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Toyota Camry Atara SX 2012 review: snapshot

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Changes have been made under the skin with sports suspension and other local input to make Atara SX a satisfying drive.
Changes have been made under the skin with sports suspension and other local input to make Atara SX a satisfying drive.
Peter Barnwell
https://www.carsguide.com.au/authors/peter-barnwell
7 Aug 2012
2 min read

Camry Sportivo was a popular choice in the previous lineup. It had a bit of sporty sass about it (for a Camry) and the mandatory boot spoiler, alloys and mild body kit. The Sportivo name itself has a certain ring to it. That's why we find it perplexing that the name has been summarily dropped, replaced by the  Atara SX nameplate.

VALUE

But it's the new Sportivo complete with alloys, boot lid spoiler and mild body kit. It's the penultimate Camry in the new lineup selling for $35,990 which is sharp pricing when you look at what you get. Paddle shift for one, a full size spare, fixed price servicing at $130 a pop, reverse camera and plenty more. Atara SX has sports seats to go with its sports flavour and partial leather upholstery along with a sports multi-function steering wheel, even the pedals have been given the treatment.

Then there's that new dash — looks like it came from a car costing twice as much — looks like a Lexus dash in this case with a large 6.1-inch touch screen controller and a host of electronic and multi-media connections and systems.

DRIVING

Changes have been made under the skin with sports suspension and other local input to make Atara SX a satisfying drive. It doesn't feel like Camrys of old, that's for sure. Even the 135kW/231Nm four cylinder petrol engine feels lively while drinking a scant 7.1-litres of regular unleaded per 100km. On the road it offers up sharper responses than other models in the range and it even feels like the six speed auto has been recalibrated to sporty.

All Camrys are “Australianised" in terms of dust sealing, noise and vibration reduction, suspension setting, steering, brakes and other stuff. And Toyota does an excellent job of it — so good we wonder why our spec' cars aren't the standard international specification. But the yanks still like them mushy. Pity.

We appreciated the ECO warning light in the dash that lets you know when you are driving most economically. It's all you really need rather than systems that deaden the car's response. That's going too far.

VERDICT

Five star crash safety, bluetooth, electric power steering and it's Aussie made — gotta like that.

Read the full 2012 Toyota Camry review

Toyota Camry 2012: Atara SX

Engine Type Inline 4, 2.5L
Fuel Type Unleaded Petrol
Fuel Efficiency 7.8L/100km (combined)
Seating 5
Price From $12,210 - $16,280
Safety Rating

Pricing Guides

$14,010
Based on 123 cars listed for sale in the last 6 months.
LOWEST PRICE
$6,900
HIGHEST PRICE
$23,488
Peter Barnwell
https://www.carsguide.com.au/authors/peter-barnwell
Peter Barnwell is a former CarsGuide contributor and News Corp Australia Editor. During his decades of experience as an automotive expert, he has specialised in writing about performance vehicles.
About Author
Disclaimer: The pricing information shown in the editorial content (Review Prices) is to be used as a guide only and is based on information provided to Carsguide Autotrader Media Solutions Pty Ltd (Carsguide) both by third party sources and the car manufacturer at the time of publication. The Review Prices were correct at the time of publication. Carsguide does not warrant or represent that the information is accurate, reliable, complete, current or suitable for any particular purpose. You should not use or rely upon this information without conducting an independent assessment and valuation of the vehicle.
Pricing Guide
$6,900
Lowest price, based on third party pricing data.
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2012 Toyota Camry
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