2011 Toyota Camry Hybrid

With the coming of electric cars, hybrids have become commonplace, and they no longer garner double takes and questions from strangers. While the novelty might be gone, I was still impressed by the 2011 Toyota Camry Hybrid and how well it handled hauling my family of four. This car had me smiling as I passed one gas station after another.

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I'm always amazed by just how quiet hybrids are when driving in battery-only mode, and the Camry Hybrid didn't disappoint. In this car, it wasn't just the hybrid engine that was silent. With my two kids in the backseat, the cabin was quiet because they had plenty of room to chill out. There were no complaints from the kids. Silence is golden.

The Camry Hybrid doesn't scream hybrid. My test car was sleek looking with Magnetic Gray paint and small, inconspicuous badges that designated it as a hybrid. This hybrid is a sleeper, if you will.

I don't mean "sleeper" in the typical automotive jargon, meaning cars that are specially tuned and super fast but don't look like it. The Camry Hybrid wasn't quite like that. I enjoyed driving the Camry Hybrid because its four-cylinder gas engine had a good amount of power when I wanted it, and it can run only on battery power at low speeds. Its handling at any speed was responsive and ready for anything.

The 2011 Camry Hybrid starts at $26,400. The Camry Hybrid I tested cost $32,453 because it had the Leather Package, a navigation system and several other options that bumped up the price.

EXTERIOR

I know I said the Camry Hybrid's a sleeper, but that doesn't mean it's sleepy looking. It's a good-looking car with a touch of sportiness. While it has the Camry's looks, the hybrid does have a unique grille. It's a little more streamlined than the regular Camry grille and it's a nice distinction.

The Camry Hybrid sports cool taillights that jut out from the car's body. They add a little drama to the rear end, which makes me happy because so often a car's back end gets left in the design-process dust.

As for family friendliness, the hybrid is great. The kids got in and out of the car without any problems because the step-in height was manageable and the doors weren't too heavy. Even younger kids could open and close the doors with relative ease. I also liked that I could open the trunk with a key instead of a key fob or a button inside the trunk.

The Camry Hybrid has a 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine that's coupled with an electric motor making a combined 187 horsepower. The Camry Hybrid gets an EPA-estimated 31/35 mpg city/highway. That's not nearly as impressive as the Camry Hybrid's sibling, the Toyota Prius, which gets 51/48 mpg, but certainly an improvement over the gas-powered Camry's 22/33 mpg.

SENSE AND STYLE

Family Friendly (Not Really, Fair, Great, Excellent): Great

Fun-Factor (None, Some, Good Times, Groove-On): Some-Good Times

INTERIOR

One of the things I like about hybrids is that most of them have gone through a rigorous process of trimming the fat. Most have all the things you want and nothing you don't. I like this idea because so many vehicles tend to have features that require a year of ownership just to customize and get used to. When I sat down in the Camry Hybrid I appreciated that I didn't have to mess with too much to get on the road.