The Fastest Toyota Camry By Top Speed

The Toyota Camry is not exactly the last word in sporting potential. Toyota’s midsize offering in the US has been a staple in its lineup for over 30 years now, and it has garnered a reputation for being a normal daily driver that doesn’t stray too far off the line of being the type of car that gets you from point A to point B. But what if you wanted something more than that? What if you wanted a fast Camry? Well, the good news is that Toyota has made some hot Camrys in the past few years, and we’re about to tell you about the fastest Toyota Camry ever built.

Base Trim Engine

2.5L Inline-4 Gas

Base Trim Transmission

8-Speed Automatic

Base Trim Drivetrain

Front-Wheel Drive

Infotainment & Features

8 /10

The Fastest Toyota Camry: Camry TRD

A Spiced Up Camry

For the Toyota Camry’s 8th generation, Toyota decided to expand its performance arm, TRD, to the Camry, creating the Camry TRD model we now know today. Although it was only around for half the generation, from 2020 to 2023, the Camry TRD quickly took the distinction of being the fastest Camry that Toyota had ever built. Toyota got the message across not just through power, but by looks. The Camry TRD was notable for having exciting paint options like the same white found on the Corolla GR, bright red, and bright blue, similar to the color palette on the GR Supra.

The TRD Camry also came with black TRD wheels, red trim around the car, front and rear splitters, and a wing that would look at home in a Need For Speed game. Toyota threw everything in the TRD parts department at this car, and despite how in-your-face it looks, we think the Camry TRD executes it quite well. Toyota had also given the same treatment to the Avalon with the Avalon TRD; however, it was a much less successful seller than the Camry TRD. Despite how fun the car was, in 2023, with the announcement of the 9th-generation Camry, the Camry TRD trim was dropped from the lineup, making it a one-hit-wonder of car trims.

The Fastest Camry Ever Sold

A Sub Six-second Sprint To 60 mph

The Toyota Camry TRD was powered by a 3.5-liter V6 making 301 hp and 267 lb-ft of torque. This caused the Camry TRD to launch to 60 mph in less than six seconds, or 5.8 to be exact. To put that into perspective, that’s a quicker 0-60 time than Toyota’s own dedicated sports car, the GR86. Mated to an eight-speed automatic with an automated manual feature that includes paddles behind the steering wheel, the TRD Camry isn’t just fast in a straight line, but fun to throw around as well. Although the front-wheel drivetrain does limit it a bit when it comes to handling – the Camry’s all-wheel-drive system never made it to the TRD – it doesn’t take away from the fact that this car is no slouch and is easily one of the most fun to drive in its class.

Another interesting thing to note about the Camry TRD was its price relative to its engine. This was the cheapest V6 Camry by around $3,000. The Camry TRD’s MSRP of $33,845 made it significantly cheaper than the next cheapest V6 model, the XLE, which started at $36,295. The trade-off, however, was in the interior. While the XLE and XSE models are much nicer, the Camry TRD has cloth seats and gray plastic trim everywhere, reminding you that there’s a reason why the Camry TRD is $3,000 cheaper than the other, more upmarket models. Still, this has nothing to do with performance, and the TRD Camry still makes its claim in the sand as the fastest Camry.

There’s Another Candidate

The More Subtle Fast Camry

What if you don’t like all the kitsch and bright colors of the TRD? What if you want something just as fast, without a big wing or a rear diffuser? Well, because the V6 in the Camry TRD is the same one seen in other Toyota models, you can go just as fast without all the flash. The Toyota Camry XSE was Toyota’s original “sporty” trim for the Camry, coming with a two-tone paint scheme, bigger wheels, and a small trunk lip spoiler. The XSE features the same 301-hp V6 as the Camry TRD, but hides it in a more subtle body. This means that, like the Camry TRD, the XSE will also hit 60 mph in less than six seconds, with some publications like MotorTrend stating that, because there aren’t any exterior performance pieces weighing it down, the XSE hits 60 slightly faster than the TRD. However, on paper, they have exactly the same specs.

The XSE is, overall, a much nicer place to be than the TRD. You have options for heated leather seats, a brighter colored interior, and even some metal accents on the dashboard if you spec it correctly. Another thing worth noting is that the XSE is available in all-wheel drive, unlike the TRD’s front-wheel drive only; however, doing so will cause you to sacrifice your V6 engine and be stuck with a smaller, less powerful 2.5-liter four-cylinder, which causes the XSE to fall from tying for the title of being the Toyota Camry’s fastest model.

What About The Fastest New Camry?

The 2026 Camry Hybrid Doesn’t Quite Hit The Same Mark

The 9th-generation Toyota Camry debuted with something crucial missing: the V6. For the first time ever, the Camry was both fully hybridized and without a V6 engine, meaning the only engine available was a 2.5-liter hybrid four-cylinder – not great for performance. Now, it is important to recognize that in an age of rising hybrid sales and consumer consciousness over fuel economy, a move like this makes sense. The Camry was never meant to be a performance car, and models like the TRD were special, enthusiast-driven trims that catered to a small market. That being said, the lack of a V6 engine means that there is a significant drop in power for the current Camry, and it shows when putting this generation and the previous one side by side.

The 2026 Toyota Camry hybrid is a full second slower than the old model, clocking in between seven and 6.8 seconds, depending on the drivetrain. This is on par with other competitors like the Honda Accord, but like the Accord, it doesn’t have the same briskness that the older generations have. Right now, because all trims of the Camry come with the same engine choice, there is no difference in trim, meaning the seven-second 0-60 mph time is what you get regardless of how much or little you pay, meaning that the $28,700 base MSRP may be enticing to some. But the Toyota Camry’s fastest model is a shell of what it used to be.

FAQs

Is the Camry SE faster than the XSE?

No. All 2026 Toyota Camry models have the same 0-60 mph time and top speed due to them all sharing the same engine.

What’s the highest-horsepower Toyota Camry?

The highest-horsepower Toyota Camry ever was the 8th-generation Camry TRD, with 301 hp. However, today, the most powerful Camry has just 235 hp.

Which Toyota Camry has 300 horsepower?

The Toyota Camry with 300 hp was the 8th generation model fitted with the V6, like the TRD and XSE trims.

Sources: Toyota, MotorTrend, Fueleconomy.gov