* Click HERE to see a video on the Toyota Solara *

Simple pleasures

2006 Toyota Solara Convertible (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre)

No one ever said that all vehicles need to be powerful, deftly exiting or head turners. If anything, I find that more often than not, car builders try too hard and end up with a bonified stinker on their hands. On the other hand, some car manufacturers concentrate on creating sensible automobiles and are impressively good at it.

Toyota holds the crown when it comes to smart, reliable and well engineered vehicles. If outright styling is not their forte, they are still pleasing to the eye. One of the key tricks to increasing sales is to attempt to cater to as many potential buyers as possible. Toyota, well on its way to dethroning more than one member of the Big Three, has shown over the last five or so years that they are looking to catch everyone's interest. They have every shape and size SUV, cars in every segment and even 4-seater convertibles which few of its rivals offer.

The Solara (no longer known as Camry Solara) is an intermediate coupe specifically aimed at baby boomers looking for comfort with a sporty

2006 Toyota Solara Convertible (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre)

2-door body. What they also like are convertibles. Toyota, in their infinite wisdom, simply chopped the roof off the coupe.

The Solara has a starting price of $27,645 and will top out at $39,300. I test-drove an SE-V6 convertible which retails for $34,800.

Styling

The previous generation Solara left little to the imagination as to the origins of the car. The present-day version, introduced in 2004 one year after the Camry, is more distinctive and upscale looking than the first Solara. I would go so far as to say that it has much in common with its more expensive sister, the Lexus SC430. If you look carefully, the taillights, the shape of the trunk lid, the headlights and the height of the beltline are very similar. Whether the top is up or down, the Solara looks sleek and tidy. It will never find its way into the mix of tuner crowd favourites but I have seen pictures of heavily modified Solaras and it does not look so out of place.

The occupant quarters of the Solara are inviting. The tested SE-V6 did

2006 Toyota Solara Convertible (Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre)

without the leather covering however the cloth seats were still quite comfortable and supportive. I like the fact that the back seat is actually very useable. Two adults could easily take place with relative ease for a good long drive. Panel fit and finish, both inside and out, are excellent as it normally is with all Toyota products. Dash materials are smooth and tasteful and controls located within are easy to reach and use.

The power activated roof requires that two latches be undone and once the dash mounted button is depressed, it takes just about 15 seconds for the roof to fully retract.