Hey there Everybody!
New to the forum... found this site through priuschat.com. I am the proud owner of a new 2007 (3 weeks old) black Toyota Camry Hybrid. I love this car. In July 2006, I traded my trusty and beloved 1997 Mercedes-Benz E320 on a new Volvo S40. I loved my Benz... and, like an old friend, I was sorry to see him go. But with the car only getting 17 MPG on premium, and iminet repairs piling up like I-Phone buyers at a 10% off sale... it had to go. So I compromised and bought a brand spanking new 2006 Volvo S40. Thinking hey, A near luxury european sedan, sporty, better on gas... fun to drive, the S40 seemed like a logical choice. I figured I'd be happily motoring for at least 3-4 years. Well, 14 months and numerous repairs later (things like inoperative air bags, jamming seat belt, dead CD changer, courtesty lights dangling by the wires, windows binding, ect ect ect), I have now found bliss in my new 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid. My Volvo was pretty much loaded, minus leather (which I did not want anymore, too much to care for), yet even w/ a sticker of 29K... it was missing key items that my Benz had like an auto dim rearview mirror. When I found my black TCH (the last of three remaining 2007s on the lot) I was thrilled. Having done my research I knew the Camry Hybrid was quite well equipped (many of the standard items not even available in the Volvo) Not five minutes into looking at the car... the quality difference was more than apparent. Doors that do not have to be slammed to shut properly. REAL carpeting (the Volvo had felt, not cut pile), controls that operate smoothly and intuitively. Having owned an older Lexus ES300... I am familiar w/ Toyota quality and comfort, but wow... what a difference even a decade can make. The TCH, especailly compared to the Volvo... feels every bit like a luxury car. Controlled, serene ride. Excellent interior silence, a great JBL sound system (w/ MP3, sat, aux input). Puts the "premium sound" (part of a $1,950 premium package) in my S40 to shame. The TCH is, in my opinion, a lot of car for the money... and then is a technical and economical marvel to boot. So... hence the question: What did you trade in to buy your new Toyota Camry Hybrid? I bet we will be suprised, since the TCH (except for the Altima which is available in only a few states) is the largest and most opulent hybrid sedan for under 50K. I moved from a Volvo w/ pleasure.

 

2002 Bonneville SSEI

 

I came from my glorious and luxurious '94 Mercury Tracer!! Hehe. I wasn't quite ready to buy a new car, but the old one started stalling out every time I stopped or slowed down for a corner. Shop I was going to was pretty much clueless, suggested another day with their main diagnostics guy, speculated it was sensors, sounded long, painful, expensive. My girlfriend told me I should get the TCH, hehe. I started looking at Toyotas, tested a Corolla (way too small, I didn't fit!) tested a Camry, felt really comfortable... Had to put a deposit down to get a chance to drive a TCH (when it came in--had to call every dealer near the city to find one expecting a new TCH within a week or so). Tested it, loved it, drove off with it. That was June 06, and I still love it every bit as much! Mileage has improved as I've learned more (thanks to this site for some of that!).

And congrats on the new car! You'll love it! (and congrats on getting it before the tax credit expires! )

 

No trade-in. But we gave our 99 Ford Contour to our (adult) daughter who needed a second car.

Our TCH counts as both the most gas economical, luxurious and powerful car we've ever owned. (Also the most expensive!)
Even the 67 VW Beetle I owned couldn't get the gas mileage, however that beetle was $1700 new!

 

I traded in my 2004 BMW 525i - 100% better in NEARLY every way...

 

I traded in a 1997 Ford Ranger 2x4 XLT standard cab (blue/green) with 118k miles on it. I had purchased it used for a total cost of 11k in 2001.

I added my baby on March 30, 2007....Say hello to "Midnight"....

 

Traded in a 2005 Civic Si. The Civic was a bit of an overreaction to the excesses of my G35 coupe. The TCH, I hope, represents a nice compromise of economy and luxury. (Since I'm getting 10 MPG better than the Civic, it's not much of a compromise.)

Ryan

 

2003 Mercedes Benz C240.....the only thing I miss in the automatic rear window sunshade.

 

My first toyota was a '77 Corolla for my wife. It was a manual floor shift with there famous 1.8, 4-cyl hemi engine. I kept the car a long time but sold it to a individual and got a good price for it. Went to VW's, GM's then later we bought another Corolla in 2003. Great car and great mileage. Boy did they ever improve their 1.8 engine. I was getting 40 to 42 mpg combined from that car. The only problem was my wife and I being older bounced around on lone trips. The Corolla was lighter weight and sat higher off the ground could be the reason. I went looking for a heavier car.

I got smart and traded it on a 2006 Ford five hundred. Nice roomy car at a rather low price. It came loaded including leather seats with a 200 hp engine. I drove the car a year and was getting 30 mpg combined by easy peddling it around town. The car started having electrical gremlins. I had also taken it back to the ford dealer for various tsb's. I had ask them each of the four trips to please activate the DRLs. Finally the forth trip they did, after I gave them a copy from the internet on how to turn on the drivers running lights. That is usually a paid $40 option with this car. Ford did not charge me. I asked, but they never cleaned the corrosion from the battery's positive terminal in those same four trips.

A year later I figured I made a mistake and should have went with the early green TCH when they first came out. Back then there was none on the lots and you had to do the pre-order.

Made the trade and ordered the 2007 in late June. Evidently we ordered just before they started manufacturing the 2008 models. We received the car in five weeks. It felt so good to be back driving a car with toyota quality. You don't know this until you own a toyota.

I'm a gas mileage nut and have been from way back in the late 60's. At first I drove 50 and under best I could, learned out to drive under 40 to stay in the EV mode a few miles. My first tank came out to 48.3 which was mostly here around town and the 8 mile trip out on the highway where we live. I'm looking forward to going with synthetic oil on my first 5000 mile oil change.

Update: I went with the 0W-20 full synthetic from the local Toyota dealer. I bought the oil and filter from parts then changed it myself. I could have taken it somewhere else and just paid for the labor. Looks like after a few tanks I may not be driving as easy but still getting the same mpg. I would say about 1 mpg increase by switching to the 0W-20 oil.

My wife really likes this great looking car. It's easy for her to see out of and easy to drive. I feel that sticking with toyota can save a person lots of money over the years.

 

No trade-in, but I sold my 2002 Saturn SL2 in order to buy my TCH (in June 2007). The Saturn was a great car, make no mistake. I never had any problems with it that weren't covered by warranty. I had about 150,000 Km on it, and I'm sure it would've easily made it past 300,000. But, I wanted to move up to a more comfortable, more luxurious, bigger car. I was initially considering the non-hybrid Camry XLE. When I discovered, quite by accident that the Camry came in a Hybrid, with all the same features as the XLE, plus some, for $2000 cheaper, it was a no-brainer. I looked at all of what I considered reasonable alternatives including both the hybrid and non-hybrid versions of the Camry, the Honda Accord, and the Nissan Altima. I also seriously considered the BMW 323, but the TCH blew them all away. As I said - no-brainer.