Report: Toyota Camry to be discontinued in Japan after 43 years

The Toyota Camry is the default D-segment sedan in Malaysia and is the best-selling non-SUV or pick-up truck in the United States of America. However, slow sales in its domestic market of Japan would see the sedan being discontinued.

Cited from a report by Japanese news outlets, sluggish sales of sedans in general meant that the Camry is set for the chopping block. It is also reported that Toyota dealers in the Land of the Rising Sun were notified about the Camry’s discontinuation of sales.

The Camry is one of the longest-running nameplates in Toyota’s Japanese line-up alongside the Crown, Corolla, and Century. All of these models were initially sold mainly as a sedan but due to the change in trends, some like the Corolla Cross and the all-new Crown have been given crossover variants.

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The Camry was first introduced in Japan in 1979 as the Celica Camry which was a twin to the Carina. The Japanese-spec Camry was different from the rest of the world with a narrow-bodied design to suit the country’s road tax regulations for 5 generations until 1998.

Also read: 7 things you might not know about the Toyota Camry

Eventually, the global wide-body Camry would be sold in Japan from the XV20 generation but it still sold far better overseas than domestically. Overall, the Camry is sold in Japan for ten generations and is also rebadged as the Daihatsu Altis.

Also read: The Daihatsu Altis is a more expensive rebadged Toyota Camry

Despite Toyota being the number one brand in Japan, the Camry has always been suffering in sales. According to sales data from the Japan Automobile Dealers Association (JADA), the Camry was the 44th best-selling car in the country in 2021 with 10,620 units and outsold the Honda Accord which wasn’t even listed in the top 50.

Also read: 2022 Toyota Camry vs Honda Accord - If it's good enough for the PM, which is best for you?

In 2022, the Camry was kicked out of the top 50 best-sellers chart which showed a declining interest in Toyota’s second global car after the Corolla. Though the Camry is due for a replacement eventually with the current XV70 having launched in 2017, the next generation might skip its home market entirely.

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The Camry is also an important model for the Middle East, North American, and Chinese markets where demands for sedans are still healthy so it won't be going away soon.