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The Toyota Camry is known for making easy work of family duty, but I couldn’t muster much excitement when the 2013 Camry arrived for a weeklong test drive. However, I warmed up to the Camry during my test drive much more than I thought I would, and I’ll freely admit that it was a competent workhorse for my family of three.
Part of what I liked so much about the Camry is my family wasn’t late on arrival a single time thanks to Toyota’s Entune App Suite multimedia system, which runs apps streamed from a compatible smartphone. I used the Entune smartphone app to do an internet search before I got in the car, and by the time everybody was buckled in, the app had the location waiting for us in the car. What could be better for a harried parent?
My test Camry SE had a 3.5-liter V-6 engine that helped me come around to this midsize sedan; this sportier version of the ultimate grocery getter has a firmer ride, which was a shock since most Toyotas I’ve driven felt a lot sleepier during my commutes to Gymboree. With the V-6, the Camry gets an EPA-estimated 21/31/25 mpg city/highway/combined. With my 70/30 split of city/highway driving, I considered my 22.7 mpg average for the week a win.
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Thanks to a low step-in height, my 3-year-old and I were on the road quickly. Her ease in getting in and out of the Camry on her own was a huge convenience. The Camry has a comfortable backseat, and I liked that there were two seatback pockets to house all of my daughter’s books and her drawing pad.
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Two child-safety seats have plenty of room in the Camry’s backseat. There’s enough room that rear-facing child-safety seats fit well, too. I had a few issues with accessing the two sets of lower Latch anchors during installation because of stiff seat cushions, but once the car seat was in, frustrations were out the window.