Seen; a new Toyota Camry. That makes the car spotter happy. Almost rarer than a Porsche 911. Nobody wants it. In 2020 Toyota sold 78 in the Netherlands, this year so far 17. One of those super good cars that nobody buys for the wrong reason.
I tested it in 2019. In combination with my old head, that was not a sparkling sight. With that low-slung whale grille, the thing has the elegance of a snowplow. His style manco will have cost him the head of a design addicted audience that would rather have a suv anyway, talk about nicely. But it remains a winner.
So there are really good cars that nobody buys for the wrong reason. Because folks, what a good thing that Toyo is for just over € 40,000. Which premium brand gives more value for money in this class? Count your blessings. Giant trunk space. Regal freedom of movement, even in the back seat. Hybrid powertrain with 218 hp, more than enough and yet splash-efficient. No more charging station hunting and always 1 in 20. For such a whale, the Camry steers and lies very nice. And I just think that such a board full of selling points would convince the people. Unfortunately; a genius flop.
Toyota has had to bleed more often here. The same fate befell the last Prius, which last and this year with 85 and 12 copies respectively, was about equally bad. It is the best plug-less hybrid on the market, designed for maximum efficiency with the real idiosyncrasy that Citroën can take for granted. I have achieved 1 in 30 with it. But the Netherlands turns the nose up. ‘Too ugly’.
Subaru Forester
For example, I know more losers who deserved a better fate. The huge and well-driving Dacia Lodgy, 23 copies so far in 2021, the best budget transporter I drove; or the fantastic Subaru Forester with 33 units sold. You know what they tripped over about those cars; their consumption or their looks. Yet the big losers are not all ugly people and / or fossil drunkards.
20 of the magnificent Alfa Giulia have been sold since January. It breaks sometimes, but you have an Alpha for that. A great career is also not guaranteed for plug-in cars. The Hyundai Ioniq Electric is one of the most thoughtful, efficient EVs in its class. On the on-board computer I regularly saw consumption averages of around 12 kWh per 100 kilometers. I know of few electric family cars that can do that. Sorry, that genius convinced 53 drivers this year. People find him boring. That is the spacious, characteristic Volvo S90 anything but. Still, the Dutch Volvo dealers managed to sell only nine this year. De Volvist wants the station, which is also not doing great, but much better.
You see the pattern. The victims are diesels, sedans regardless of their external qualities, vans and ugly people. If a car has one or more of these properties, it will hang. Even if, like the Alfa Romeo, it is the most beautiful and nicest driving of its kind. The diesels are no longer possible, and the petrol blocks do not run 1 in 20.
So the lesson is that aesthetics today can only be marketed with tangible ecological benefits, while on the other hand, the cleanest cars in the country can shake it without fashionable shape and tasty lines. Unless the price is so low that we get weak knees – thanks for the learning moment, MG ZS – the eye remains more powerful than the conscience. With all its eminent qualities, the Camry delivers a hopeless fight against the dictatorship from the outside.