Not dead yet: Toyota visualises new sport sedan

New SEMA concept shows what's possible if you take the brakes off...

By PH Staff / Friday, 24 October 2025 / Loading comments

Sporty saloons, bejewelled with big wheels and wannabe spoilers, used to be the lifeblood of the mainstream car market, alongside hot hatches and compact execs. Famously, badge-conscious reps used to vie with each other for the implied status of their Vauxhall or Ford, brands that knew everything there was to know about primping (or pimping) a humble Insignia or Mondeo for all it was worth. They were good and happy times.

In some respects, the legacy has been passed to the likes of Audi and BMW, who continue to produce large, mid-sized lineups with often knife-edge differentiation between trim levels - though it isn’t quite as fun as bunging a devil-may-care splitter on something mundane. Toyota, the one manufacturer we can increasingly rely on to get it, gets it. Or it does in the States, at any rate: behold the Camry GT-S Concept bound for SEMA next month.

Okay, the big-selling Camry is dead as disco in Western Europe, but it shows what can still be done if you take an otherwise humdrum saloon and wave a styling wand over it. ‘Unlike the over-the-top builds that often headline SEMA, the GT-S stays rooted in reality,’ boasts Toyota - and you can’t get more rooted in reality than sticking with the standard 232hp 2.5-litre hybridised four-pot under the hood. They haven’t even bothered with overhauling the interior.

No, this is all about stick-on body addenda, custom ‘Inferno Flare’ paint, a chunkier exhaust and arch-filling 20-inch alloys. And the benefit of fitting adjustable coilovers, which drop the ride height by a whopping 1.5 inches. Toyota has even fitted massive 365mm discs and 8-piston calipers to complete the look. “This build is intentionally grounded,” says the marketing boss. “It’s the kind of car customers can picture themselves driving home. SEMA gives us the chance to test new ideas, listen to enthusiasts, and explore how we continue to evolve Camry in ways that excite and inspire.” If it ever gets around to doing the same with the Corolla, it might keep the other half of the planet happy, too.