The Camry — America's best-selling car for the past 15 years — has a reputation for being conservative.

But the 2018 Camry is pretty radical.

For one thing, it's still available with a V-6 engine, an engine all of its immediate rivals (including the Honda Accord) have abandoned. Also, the Camry standard engine isn't turbocharged, something almost all of the engines in rival sedans including the Accord are.

But that doesn't mean it's not powerful. In fact, it's more powerful than rivals' engines.

Also radical is the restyle. The new Camry doesn't blend in, which Toyota hopes will turn the heads of millennial buyers to secure the Camry's future as Toyota's best-selling sedan.

What It Is

The Camry is the most popular family sedan on the road by the number sold.

Base price is $23,645 for the L trim equipped with the standard 2.5-liter engine and eight-speed automatic transmission.

A top-of-the-line XSE V-6 sticker is $35,100.

What's New

The 2018 Camry is a 180 in attitude, appearance and performance — in a word, everything. Almost nothing carries over except the name.

What's Good

It's no longer just the sensible choice.

It has a powerful standard engine.

Even more powerful is the optional V-6 engine, a type of engine that rivals like the Accord, Mazda6 and Hyundai Sonata don't offer anymore.

What's Not So Good

It has about an inch less back-seat legroom than the old Camry.

The trunk gets smaller.

Sedans including the Camry are losing sales to crossovers, which offer much more cargo capacity and all-wheel drive, which neither the Camry nor any of its family sedan rivals offer.

Under the Hood

The Camry offers both four- and six-cylinder engines, which used to be common in this class but has become exceptional.

Standard equipment is a 2.5-liter four-cylinder that has 206 horsepower. The Honda Accord has 192 horsepower for the standard and much smaller turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine. It isn't surprising that the Camry's larger engine makes more power, but it is surprising that it's more economical. It gets an estimated 29 mpg in the city and 41 mpg on the highway, whereas the 1.5-liter engine-equipped Accord gets an estimated 29 mpg city and 35 mpg highway. Honda does offer an efficiency upgrade that boosts this to 30 mpg city and 38 mpg highway, but it's still not as good as the Camry delivers and it costs extra. The Camry gives you class-best fuel economy as a standard offering.

If you want a stronger engine — a bigger engine — Camry's got you covered. XLE and XLS trims can be ordered with a 301 horsepower 3.5-liter V-6. It is much more powerful than any of its rivals' optional turbocharged four-cylinders; it gets the Camry from zero to 60 mph in just over five seconds — best-in-class acceleration. Mileage with the V-6 is 22 mpg city and 33 mpg highway.

Both Camry engines are paired with a new eight-speed automatic transmission.

On the Road

The Camry has become a supercar.

It is quicker — and faster — than the Mustang Cobra R Ford loaned me back in 1995. That car was a race car, just barely street legal and sold only to people who possessed an Sports Car Club of America road racing license. It not only didn't have air conditioning; it didn't even have back seats. And it only had 300 horsepower from a 5.8-liter V-8.

The Camry not only blows its doors off; it has two more doors, back seats and climate control air conditioning.

The new Camry also has a wider track and longer wheelbase than the outgoing model, which improves the already superlative ride quality.

Forward visibility has been improved by lowering the hoodline 1.6 inches and relocating the windshield A pillars and B pillars so they are less in the way of the driver's line of sight.

You sit a bit lower, too, which enhances the sporty feel of the car and will appeal to the younger demographic Toyota is hoping to attract.

At the Curb

The new Camry is lower and wider and — let's just say it — sexier. This is deliberate policy. Toyota says it wants people to tell the Camry apart from other cars from as far away as 200 yards.

It succeeded. This Camry is a looker.

It is also the longest Camry so far, at 192.7 inches bumper to bumper, which makes it almost a full-sized car in everything but name.

Front-seat legroom increases to 42.1 inches versus 41.6 inches last year.

On the downside, back-seat legroom declines to 38 inches from 38.9 inches last year.

Also on the downside, the trunk got a little smaller, 15.1 cubic feet versus 15.4 cubic feet previously.

The Rest

A hybrid version of the new Camry is on deck, too, and delivers an estimated 52 mpg, an uptick of 30 percent over the previous Camry hybrid.

The Bottom Line

This radical redesign is just that: an automotive Hail Mary that Toyota hopes will not only connect with millennial buyers but also rekindle waning interest in sedans in general.

Eric's new book, "Don't Get Taken for a Ride!" is available now. To find out more about Eric and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.