020
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  3. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

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    Why is it surprising? The Prius was built from the ground up to be a hybrid and be fuel efficient. The Camry it was shoe-horned in last minute with compromise everywhere. 34mpg is still really good. Also if you haven't been inside them both yet, you should. The Camry is a basic vehicle. The Gen-2 Prius is super techy and has a better screen and interface than some new 2020 cars today even.
     
    #3 2k1Toaster, Jun 15, 2020
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  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    we've had gen 1 and 2. the hybrid mpg's are a big improvement over the non hybrid, but maybe not worth the cost difference if coo is your only concern.
    for us, the larger, smoother, more comfortable ride is worth it over prius on long trips.

    we get between 35 and 45 mpg in the gen 2, and got 32 - 40 in gen 1, iirc.
     
    #4 bisco, Jun 15, 2020
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  5. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    Fuelly has errors in the engine selections. Before the site gets the official engine list from wherever they get it, users could have added their own, so you end up with two entries for the same engine.
     
    #5 Trollbait, Jun 16, 2020
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  6. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    Why is that a shock? Are you forgetting the normal MPGs of that era, and now judging it by the greatly increased 2020 MPG standards?

    upload_2020-6-16_10-6-55.png
     
    #6 fuzzy1, Jun 16, 2020
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  7. masterjorn

    masterjorn New Member

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    I got the number from the EPA. I haven’t driven cars yet, I’m just narrowing down my options. But yea, I do know the reasons, just wanted to know if it was higher than the estimate.

    Yea, pretty much honestly ;). I know it’s unfair to the poor Camry, but I’ve been jaded by 50+ MPG of today, and thus put those expectations on other cars, which makes the Prius all the more impressive. Though the Camry looked more comfortable, so I put it in the running.

    yea, I knew that part, it’s definitely not the most efficient design compared to the Prius. But I was kind of expecting more, even if it was slapped together. Perhaps I just saw that Toyota made the Prius and stayed “well, everything must be as efficient as the Prius”, a lack of judgement on my part.
     
    #7 masterjorn, Jun 16, 2020
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 16, 2020
  8. masterjorn

    masterjorn New Member

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    Sorry for the slow response! I didn’t get any email notifications for any reply’s on the thread, I thought it was a dead thread! I just checked and found out that there were 4 reply’s from over a day ago.

    Sorry again about that :(
     
    #8 masterjorn, Jun 16, 2020
  9. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    It is sometimes hard to remember that in Model Year 2009, nothing had a 50 mpg rating. Not even Prius.
     
    #9 fuzzy1, Jun 16, 2020
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  10. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Yeah. The Camry went from 34 to 40 to 46/50 (depending on trim level) so the improvements have been quite substantial.

    The first gen Camry got mpg similar to what a Corolla of that era got on the highway so that’s pretty impressive.


    The thing is, whatever Toyota did with the electric motors, inverter and other hybrid electronics is doing wonders for mpg for any current generation hybrid. The 4th Gen Prius, 3rd Gen Camry Hybrid and 2nd gen RAV4 Hybrid can easily match their EPA mpg and can beat those numbers without much effort.

    So I think any current gen Camry or RAV can get 50mpg in the summer. And the Prius, 55mpg (we got 52mpg on the highway down to Seattle back in 2016 and that’s on 17” alloys on the Touring trim). On my Prime with 15” alloys, 60+ is no problem.
     
    #10 Tideland Prius, Jun 16, 2020
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  11. masterjorn

    masterjorn New Member

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    Yea, I’m thinking on just getting a gen 3 Prius. Considering it’s the same price overall, and has much better mpg. The second gen Camry hybrid is a tad to much, a couple more thousand than the gen 3.
     
    #11 masterjorn, Jun 17, 2020
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  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    read up on the egr/head gasket issues before purchasing gen3 prius
     
    #12 bisco, Jun 17, 2020
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  13. CamryDriver

    CamryDriver Active Member

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    Batteries are expensive and fuel is cheap.

    IMHO the possible problems with a hybrid that old outweigh any MPG gains, especially in the gen 1 Camry. Toyota increased both the MPG and horsepower for each generation. The current non-hybrid Camry now gets about the same mileage as the gen 1 hybrid.

    Unless you are sure the battery is good or you are handy and can rebuild a battery maybe look at a normal ICE vehicle.

    I've got a newer hybrid and I really like it but I don't know about those older ones...
     
    #13 CamryDriver, Jul 2, 2020
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