Sayonara! Toyota Camry discontinued in Japan due to lagging sales

It’s time to say goodbye to the Toyota Camry, at least in Japan.

Our friends at WapCar Malaysia reported that the iconic sedan will no longer be sold in The Land of the Rising Sun after 43 years of production because of poor sales in recent years.

According to sales data from the Japan Automobile Dealers Association (JADA), the Camry was the 44th best-selling car in the country in 2021 with 10,620 units. It outsold the Honda Accord, which wasn’t even listed in the top 50.

But by 2022, even the Camry didn’t even make JADA’s top 50, which showed a declining interest in Toyota’s second global car after the Toyota Corolla. 

Though the Camry is due for a replacement, with the current XV70 having launched in 2017, the next generation might skip its home market entirely.

However, the Camry will remain on sale in other markets, including the Middle East, North America and China, where demand for the large sedan remains strong.

In the Philippines, the Camry lives on solely as a hybrid model, dropping the non-hybrid inline-4 and V6 engines of previous generations.

Born a Celica

The Camry was first introduced in Japan in 1979 as the Celica Camry, which was a twin to the Toyota Carina. 

The Japanese-specification Camry was also different from the rest of the world by having a narrow-bodied design to suit the country’s road tax regulations for five generations until 1998.

Later on, the global wide-body Camry would be sold in Japan from the XV20 generation onward. But it still sold far better overseas than domestically. 

The Camry is one of Toyota’s longest-running nameplates, together with the Corolla, Crown and Century. All started out as sedans, but have spawned crossover versions to suit market trends.

Sole competitor

The Toyota Camry is also the de facto sole entry in the non-luxury midsized sedan category in the Philippines.

With Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. discontinuing the Accord in 2022 and Mazda Philippines all but removing the Mazda 6 from its local lineup due to allocation shortages, only time will tell if the Camry will likewise end its storied presence in the country.

Do you think big sedans like the Toyota Camry have a place in the Philippine market amid a sea of crossovers and sport-utility vehicles?

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