Toyota Camry Hybrid CKD roll-out from ASSB, Shah Alam

UMW Toyota Motor will be launching the 2015 model year version of the Toyota Camry on 2 April, it was confirmed today during a roll-out ceremony organized specially for the new model’s range-topping Hybrid variant; which is incidentally the first hybrid-powered model offered in Malaysia’s D-segment, let alone one that is locally-assembled.

Pricing and specifications were not disclosed at the event, but we do know that the present three-variant hierarchy will be maintained, with the Hybrid model stepping in to replace the 2.5V model. Beneath it, the 2.0-litre model continues to be offered in E and G trim levels, but reportedly powered by a new engine with an enhanced variable valve timing system (VVT-iW) mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission.

The Hybrid model, meanwhile, shares a common engine and drivetrain with the Lexus ES 300h. Built on the same 2AR block that underpinned its 2.5V predecessor, the 2,494cc hybrid engine generates net outputs of 205hp, putting it near the pointed end of the segment’s performance spectrum. This is the first ever hybrid model to be built at the Assembled Services Sdn Bhd (ASSB) plant, and it is a project that required an investment of RM180 million spread over the last five years to realize.

Having seen the Honda Accord surpass it as the D-segment’s leading choice, UMW Toyota is betting big on the Camry and the new Hybrid variant in particular to wrestle back its segment crown. Out of 900 units of the Camry in entirety which the company targets to sell per month, more than 700 are expected to be the Hybrid model. Such a forecast suggest that the Camry Hybrid could well be a very competitively-priced model, even relative to its own 2.0-litre sibling.

Stay tuned for more.