My parents have been fans of Toyota for a very long time and having owned everything from Subarus to Audis, they keep going back for more. Reliability has always been Toyota’s strongest selling point with cutting edge design; not so much.
Enter the 2014.5 Toyota Camry, the one we bonded with for a week was an SE model. Our first trip in the Camry was local and we took it to the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway. We had the opportunity to meet Toyota driver Brian Vickers and enjoy a free lunch in the Toyota Owners Hospitality area – available to anyone who owns a Toyota.
After noshing on hotdogs and chips, it was race time, so we made our way to our seats for our first ever NASCAR experience….what a thrill! Lira and Luca were so excited they couldn’t contain themselves and when the race was getting under way, the kids were quick to point out that the Camry was the same model used as the pace car, but with writing on it. We had such a blast and WOW was it loud! Glad we sprung for the hearing protection.
Our next Camry adventure was a trip to Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. It was pouring rain during the drive and the car handled great and was super comfy on the longer ride. We found some fun music on Sirius Radio and before you know it, the kids had zonked out.
It was still raining when we got there, so we decided not to take the extended tour which included the house, but instead scouted out the visitors center, watched an inspiring film about Thomas 
Jefferson and then headed down to the Griffin Discovery room where the kids enjoyed the hands on learning and exploring.
Our third trip in the Camry SE was to Northern Virginia and this time it was doing duty as a hauler. We needed to take a TON of stuff to Hip to be Round in Fairfax and man did the Camry come through! The spacious trunk swallowed up the boxes easily and you couldn’t even tell the car was weighted down when driving.
We traveled well over 400 miles and the gas light had just come on as we parked her to be picked up back in Richmond. Nearly 27 mpg; now that’s not bad!
I know it’s cliche, but it’s definitely not your parents’ Camry! Attractive body styling, all important safety options and some serious get up and go, this is a car we wouldn’t mind having in our garage full time. Plus the kids fell in love with it and were sad to see it go!
A tremendous Thank You to Toyota for the opportunity to learn about the Camry SE and experience our first ever NASCAR race!
