Toyota Camry Axed In Japan, Will Continue Global Production: Report

Globally it still remains popular but only sold 6,000 units last year in Japan.

By: Mark Webb

Mar 23, 2023 at 8:05pm ET

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Year after year, the Toyota Camry remains a popular car, selling 600,000 units annually across the globe. Half of those sales originate in the US, where it continues to put up consistent numbers despite a shrinking midsize market. In Japan, Toyota struggles to move even one percent of the Camry's global volume, which is why the automaker notified Japanese dealers it is ending production.

Like in the US, Japanese buyers have shifted away from sedans to SUVs and crossovers, which have become increasingly popular. For this reason, the Toyota Camry will join the Honda Legend and Nissan Fuga, discontinued in the Japanese domestic market last year due to low sales. However, the Camry will continue to live on in the global market, where it sells in over 100 countries and remains very popular.

Since its launch in 1980, Toyota has produced more than 21 million Camrys worldwide through the 2022 model year. The US remains the most popular market, accounting for 13 million Camrys sold since the model arrived in 1982. A complete redesign in 1992 turned it into a perennial best-seller, beating out the Ford Taurus that year to become the number-one car in the US. Since then, it's consistently been one of the top-selling cars and had a fifteen-year streak where it ranked as the top-selling car from 2002 to 2016.

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In 2017, the Camry, which means "crown" in Japanese, lost its US market sales crown as the top-selling Toyota model to the RAV4. It's also seen similar declines in other markets where buyers prefer SUVs. Even so, the Camry and the smaller Corolla continue to play a prominent role in Toyota's global product strategy and are seen as aspirational vehicles in Asia.

The current Camry dates to 2017, sharing designs and customer demographics with the Crown in the Japanese market. It also shared its platform and demographics with the Avalon, which was discontinued in 2022. Toyota is currently planning the launch of the next-generation Camry which will be unveiled in 2024.

Source: Nikkei Asia