2020 Toyota Camry TRD

Toyota’s TRD treatment for an unlikely candidate produces an unlikely outcome.

January 1, 2021

Bill Visnic

The 2020 Toyota Camry TRD doesn’t go overboard in displaying its performance differentiation. (Toyota)

There was more than a little scoffing when Toyota revealed there would be a TRD (Toyota Racing Development) variant of the Camry. Already strange enough that Toyota established TRD mostly as toughened-up trim for its trucks and SUVs, what’s the point of a performance-tilted version of the veritable symbol of family-car stolidity?

The cabin of the 2020 Camry TRD has minor differentiation such as red seat and trim stitching. (Toyota)

The Camry TRD’s front brake discs are moderately larger than used for the rest of the Camry lineup. (Toyota)

Standard for the Camry TRD is a 3.5-L V6 that generates 301 hp. (SAE/Visnic)

Camry TRD’s modest but conspicuous rear spoiler. (SAE/Visnic)

A clash of branding, it may seem, but the execution isn’t half bad. Apart from the Camry TRD’s aero-enhanced bodywork – which is mature enough to keep you from feeling like a Fast & Furious stand-in – the functional changes include stiffer coil springs and sway bars, beefed-up underbody braces for the Camry’s TNGA-K platform, larger-diameter front brake discs, and slightly wider and lighter 19-inch (48-cm) wheels. But the best part of the deal is that the 2020 Camry TRD’s modest $31,040 base price includes Toyota’s muscular 3.5-L V6 as standard. Not only is the Camry one of the few affordable midsize sedans still available with a V6, the TRD package lets you at it for just over $31,000.

The 301 horses are the same as any other V6 Camry, though, and so is the TRD’s 8-speed automatic that still feels glaringly tall-geared and with too much space between ratios. But there is a special “cat-back” exhaust that produces a husky and mellifluous tone. The ride can feel thumpy on some surfaces, but body motions are tightly controlled by midsize-sedan metrics. It all matches pleasingly with the V6’s boisterous midrange torque that turbocharged 4-cylinders just can’t match.

The transmission’s gearing can sometimes stymie even this V6’s power, and the Camry TRD doesn’t come as nicely fitted as higher-trim Camrys. But even if performance isn’t the primary prerogative, the TRD treatment of the Camry stands out a bit from the herd and offers entrée to refined V6 power that’s increasingly rare at anything near the Camry TRD’s price point. Yes, Toyota engineers could have – and should have – gone further to upgrade performance. But that would have meant more cost. The 2020 Camry TRD is a ton of car for the money and I doubt most buyers would mind it staying that way.