2006 Toyota Camry LE from North America - Comments

We have a 2006 Camry V6 and since the first day, the transmission shifts jerky at low speed. Slow down to 8-10 mph (like at a yield) and press the as normal and the car will jerk hard as it downshifts from second to first. Think of a young kid learning to drive a clutch. That is the best way to describe this. The other problem with the transmission is the long pause when it shifts from first to second. It feels strange, but we can live with it. We also notice there is a delay between the time you press the gas and when the car actually picks up speed. From a stop, press the gas and the car will move and a few seconds later it will take off as if you had pressed the pedal to the floor. The bigger problem comes when passing on the freeway. You see a gap and floor it, but nothing happens for 3-5 seconds. I think this is because there is no longer a cable from the gas pedal to the engine..it's all done by computer now. We took it to the dealer and they say nothing is broken so they can't fix it. They claim the computer has adapted to my wife's driving style. I disagree because I rented a Camry and it drove the same way. I agree that it might not be broken, but the drive by wire design is flawed and should be updated. Toyota would have to do that, but all indications are that they have no plans to update the computer program. My 99 Camry with 160,000 miles had better throttle response and shifted smoother than this car does!

Difficult to drive in stop & go traffic.

You have perfectly described the major flaws of the camry. I own a 05 camry and the is exactly what it drives like. my solution to the throttle response delay is to step on the gas 2 to 3 seconds before I intend to merge or change lanes. I also find that turning off the overdrive helps the jerkyness in stop and go traffic. when I have to slow down and cruise at a slow speed (about 5 to 15 mph) I simply decrease my speed by stepping on the brake, rather than allowing the car to cruise to the slower speed. the transmission seems to shift down faster that way.