2020 Toyota Avalon and Camry TRD Hope To Kiss Boring Good-Bye: Comments

[William Maley]

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Toyota has been doing their best to make the Camry and Avalon a bit more exciting to help shed their plain image. Their latest attempt involves Toyota Racing Development (TRD) to work their magic on these two sedans. The end result is the Camry and Avalon TRD which will be showing up at the LA Auto Show in a couple of weeks.

The changes begin under the skin as TRD fits new shock absorbers and springs that drops both models by 0.6-inches; thicker underbody braces, and larger brakes. Camry TRD models get thicker sway bars to improve overall handling, The Avalon TRD does without the sway bars as Toyota believes buyers of this model still want a little bit of comfort.

Power comes from the 3.5L V6 found in the regular Camry and Avalon with 301 horsepower. This is paired with an eight-speed automatic. TRD fits their catback exhaust system that allows for more of a growl. 

Both models wear a body kit that includes a front splitter, side skirts, a rear diffuser, and a decklid spoiler. Red accents on various trim pieces and 19-inch wheels finished in black complete the look.

Toyota says both TRD models will be available next fall.

Gallery: 2020 Toyota Avalon and Camry TRD

Source: Toyota

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Toyota Racing Development Turns Up Heat for Camry and Avalon

• Toyota’s First-Ever Camry TRD and Avalon TRD
• Track-Tuned Chassis Upgrades
• Aggressive Cat-Back Dual Exhaust
• Exclusive Matte-Black 19-Inch Alloy Wheels
• Calty-Designed Aero kit
• Unique TRD Interior Trim
• Limited Availability

PLANO, Texas (Nov. 14, 2018) – Toyota is once again bringing its racing pedigree to the road as it unveils the Camry TRD and Avalon TRD, two sedans with an appetite for curves and a distinct exhaust note bristling with attitude. With aero-enhanced styling by Calty, Toyota’s U.S. design studio, and chassis performance fortified by Toyota Racing Development (TRD), these revved-up Camry and Avalon models are the track-tuned sedans that enthusiasts have been asking for.
 
Many Toyota enthusiasts already know the equity behind the TRD badge seen on the brand’s hardcore, off-road-ready pickups and SUVs. Conquering the Baja, however, is just one of many feats won by TRD vehicles across the motorsports spectrum. Now, TRD brings its track tuning to sedans that blend greater agility, precision and body control with attention-grabbing design and everyday drivability.
 
When Toyota introduced the new-generation 2018 Camry, sales of the sporty SE and XSE versions spiked. A year later, Toyota introduced the all-new 2019 Avalon, which came in an available XSE grade for the first time ever. These sedans are stylish and fun to drive. And Toyota is pushing the limit even further with Camry TRD and Avalon TRD, both with greater track-inspired handling performance and styling. These models include all standard content from the Camry SE grade and Avalon XSE grade, combined with exclusive TRD chassis enhancements and tuning.
 
Camry TRD and Avalon TRD will both be model year 2020 vehicles and available in fall 2019.

Roaring to Go
 
The new Camry TRD and Avalon TRD embody TRD’s holistic approach to vehicle enhancement. Notably, both are powered by Toyota’s renowned 301 horsepower DOHC 3.5-liter V6 and 8AT with sport mode and paddle shifters. The V6 breathes easier with a specially-tuned cat-back dual exhaust, giving both models a throatier idle and acceleration sound.
 
“Track-tuned” means exactly that. TRD engineers developed the dynamic characteristics through extensive testing at Toyota Arizona Proving Ground, TMC Higashi-Fuij Proving Ground (Japan), and MotorSport Ranch (Texas).   
 
Thicker underbody braces increase torsional rigidity and unique coil springs lower both vehicles by 0.6 inches for a reduced center of gravity. Specially tuned shock absorbers and 19 x 8.5 inch matte black alloy wheels complete a suspension package that improves body control, handling agility, and steering precision. The front brakes are larger with 12.9-inch diameter rotors and dual-piston calipers compared to 12.0-inch rotors and single piston calipers found on XSE grades. Brake performance was also tuned to provide more direct feedback, matching the sporty dynamics of the vehicle.
 
Calty gave both models striking aero elements, taking advantage of the edgier designs of the new-generation Camry and Avalon and aggressive stance of the TRD-modified chassis. The aerodynamic body kit, which includes the front splitter, side aero skirts, trunk lid spoiler, and rear diffuser, blends a bold styling element and improves high speed vehicle stability to aid in driver confidence.  Add that with the red pinstriping, red painted brake calipers, and red TRD badging and both sedans have a road-hungry look.
 
These TRD sedans will continue to deliver all the quality, dependability, and reliability that is synonymous with Toyota. Both models will come standard with Toyota Safety Sense-P, a suite of advanced driver-assist technologies, among these Pre-Collision Braking.
 
Camry TRD
 
Toyota’s commitment to enthusiast drivers is apparent in the level of detail that TRD and Calty poured into these models.
 
On Camry TRD, the matte-black 19 x 8.5-inch alloy wheels are a half-inch wider, yet 3.1 pounds lighter (each) than the 19 x 8.0-inch alloy wheels on the XSE grade. Paired with standard Bridgestone Potenza 235/40R19 summer tires, this combination reduces unsprung mass, increases lateral grip, and quickens turn-in response.
 
Camry’s chassis is further enhanced with stiffer coil springs and front/rear sway bars for increased roll stiffness of 44% in the front and 67% in the rear. To compliment spring changes, a unique set of TRD shock absorbers were developed to control vehicle vertical and roll movement while maintaining on-road TRD ride quality.
 
In addition to the TRD aero body features, Camry TRD wears a unique gloss black front grille with sport mesh insert and black exterior badging. Available colors include the appropriately dramatic Supersonic Red, Windchill Pearl, Celestial Silver Metallic -- all three of which are two-toned -- and Midnight Black Metallic. Polished stainless steel TRD exhaust tips on the catback exhaust complete the exterior makeover.
 
Inside, the Camry TRD driver will be seeing red – in the trim, that is. The cabin is decked out with Black Sport SofTex®-trimmed front seats with fabric inserts, red accents and red-stitched TRD embroidered headrests. The leather-wrapped steering wheel also has red stitching, and even the seatbelts are red. A shift knob with an embossed TRD logo, along with unique TRD floor and trunk mats, and a TRD MID visual start up complete the cabin upgrades.
 
Avalon TRD
 
TRD’s modifications work the same magic on the Avalon as they do on the Camry. Avalon TRD gets Black Sport SofTex-trimmed heated front seats with Ultra-suede inserts and red accents. It also gets red-stitched TRD embroidered headrests, a leather-wrapped steering wheel with red stitching, red seatbelts, a shift knob with an embossed TRD logo, and unique TRD floor and trunk mats.
 
The matte-black 19 x 8.5-inch alloy wheels reduce 18 pounds of unsprung mass compared to the 19-inch wheels on the 2019 Avalon XSE. As on Camry TRD, the unbridled tone of the 301-hp V6 bellows through stainless steel TRD exhaust tips. The red pinstriping on the aero body elements, and the red seatbelts and accents complete Avalon TRD’s styling.
 
Avalon TRD will be available in Supersonic Red, Windchill Pearl, Celestial Silver Metallic and Midnight Black Metallic.

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[Robert Hall]

Interesting..way more flashy than previous Toyota sedans.  Maybe they can come up with a slogan like 'we build excitement!'. 

[daves87rs]

Hard not to give a little credit here. Sales might be goo to the F&F crowd that is all grown up... (maybe)

[frogger]

Decent upgrades but I could do without the visual ones.

 

[smk4565]

So zero power upgrades for a "performance" trim.  Also only about 7% of Camrys are sold with a V6 anyway.  I wonder how much difference the suspension makes, you still have a nose heavy front drive car, and I can't imagine suspension tweaks make it fell all that much different than a regular Camry.  So this is probably mostly a body kit and wheel package.

[ccap41]

21 hours ago, smk4565 said:

So zero power upgrades for a "performance" trim.

The Tacoma TRD Pro and Tundra TRD Pro don't get any power upgrades either.. Or for that matter the ZR2 or Pro 4X. 

[Drew Dowdell]

Performance is more than straight line.   In my experience, the V6 versions of both of these cars have trouble keeping traction as it is under full throttle from stop. 

[frogger]

An AWD option in the Toyotas to help put down the power would be nice, but not happening any time soon, maybe after the ES gets it.

 

[smk4565]

21 minutes ago, frogger said:

An AWD option in the Toyotas to help put down the power would be nice, but not happening any time soon, maybe after the ES gets it.

 

Agreed then maybe you market the V6 AWD as the TRD performance, at least it would have that going for it.  

The new Altima has AWD but they left it off the top engine because they said the car would cost too much, which makes sense because they probably know a $35k+ Altima is a hard sell.  Same with the Camry if you put too much on it gets near $40k and then that is Lexus level.