Road Beat: Toyota Avalon, A Super Car for whom?

Toyota created the Avalon about 25 years ago as a more luxurious and bigger Camry. Eventually, Toyota used the Avalon chassis for its Lexus ES350 series. Nothing wrong there. Now in its fifth generation, the all-new Avalon really is all new. While the nameplate is old, it is looking to attract younger drivers. The median age of Avalon drivers has grown from about 60 in 2005 to about 66 currently. For this new generation Avalon, perhaps the question should be asked: “Why are 66-year old’s having all the fun?”

To put it straight, this new Avalon is a fantastic ride capturing everything anyone could want in a car, great sporty, aggressive styling, world-class performance, good fuel economy and the ride and handling of a buttoned-down sports sedan. It also provides a sublime, extremely roomy cabin with deafening quiet. It lets the sound system excel. The Avalon Touring sedan I drove over 500 miles would look great in my garage. I would buy one.

Avalon is a big midsize car with a wheelbase stretching out to 113 inches and a length of 196 inches, coincidentally the exact same measurements of a Lexus ES350. Its new aggressive sleek body with loads of purposeful complex body lines is the sportiest and slickest yet. Coefficient of drag is down to a minuscule 0.27.

Powering up this new Avalon is a revised version of its bulletproof 3.5L direct and port injected, DOHC, 24 valve V-6 now producing 301 hp at 6,600 rpm and 267 pounds of a twist at 4,700 rpm. It transmits that prodigious power to the front wheels via an 8-speed auto cog swapper.

Performance is world-class knocking off 0-60 mph in an average of 5.74 seconds. Passing times also reflect world class numbers with a 50-70 mph pass arriving in 2.98 seconds and the same run up a 6-7 percent grade only slowing that time to 4.95 seconds. This Avalon is quick and responsive and that new eight speeder tranny shifts like lightning in an incredibly smooth manner. In fact, this Avalon exhibits nothing but manners in the way it drives notwithstanding having 300 thoroughbreds under the bonnet. Even the new engine has a new sweet sound.

Even with this new-found power and slightly larger size, fuel economy is up by about 5 percent according to the EPA test numbers which show 22/31/25 mpg city/highway/combined for my Avalon Touring tester most of which can be attributed to the addition of direct injection to its engine technology and to its new 8 speed tranny which has an extremely low final drive allowing the engine to turn an extremely low 1,600 rpm at 70 mph. But real numbers are much higher with a real-world highway fuel economy of 35.2 mpg at 70 mph in a two-way run. In my 200-mile trek over the Sierras to Carson City, the Avalon averaged 29 mpg in very aggressive driving and averaging 27 mpg overall for the entire test. About the only negative is fuel capacity which is down to about 16 gallons from last year’s 17 gallons and a Camry’s 18.5 gallons.

Avalon Touring gets some special suspension features beyond its already state of the art four-wheel independent with bigger stab bars and more importantly Adaptive Variable Suspension system which continuously controls shock damping at each corner. With this new system, handling becomes Germanic and then some. With a super quick electric steering rack of 2.6 turns lock to lock, 63-inch-wide track, 235/40 series meets on 18X8 inch alloys Avalon gets it done when the road bends. This is not your grand dad’s Avalon, but a whole new driving experience to behold for young and old. It is an absolute pleasure to drive.

And there is absolutely nothing lost in ride quality. This is by far the quietest and smoothest Avalon ever. It’s no longer a long wheelbase Camry as the new design is definitely upscale in so many of its driving, handling and ride attributes. Don’t get me wrong here as the new design Camry is a new benchmark in midsize sedans. This new Avalon is just a big step up in Camry’s amazing qualities.

Safety is everywhere with auto braking and all the acronyms from lane departure assist to auto high beams. Speaking of headlights, the new Avalon’s adaptive units are excellent on high and low beam. Brakes are also strong.

Inside is a leather interior of leather and other soft-touch materials. The seats are very comfortable but after a few hours become a firm feeling. Of course, they are heated and ventilated as a luxury car should be. The instruments are all there including a large tach and speedo left and right with an information centerpiece including a trip computer. A nice addition to this Touring model is a complete heads up display.

A center stack topped by a large color display for an easy to use NAV, radio and info system. Both clearly labeled buttons and the touch screen are self-intuitive and self-starting.

Rear seating is copious with massive legroom and comfortable seating. Toyota rates their flagship as a midsize car, but without a sunroof, the interior volume of the interior including the trunk exceeds 120 cubic feet which is the minimum for the EPA large car classification. The massive trunk is over 16 cubes and the rear seatbacks do fold down.

Pricing for the Avalon starts at $35,500 plus $920 for the train and truck from Georgetown, Kentucky. My top of the line Touring edition stickered at $43,120 all-in although my tester had the Advanced Safety Package with a bird’s eye view camera with perimeter scan and cross traffic alert with braking and an intelligent clearance sensor. It’s worth the $1,150. My tester also had $395 worth of special paint. All the colors are exquisite as long as their shiny. The Avalon has arrived and it’s not the top of the line Toyota car, it’s the top of the line near luxury ride in its class. This Avalon is for anyone who is young at heart, no matter what their chronological age.

Avalon also will sell you this car as a hybrid and about 5-7 more mpg for $1,000 more as to all trim levels. It will still perform well with 215 hp and with even greater smoothness if you even feel it

Specifications
Price $36,420 to about $44,685
Engine 3.5L direct injected DOHC, 24 valve V-5 301 hp @ 6,600 rpm
267 lb.-ft. of torque @ 4,700 rpm

Transmission
Eight speed torque converter automatic with paddle shifters

Configuration
Transverse mounted front engine/front wheel drive

Dimensions
Wheelbase 113.0 inches
Length 195.8 inches
Width 72.8 inches
Weight3,704 feet
Height 56.5 inches
Track (f/r) 62.6/63.4 inches
Ground clearance 5.3 inches
Fuel capacity 15.8 gallons
Trunk capacity 16.1 cubic feet
Passenger volume 104.3 cubic feet
Steering turns lock to lock 2.6
Turning circle38.7 feet
Wheels 19X8 inch alloys
Tires 235/40X19
Co-efficient of drag 0.27

Performance
0-60 mph 5.74 seconds
50-70 mph 2.98 seconds
50-70 mph up a 6-7 percent grade 4.95 seconds
Top speed Way faster than sanity unless on a track
Fuel economy EPA rated at 22/31/25 mpg city/highway/combined. Expect 35 mpg on a level highway at legal speeds and 25-27 mpg in rural/suburban driving.