For nearly 20 years, various manufacturers made the Toyota motorhome in various models. During its heyday, this little camper was made in over 60 different RV models and styles.

Beginning with the rather small Toyota Chinook motorhome and continuing with Toyota’s larger Winnebago and Itasca models, the Toyota-based motorhome helps establish many manufacturers in the recreational vehicle industry.

Due to the large number of manufacturers, it is not uncommon to see similar motorhomes and very different names. The small overall size had to limit the variety of floor plans available. This caused many of the manufacturers to build virtual duplicates that varied only in a few details of fit and finish.

It wasn’t long before manufacturers began expanding the size of caravan bodies. Using conventional manufacturing techniques found in the travel trailer industry, aluminum clad rod and clevis type of construction became the standard.

In the 1980s, Toyota motorhome production peaked. Many different companies were producing many different models. Some of the biggest companies that were in this business were National RV, the producers of the very popular Dolphin series. They also produced the Seabreeze models. At the same time, Winnebago was producing the upscale Brave, Warrior, and Itasca Spirit models.

The Damen Corporation of Elkhart Indiana produces the Escaper RV, while Coachman produced the popular Coachman and Savanna models. Leisure Odyssey was building Americana, Santa Cruz and Laguna campers.

The Mini-Mirage was built by Mirage Industries, while the still very popular SunRader was built with a fiberglass body by Gardener Pacific.

By the late 1980s, the camper’s body length had expanded to 22 feet. This caused a serious overload problem in the original axle of the half-ton truck. The United States government issued a national security recall to correct the problem. Most models received a new one-ton axle. However, there are still some units available today that have an unsafe shaft. Caution is advised if you are looking at the 1980’s version of this very popular motor home.

In 1989 the V6 on the Toyota chassis appeared on the market. This power increase became very popular with caravan owners and production continued until 1994, when Toyota stopped supplying the van chassis to caravan manufacturers for safety reasons. Winnebago produced some of the last V6 versions in 1994.

During its production life, the Toyota motorhome enjoyed great popular success and was widely distributed throughout the country. Today, the largest number of roadside units seem to be concentrated in the East and West Coast areas, but these RVs will show up almost anywhere in the country.