Travel in the Toyota motorhome is a leisurely endeavor. Out on the road, these little campers are no speed demons.
They are slow to drive compared to the usual pace of the
passenger car. They are happiest when traveling under sixty
miles per hour but will make greater speed when pushed hard.
This increased speed will cost in fuel consumed however.
The gas milage is almost always in the 13 to 16 mpg range
with careful driving. The factors that affect this the most
are speed, wind, and terrain. The higher the speed, the
more fuel is consumed to force the large cabover through the
air. Add a mild headwind and you can plan on a long day of
slow progress.
These little motorhomes are easily overloaded.
Careful packing will help control the amount of weight that
the little truck will be hauling. Most of the models did
not have much carrying capacity. The manufacturers used
light weight materials in the construction of the units to
control the overall weight.
The freshwater and holding tank capacities are usually
around 20 gallons each so prolonged "bookdocking" is not
possible without careful water use practices
Over the years, some problems have emerged.
Perhaps the major problem of the early campers was the
inadequate rear axle used under the motorhome. A national
recall was issued to replace the axle with a much heavier
full floating one ton axle. Most of the campers had this
done but not all. Look carefully at the rear axle. If it
has only five lug nuts and a hub flush with the outer rim,
it is an unsafe half ton axle. The correct axle has six lug
nuts and the hub protrudes out into the wheel.
Another common problem with this style of motorhome is
leakage around the overcab front window. Typically, this
style of construction was prone to leakage and subsequent
dry rot in this area. If it is extensive, the unit may have
to be rebuilt. This is not usually a job for the average
owner to tackle and is best avoided.
Given these major problems, the drive train built by Toyota
for these motorhomes is very durable and dependable. It is
not uncommon now to find Toyota motorhomes with well over
100,000 miles on the odometer still going strong.
