2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid

"I've got a guy on the phone with a Camry Hybrid who needs a 25,000 mile service," the manager at the local Toyota dealer yelled to Jesse, a colleague apparently within earshot. Jesse may or may not have been all that excited. Hard to tell. "Sure bet, bring it on in," he replied. "That's the most miles we've seen on one of those. Any problems?"

Answer: None. Zippo. Nada. Well, maybe one. But we'll never know what the Camry's one-and-only check-engine light ever meant because our technical editor, who's a little too handy with an OBD2 scan tool, turned off the singular appearance of the orange-glowing distress signal. "People were fretting about the light so much I just deleted it," he says. That's not the same thing as investigating the problem, colleagues point out. "But I made a printout of it first," he adds. "Procrastination Through Technology" should be engraved on his office door.

Unfortunately, when handed the printout, the service technician couldn't make heads or tails of it. "This engine code isn't in our system." Well, the light never returned, and the Camry continued to run perfectly right up until we handed the keys back to the Toyota delivery driver. All's well that ends well, apparently.

In fact, it all ended quite well. Our 25,000 miles in the Camry Hybrid produced no battery fire infernos, black-box meltdowns, or horrifying power cutouts at 70 mph, with an 18-wheeler inches off the rear bumper, due to the electric motor engineers having worked in millimeters and liters and the engine guys in bushels and hogsheads. In a stark repudiation of all the technological worrywarts who condemn hybrids for their complicatedness, our car was oblivious to its circuitous circuitry and simply ran and ran and ran. Like any ordinary Camry. Its five regular service visits totaled $392.71 for all the usual quarts of oil, filters, gaskets, joint lubings, and fluid checks.

More interesting, of course, were its fuel-mileage loggings. Our overall average mileage rang in at 33.5 mpg; roughly speaking, this is at least 25 percent better than what a theoretical all-gas alternative would've delivered. Over our 25,000-mile stint this computes to 187 gallons of saved gas, equal to $586 in L.A. station prices, or nearly 2.4 per mile. In green-speak, that's 1.77 tons of CO2. Given our car's excellent condition, it currently is worth about $3140 under its sticker price. Not bad.

All those miles also offered some insights into the peculiar world of hybrid mileage. Often you hear that these things do better in city driving because cruising speed doesn't offer regenerative braking opportunities. Well, nobody actually cruises at perfectly steady throttle, and the Camry's mileage display bore this out with freeway numbers regularly nearing 40 mpg, whereas the numbers inevitably toppled to the lower 30s once past the off-ramp.

Whether any particular Motor Trend staffer desired or resisted driving the Camry says a lot about what they subjectively value in their driving experience. Some grumbled at its mere 7.7-seconds-to-60 capability; others luxuriated in its engine-off silence at red lights and energy-recouping whine while decelerating. Our 17 months in the Camry Hybrid revealed it to be as much a mirror of personal priorities as a steel-and-glass and molded-plastic automobile. It's been a car that asks a hard question: What do you care about? Although the Camry Hybrid's parking space has now been taken by another new and eager low-mileage long-termer, that question remains.

From the logbook:

"I'm not a fan of its gutlessness at stop signs or its nose-heavy feel and numb steering. Can a car scream 'appliance' any louder? It's a clever trick only for those who don't like passionate cars. Soon these will be sold by infomercial salesmen." - Mark Williams

"Drove to Lake Tahoe and got 477 miles out of a tank of gas with probably 30 more to go. This included topping several mountain passes over Highway 395. The mileage is incredible." - Brian Vance

"Why don't I look forward to driving this car? You just push a button and go. Maybe they should've included a faux engine roar just to make you feel like you're still alive when you're behind the wheel." - James Dryden

"A very appliance-like car, but perfect for Mr. and Mrs. America who want quality, value, good mileage, and the warm fuzzies that come from helping save the planet. The driving experience is secondary, but that isn't the Camry Hybrid's purpose in life." - Matt Stone

"Seems like the brakes are overly touchy, but not all the time, making them a little unpredictable. Is it me or has the transition from electric motor to engine gotten rougher over time?" - Allyson Harwood