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America’s best-selling car for eight of the past nine years has been completely redesigned for 2007, and the new models have begun showing up at dealerships.

With the redesign, Toyota is hoping to attract enough new buyers to the Camry fold to increase sales in 2006, beating last year’s total of more than 430,000 sold in the United States.

Toyota officials have suggested that sales could reach the half-million mark if consumers wholeheartedly embrace the car’s redesign, which includes what the automaker believes is much more compelling styling.

The latest version is the sixth generation of the Camry, which originally arrived for model year 1983 and has become what Toyota calls “the quintessential American family sedan” that has “evolved to iconic status.”

In preparing for the 2007 model, Toyota “set out to redefine the new Camry” with fresh, compelling styling, which the automaker had found to be the previous model’s biggest weakness, said Keith Hathaway, passenger car product manager for Toyota Motor Sales USA.

Despite having the best-selling car, Toyota found people who didn’t particularly care for the Camry’s bland styling, he said.

“As happy as Camry owners are, they feel that their car is ordinary,” Hathaway said. “From people who owned Camrys in the past, we heard words like ‘vanilla’ and ‘bread and butter’ and ‘Dad’s car.'”

As a result, he said, in redesigning the Camry, “styling, inside and out, was high on our list.”

The result is a new Camry that is “youthful, energetic and contemporary, and styled in a way that is certain to elicit a positive emotional response,” he said.

But probably the biggest news is that along with the redesign, Toyota is introducing a gasoline-electric hybrid version.

That gives Toyota its first mainstream hybrid sedan – one that incorporates the company’s industry-leading hybrid technology in a car that has mass appeal.

Though the smaller Toyota Prius hybrid has been a consistent seller, its somewhat odd shape has kept it from becoming mainstream. Instead, it has appealed mostly to consumers who want a hybrid that looks different from anything else on the road so people who see it will instantly recognize it as a “green” car.

But consumer studies have shown that many potential hybrid buyers don’t want a vehicle that looks different from a normal car.

For that reason, the Camry hybrid will be almost indistinguishable from the regular gasoline-powered models.

A small badge on the rear of the car that reads “Hybrid Synergy Drive” is the only obvious cue that the hybrid model is different from the other Camrys. Less obvious are the metallic finish on the grille, the LED-type taillights and a blue tint to the headlight reflectors.

The 2007 Camry is roomier inside, while maintaining the same overall length of the previous generation, Hathaway said.

The increase in space is partially the result of a lengthening of the new Camry’s wheelbase by more than 2 inches and a widening of the track and overall width by an inch. The car is just slightly lower than the 2006 model.

In the regular gasoline-powered models, the new high-output V-6 engine turns out 268 horsepower, significantly up from 210 for the 2006 model. This is the same engine used in the new Avalon full-size sedan and the redesigned 2007 RAV4 compact SUV. Most Camry buyers will opt for the base four-cylinder engine, however, Hathaway said. In the 2007 model, this engine has been revised from the 2006 model and is now rated at 158 horsepower and 161 foot-pounds of torque. The 2006 model had 154 horsepower.

Fuel economy has improved for both four-cylinder and V-6 models, though the V-6 engine is much more powerful than the one it replaced, Toyota said.

EPA ratings for the 2007 V-6 engine are 22 miles per gallon in the city and 31 on the highway. The previous model’s 3.3-liter V-6 was rated at 21 city/29 highway.

The V-6 model comes only with a new six-speed automatic transmission.

For the four-cylinder, the EPA ratings are 25 city/34 highway with the base manual transmission and 24 city/33 highway with the optional five-speed automatic. In comparison, the 2006 model was rated at 24 city/33 highway with the manual gearbox and 24/34 with the automatic.

The best fuel economy, though, comes from the hybrid model.

Under that hood is the latest version of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive system. It includes a 2.4-liter, four-cylinder Atkinson-cycle gasoline engine, rated at 147 horsepower, and an electric motor, which is powered by a 244-volt battery pack mounted over the rear axle, where it is least likely to be damaged in an accident, Hathaway said. Effective combined total horsepower is 197, the automaker said.

EPA ratings for the hybrid are 43 mpg in the city and 37 on the highway.

The city rating is higher than the highway number – in reverse of the ratings for regular gasoline-powered cars – because the gasoline engine shuts down when the vehicle stops at traffic signals and in stop-and-go city traffic. And at very low speeds, the car sometimes moves only on electric power.

In the regular V-6 model, consumers get a six-speed automatic transmission that is smaller and lighter than the previous model’s five-speed automatic, Hathaway said. It also has 20 percent fewer parts. Both fifth and sixth gears are overdrives to help boost fuel economy.

In the gasoline-only models, four trim levels are offered, beginning with the base four-cylinder CE model, whose prices begin at $18,270 (plus freight) with manual transmission or $19,320 with the five-speed automatic.

CE versions are not just stripped-down models that no one would want, however. They come equipped with a long list of features, including air conditioning with a pollen filter, power windows with driver’s auto-down mode, power door locks with an anti-lockout feature, cruise control, dual color-keyed power outside mirrors, halogen headlights with automatic on/off, tilt and telescopic steering wheel, tire pressure monitoring system and a six-speaker, 160-watt digital AM/FM/CD audio system with an auxiliary audio jack. It also comes with 16-inch wheels, a vehicle immobilizer and four-wheel disc brakes.

Next is the LE model, which starts at $19,450 with manual transmission and $20,500 with the five-speed automatic and a four-cylinder engine; the LE V-6 model begins at $23,040 and comes only with the six-speed automatic.

Besides the amenities on the CE model, the LE also comes with remote keyless entry and an eight-way adjustable power driver’s seat. V-6 models also get dual exhaust with chrome tips.

The sporty SE model is next, beginning at $20,790 with the four-cylinder engine and manual gearbox and at $21,790 with automatic. SE V-6 models begin at $24,315. The SE comes with a sport-tuned suspension and better underbody aerodynamics.

Other standard SE features include sporty 17-inch aluminum wheels; a distinct black honeycomb-style grille; ground effects; smoked halogen headlights; chrome exhaust tip; and a sport-trimmed interior in dark charcoal or medium gray with a leather-wrapped, three-spoke steering wheel and blue gauges.

The top model, the XLE, begins at $24,425 with four-cylinder engine and automatic transmission and at $27,250 for the V-6.

Features include a premium 440-watt JBL audio system with Bluetooth technology for hands-free calling, wood-style trim, tilt/slide power moon roof, reclining rear seats, fog lights, 16-inch aluminum wheels, dual-zone automatic climate control with steering-wheel controls, and an air filtration system. V-6 models come with leather upholstery.

Safety features on all the new Camrys include antilock brakes and seven air bags, including side-curtain air bags. Stability and traction control are optional.