Toyota Camry (XV10) - Classification

Classification

In 1990, Toyota replaced the compact V20 Camry with an all-new V30 series exclusive to Japan. While marginally larger than the V20, the V30 had to comply with Japanese tax legislation. To meet the "number five" compact car tax bracket, the Camry V30 had to adhere to the 1,700-millimetre (66.9 in) width and 4,700-millimetre (185.0 in) length limit. Particularly in the United States, this narrower model would not generate enough sales, as proved by its V20 Camry forerunner. Concurrently, the "wide-body" Camry (XV10) was designed in 1989. Introduced to North America on September 9, 1991, the XV10 Camry was sold alongside the V30 in Japan, badged as the Toyota Scepter. Toyota chose the name "Scepter" as a reference to the Camry/Crown naming tradition, as a "scepter" is a symbolic ornamental staff held by a ruling monarch, a prominent item of royal regalia.

The smaller V30 Camry varied in other areas besides the size. Although the underpinnings, doors and fenders, and overall basic design cues were common between the two cars, the smaller Camry sported harder, more angular front- and rear-end styling treatment, with the wide-body model presenting a more curvaceous silhouette. This was a departure from the V20 generation Camry which, although had many more rounded panels than the V10 series, was nevertheless generally slab-sided in shape.

The XV10 is regarded as the first Camry to break into the mid-size car market, the market Toyota billed as "world-sized". At the same time, the once subcompact Corolla was moved to the compact class, and the Camry moved to the mid-size class. This Scepter model marked the transition away from a smaller vehicle into a larger, more luxurious family car. The first XV10 Camry rolled off the Georgetown, Kentucky plant on Tuesday, September 3, 1991 and the last in 1996.

The Japanese market received a new V40 series Camry in 1994, yet the XV10 lived on until 1996, before being replaced by the XV20 Camry. Once the Japan-only V40 Camry ended production in 1998, this marked the cessation of separate Camrys—a global Camry—and a smaller Japanese domestic market version. In Japan after 1998, the smaller Vista V50 took up the former V40 Camry.