Toyota Camry owner review 2016 Malaysia

Dear friends

I know it's quite difficult to commit oneself into buying a car in a country like Malaysia. This is because buying a car is actually a big commitment on the part of the buyer. It's a major decision because  the price of vehicles in the country is among the highest in the world after Singapore. I read somewhere that an American uses a car up to 10 years before buying a new one. But in Malaysia the average ownership is approximately 6-7 years. I dont have the exact figures but I think this is about right based on my own experience as an owner of a car and also as an administrator of a car forum. Below is my review of the car after more than 25,000 kms and almost a year after using the hybrid.

Camry hybrid review 2016

# The car

The car itself is very reliable except for some niggling problems like noise emanating from the below the steering wheel as experienced by some owners. I myself have not  experienced it but what I can see is that when cruising at 120-130 km per hour I noticed some increase in noise levels on the driver's side. Another complaint that I have is the relay wiper that has ceased to work after the change of the windscreen because  of a hairline crack caused by errant gravels.

# The service

The service provided by Toyota centers is above average.  At Bangi Toyota , a suburb near KL  a complaint about the noisy rush of noise when cruising was not seriously entertained except for some token inspection by the service center and probably some spraying of  silicone  mists on the rubber shield that does nothing to dampen the noise levels. 

The change of windscreen could only be completed by bigger service centers like the one in Jalan Cheras KL. The smaller ones could only do but it depends on the insurance companies subscribed. The one in Bangi could only entertain MISG insurance company. The change of windscreen took two days t by Toyota Cheras even though the work is not a major one. It should have been  completed the most just one day including the processing of insurance. The fact that it took almost two days shows the inefficiency of Toyota Cheras and Toyota Malaysia.

Mirrorlink in Toyota Camry Hybrid 2015 Malaysia. How to make it work? Does anyone know?

It's almost a year since I bought My TCH from an authorized dealer in Malaysia. The mileage on the odometer after 9 months  indicates  more than 22,000 kms which is about the average distance that  Malaysians drive their  cars in a year When I bought the car,  I was given the impression that the car was equipped with an impressive JBL system with 10 speakers. Wow !! I thought I would be a very happy person with an properly fast and comfortable car and with a very good sound  system built in. Alas , It turned out that the sound system is only slightly better than the average system that you get in a Proton- Proton is a Malaysian car manufacturer. I thought the speaker system in the Proton Iriz- a sub compact car,  is much better. In fact, if you are a TCH owner in Malaysia, you will realize that there is only one speaker at the back. That is why the speaker sound in the CH is totally unsatisfactory. Don't be fooled by the claim of 10 speakers.

Mirrorlink -Does it work in Malaysia?

Another feature that should impress me that is supposed to be available is called Mirrorlink. The Mirrorlink is prominently highlighted in Toyota advertisement when it was first promoted. I was actually bought by that feature . What the mirror link does is to actually make your smartphone display to be shown and operated on the car's wide touch screen . But I don't know how that  is done. Even with an I-phone it's so difficult to get it connected. How could Toyota with its might could actually promote a product that is not working in Malaysia. (Please tell me if you have the same problem with the Mirrorlink  in the car assembled in your country). I'm begging anyone with the ability or knowledge to show me how to use the Mirrorlink connection / application.My suggestion to Toyota Malaysia is not to promote something that is not applicable in this country. It creates bad publicity for your company and the name of Toyota which is  quite a bulletproof name.

Dressed-up (Modified) Toyota Camry Hybrid 2016 Malaysia

Dear Owners of TCH

I noticed that most owners of TCH are mature, stable, family oriented , health conscious but slightly plump.  They are within the age of 4o -55 years old.In a little research that I did with members  and owners of Camry Hybrid I also found that  there are also young people at the age of 28-30 who drive and own the car. I believe that they are owners of small or medium size enterprises. But I wonder why these young people would want to owe a car that is so boxy and unattractive. I believe it must be the hybrid engine that powers the Camry. At that age I would get a Mazda 3 or a Honda Civic especially the 1.6 Turbo I have to say that the performance of the Camry at the mid range speed is just awesome. This car would easily out drive most of Japanese and some  entry level European cars on the highway,

Modellista 

 Toyota Camry can be modified to make it sportier. But I seldom see the car being modified by owners. Probably if we modify the car too heavily it would look rather ugly because of the uninspiring design of Camry. We can't do much to the body of the car That explains why the car was given an extensive update (mid -life modifications-2000 new items) in the United States. But in Malaysia we have to make do with whatever that we have. I google the internet I found a company that designs quite nicely body kit (spoilers and diffusers ) for Toyota Camry Hybrid, They call the modification "modellista". It's kind of nice and exudes that understated luxury. I love it. I heard in Malaysia it costs around RM 2000 or around US 500.

Modellista for Totota Camry 2016

Camry Hybrid Forum / owners get together at Putrajaya Malaysia

Dear Camry Hybrid Friends

We are organizing a simple get-together at a nasi lemak stall  (a coffee shop stall)  on the 23 of January 2016 in Putrajaya Malaysia. All owners or fans of Camry hybrid locally or abroad  are cordially invited. This is the first of its kind involving Toyota Camry Hybrid in  Malaysia. The location  of the informal gathering will be across the street Palace of Justice at the main boulevard of Putrajaya. Just use the infamous Waze and locate Palace of Justice,  Putrajaya and you will never go wrong. The photo attached below shows the place.

Camry Hybrid owners in Singapore can take this opportunity to test the speed ;limit of your car by driving to Putrajaya. This can be a good excuse for you to visit Putrajaya and test the comfort of your car. You will enjoy the beautiful sights and the unique architectural of the buildings here. Friends in Indonesia can take Airasia or Malindo Air  and fly cheaply to Malaysia to attend this informal gathering. Nice nasi lemak will be served. A short trip to Putrajaya will only cost less than 30 U s dollars from the airport . It will be cheaper if you take the illegal ones or Uber taxis.

Nasi lemak stall at Palace of Justice Putrajaya Malaysia

2016 prices of Toyota models Malaysia

Dear readers

I've attached a table ( credit to Paultan) of prices of Toyota models for 2016. All the prices of Toyota cars in Malaysia for this year have been increased between RM 3,200 to 9, 600 which is about US 900 to 3,000. The increase is due to the weakening of the Malaysian currency and for other unstated and unexplained reasons. 

One interesting thing is that the price of Camry hybrid does not see any price increase for 2016. This is funny because the car is selling like hot cakes or as the Malaysians say it like goreng pisang panas (hot off the oven banana fritters). I suspect that Toyota Malaysia is playing some game or it's  still negotiating with the government of further continuing with the tax exemption for hybrid cars assembled in Malaysia. I believe the Malaysia government is withdrawing the incentive because they lose a lot of money especially with the low price of oil hitting the market localy and internationally. Malaysia  needs the revenue to cover whatever that it has lost.

If the rebate is taken back then it means that the price of Toyota Camry Hybrid would be in the range of RM 220,000 - 230,000. or around US 45,000. If that happens they people would not buy the car. Malaysians will definite resort to other more affordable models like Hyundai Sonata or Ford Mondeo. I will keep  readers informed of the latest developments.

The 2016 prices of Toyotas in Malaysia