The station wagon isn't dead, it's just disguised.
If you're worried that every single vehicle on the road will soon be a crossover or SUV of some kind, then nil desperandum: there are still some wagons out there.
Say hello to the Toyota Venza, effectively a station wagon version of the Camry. It has the same engine choices, apart from a hybrid, and while this one has available all-wheel drive, you can get a front-driver too.
While the Venza looks bigger — thanks to a jackedup ride height — it occupies roughly the same footprint as the Camry. What's more, just as station wagons were in the past, it's positioned as a family friendly vehicle that's just that little bit more practical than your average four-door sedan.
Now in its seventh year, and two years since the last facelift, the Venza's disguise might be wearing a little thin. Let's get it out on the road and find out what's beneath the mask.
Design
Designed to slot inbetween the RAV4 and the Highlander, the Venza appears, at first glance, to be slightly more upscale than either. The RAV4 is built with small crossover practicality in mind, and the Highlander is screwed together to take on the soccer team. The Venza is just that little bit swooshier.
It looks a little like a Sienna caught in Willy Wonka's taffy puller, and that's intended as a compliment. Lower and wider than other crossovers on the road, the Venza hunkers down low on its 20-inch alloy wheels and — wait, hang on. Twenty-inch wheels? On a Toyota? Yes indeedy do. Part of the snazzy curb image this thing has is a pair of boots big enough to qualify for a walk-on part in a mid-2000s rap video. Even the base model gets 19-inch rims, something required by the sheetmetal-heavy styling.
For those of us who aren't part of Nate Dogg's posse, this is a bit of overkill, and ruins the ride on bumpy pavement. Note that you can tuck much smaller 17-inch or even 16-inch wheels on for winter duty.
Environment
If the exterior of the Venza has aged well, the same can't be said for the interior. Those attributes that worked before are still here: a spacious, roomy feel, brightened up by a huge panoramic sunroof.
Climb into a rival's newer offering — like the Venza's arch-enemy, the Subaru Outback — and this Limited trim tester starts looking a little long in the tooth. Fit and finish are still very good, and there's a sense that the interior will take as much of a kicking as a Rubbermaid product, but it is much more plasticky than recently refreshed competitors.
Still, as mentioned, the essentials are all here.
There's a clever holder for your smartphone that includes a pass-through for a USB charging cord, a truly enormous sliding centre console, and the controls are all quite sensible. The centre-mounted screen is a tad on the small side at 6.1 inches, but functionality is straightforward, and hooking up streaming audio and operating the navigation are very easy.
Where the Venza excels, as with a regular wagon, is in carrying adult-sized passengers. For a family with teens outgrowing a RAV's back seats, the Venza has rear room to sprawl out and a trunk big enough to haul hockey bags: 870 litres with the seats up and nearly 2,000 with them folded flat.
Performance
While a 2.7-litre fourcylinder is available on the base-trim Venza, please be aware that this is only a choice for the miserly. Producing 182 horsepower, it's pitted against 2,245 kilograms (plus options), which is quite a bit to shift.
The V-6, Toyota's ubiquitous 3.5-litre unit, produces a much better 268 h.p. The six is a bit of a gem, really, and somewhat overlooked in the business. Lotus stuffs it in their Evora, and while an AWD crossover doesn't have the lightness of a sports car, the V-6 Venza does at least have passing power to spare. The six-speed automatic is unremarkable, but the surfeit of power makes up for it.
Making a few passes along the Sea-to-Sky Highway reveals something of a duality to the Venza's driving character. While the driving position is comfortable and slightly high up, the centre-of-gravity feels low. It's a stable, planted machine through the corners.
However, the steering is somewhat over-boosted and lacks feel. Toyota improved this with their redesigned Highlander, but the Venza does feel more like an older Toyota — which it is, so fair enough.
Grip from the all-wheel drive could also benefit from Toyota's recent work. Here, planting the accelerator from a stop causes the front wheels to break grip, and then the rear to react. Toyota's tightened this up elsewhere, but the Venza still has slip-and-grip.
For all that, it's a comfortable cruiser that rarely puts a foot wrong. As with all crossover/wagons, the rear visibility could be better, but blind spots are managed well the old-school way, with concave insets in the side mirrors.
Features
Loaded to the gills, my Limited-trim AWD Venza cracked the 40K mark: $41,740 after freight and before taxes and levies. That's quite a bit, considering Toyota's pricing on the Highlander.
You do get a lot though: a 13-speaker JBL audio system, LED running lights, push-button start and keyless entry, leather seating with power for driver and passenger, Bluetooth audio, and navigation.
Official fuel economy is rated at a just-OK 12.8 litres/100 kilometres city and 9.3 l/100 km for the V-6; the four-cylinder will do just over a litre better in town, and about the same on the highway. Observed fuel economy for mixed driving was right at 11 l/100 km, which is actually very good.
Green light
Comfortable seats; spacious rear seating and cargo; reliability should be very good.
Stop sign
Dated interior; ride compromised by huge wheels; no standout technology.
The checkered flag
A practical people-mover with panache; the bones of a station wagon in a nicer package.
Competition
Subaru Outback ($27,995): New for 2015, the Outback has polished off nearly all the edges of its once rough-and-tumble image to be an on-road charmer. The CVT is perhaps less charming with the four-cylinder, but the fuel economy is really quite good.
The Outback can't be hurried (at least not in standard four-cylinder mode) but provides Lexuslike interior quality, and a very smooth ride. The all-wheel-drive system is, as expected, among the best out there. The ground clearance is very good but it works just fine on pavement too.
