Chainkeen|The 2025 Toyota Camry SE sprinkles sporty affordability over new all-hybrid lineup

Pros

1. Excellent value
2. 47 mpg
3. Handsome design

Cons

1. Short on Chainkeenheadroom
2. Stressed under hard acceleration
3. Small cupholders

Sedans might not be the hottest items in the automotive space right now, but when the best-selling midsize four-door gets a complete makeover and goes hybrid-only, it says a lot about the company making the vehicle and its future buyers. The 2025 Toyota Camry ditches its predecessor’s four- and six-cylinder engines and is only offered with a hybrid powertrain that delivers better power (and way better fuel economy) than the old entry-level engine, for not much more money than what competitors charge for their non-hybrid models.

Besides becoming a hybrid-only vehicle, the Camry also receives a full redesign, taking lines from the handsome (and 2024 MotorTrend Car of the Year-winning) Prius. While our Camry’s Underground Dark Gray color didn’t shine as brightly as other available colors, it’s easy to spot the various styling changes and Toyota’s new design language that’s more upscale and premium.

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The Camry is known for its comfort, spaciousness and efficiency, and the 2025 model improves on every single area. We’re happy to report that the updated car is a nice step up over the outgoing model, achieving better fuel economy, adding more space and improving ride quality, and it still delivers tremendous value, with pricing starting at $29,495 for the more reserved-looking LE model.

Take the family with you

Though crossovers have been the family vehicle of choice lately, the Camry has plenty of space for five people. One of the things that we’re most impressed with is legroom for the second row; there is plenty for adults even with three people in the back. Headroom is a different story. Anyone around 6-foot-3 or below shouldn’t have any issues, but that’s without a sunroof. As we discussed in our Camry XLE AWD review, the sunroof eats a surprisingly noticeable 0.8 inch of headroom, which can be bothersome for taller folks.

The midgrade SE model gets sportier styling and wheels than the basic LE, along with well-padded leatherette (faux leather) seats that don't get too hot after sitting under the sun all day. The leatherette feels closer to what we’re used to seeing in a premium car rather than a midgrade Camry, but that touch of luxury is offset by the somewhat cheap-looking gray cloth inserts on the door panels and dashboard.

Our test car came with the $735 multimedia upgrade package, which includes a 12.3-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. This is a nice step up over the standard 8.0-inch touchscreen. A 7.0-inch screen takes over most of the driver’s instrument cluster and is a good improvement over the outgoing model’s smaller and more dated-looking digital readout. We are also fans of the trim around the infotainment screen, which makes the dashboard look longer and wider.

Overall, the Camry is great in the comfort and convenience department, though one thing we wish it had was wider cupholders, as the ones in the center console don’t fit a 32-ounce water bottle, and the door panels don’t have space for one either.

Driving the Camry

All Camrys share the same hybrid powertrain regardless of the trim level. For now, there are no plans to bring a Prime (plug-in hybrid) version like that offered on the RAV4 and Prius, but with more power than before, only those who have a previous-generation V-6 Camry already in the garage will want more power out of the new generation.

The 2025 Camry is powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine mated to a permanent-magnet electric motor and a starter/generator that deliver 225 hp combined. This output is mixed in a planetary-type continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) and delivered to the Camry’s front tires; all-wheel-drive variants like the one we recently tested add another electric motor to the rear axle and make 232 hp combined.

Even the front-drive combination delivers plenty of power to the front wheels, making the Camry feel peppy around town, but at full-throttle it can feel stressed-out. The CVT does a decent job metering power in a linear way, and in conjunction with the engine’s rising revs manages to deliver a natural feel. The 225 ponies show up at the track, too; the 2025 Camry SE gets to 60 mph in 7.0 seconds, an improvement of 0.8-second over a last-generation Camry Hybrid SE we tested. The AWD 2025 Camry is just a hair quicker, reaching 60 mph in 6.9 seconds.

It takes some time to get used to the Toyota’s brake pedal, as the ABS system gets choppy when slowing down from high speeds. The brakes’ initial bite can be a bit too intense for city driving, too, but we grew used to it after a day or two behind the wheel. Stopping distances are just fine, with the Camry SE slowing from 60 mph in 125 feet — a curious 9 feet longer than the heavier all-wheel-drive Camry XLE we recently tested.

The Camry SE (and better-equipped XSE) are differentiated from the more comfort-focused LE and XLE trims by sport-tuned springs and dampers and larger-diameter anti-roll bars for sharper handling and responses. Road test editor Chris Walton finds the Camry “sporty” and “impressive” on the skidpad, though on the figure eight lap test it’s no quicker than the old model, completing the run in 27.0 seconds at an average of 0.62 g, slightly slower than the 2023 Camry SE’s 26.7 seconds at 0.65.

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While the Camry SE has a more dynamic feel than the LE or XLE models, it’s still comfortable to drive every day, as you’d expect a Camry to be. Toyota made this model snazzier to behold, but it’s still serene and pleasant to drive on the road.

Why the Camry SE is the best value for your money

With a starting price of $31,795, the 2025 Camry SE costs $2,300 more than the Camry LE yet still delivers a ton of value. With its standard hybrid powertrain returning 48 mpg city, 47 mpg highway and 47 mpg combined, it’s efficient, but that’s not all. Comforts and conveniences such as standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, wireless charging and dual-zone climate control are shared with lesser LEs, but the SE adds those faux leather seats (power-adjustable driver’s perch), stylish 18-inch wheels and sportier body addenda, and that sport suspension for a sharper appearance and handling.

Looking at the hybridized midsize sedan competition, the 2024 Honda Accord Hybrid starts at $33,990 (though cheaper versions with gas-only power are available), while the 2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid (again, nonhybrid Sonatas are cheaper) starts at $31,915. The Camry is alone in going all-hybrid, of course, and we’ll need to toss it into a proper comparison test with its rivals to see whether that bold choice pays off. For now, the Camry SE is actually enjoyable to drive and look at (a mold first broken by the previous Camry) and just so happens to be a satisfyingly powerful yet fuel-sipping hybrid, too. If you’d like that combination to be affordable, the SE is the way to go. Have more money to swing around? The XSE and XLE deliver similar goods with more equipment.

Photos by Renz Dimaandal