Is there anything the Toyota Hilux can’t do? Made over at least eight generations, economical to run, sold worldwide … and transformed here into a camper by California company Chinook Mobilelodge, the Hilux proved its versatility for decades. The Chinook camper has roots in one-off, garage-built customs extending back to the ’60s when the Hilux first hit our shores. Gary Lukehart, working at Chinook, ran with the idea and designed a lightweight camper shell for installation on a mini-pickup, and the Toyota Round Tripper was born. Toyota took notice and signed a contract with Chinook in 1971 to produce the mini motorhome (anyone know what other Toyota adventure-vehicle was made a decade later with Winnebago?) This example, from 1976, is in factory condition with an odometer reading 22,000 miles – believed to be original. It’s had just three owners and can be retrieved from Ventura, California.
This engine is Toyota’s 20R 2.2-liter four-cylinder, good for about 97 hp; it’s paired with a four-speed manual gearbox. The seller reports that the truck runs and starts well. It even passed its California smog test. The 20R represented an evolutionary leap from Toyota’s earlier R-series, with a new crossflow head, tougher timing chain, and stronger bearings. This is the motor that built Toyota’s reputation for reliability. Meanwhile, another evolution was afoot: the Round Tripper, situated on a long-wheelbase half-ton Hilux frame, gave way to a stouter frame for increased safety and rigidity. The wheelbase grew to 110″. Handling improved. In 1975, the Round Tripper name was dropped to emphasize that the Chinook camper was an improved product.
The seller notes that the camper interior is in near-new shape, with items like the child’s bed in the cab-over still present, the privacy curtain that separates the cab from the camper stored under the seats, and the pop-top in excellent condition. The Chinook is sold with a host of original documents. The cab interior is similarly nice, with clear gauges, and not a mark on the dash. The only flaw is the refrigerator’s electrical cord, which is untrustworthy. Consequently, the fridge has not been tested.
This Toyota-Chinook is listed here on eBay, with bidding at $6000, reserve not met. A similar Chinook (also in Ventura, California but not the same VIN) sold a year ago for $16,750. Prices have been rising with the increased popularity of both Japanese cars and “van life” vehicles recently. Have you ever owned a Chinook? Let us know in the comments section!
Drove a 87 or 88 22re dual wheel version in Appalachian ,Automatic, story to be continued….
Ha, ha, nice try, but I’m over that, thankfully. With all the mishigosh in the world, I’m going to sit right here.Traveling today, most will admit, is the worst experience. I hear it all the time, “how did the trip go?” and that opens the floodgates as to what a nightmare it was. What I would be possibly interested in doing, is very, VERY short camping trips. 7 miles to the hills. I live in a place where I could easily do that. This would be perfect. To drive this any distance, however, would surely be one of those nightmares. It sure looks clean, I see filthy ones going for about $1500, or a mechanical issue makes them unsellable. These are horribly underpowered, so there goes your 19 mpg, foot to the floor in 3rd with a stiff head wind at 41 mph, should have dual wheels on the back, why? When it happens, you’ll know, with the next stop at Walmart for new undies.
At the time, it was clearly a novel idea, as most motorhomes then were repurposed dump trucks. I read, these new cost around $$7800 new, and with options, heater, $130, power converter, $135, Fridge( a biggie) , $350, and extra beds, $180, so it could easily be over $8 grand, which was still a lot less than a Winnebago Mini-Winnie, at almost $11grand.
Don’t let me bum you out, camping is the universal getaway for anyone looking to do so. Just don’t go too far, trust me on that.
I rented a 27 foot (about) RV in Germany, dropped off a rental car in the Netherlands, drove onto Belgium, Luxemboug, Southern Germany,Austria, Switzerland and back to Germany. The trip was a trip from………………
Never again!
Went up a tertiary road in the Black Forest, thankfully did not meet anyone coming down. No center line, no shoulder, no guardrail. Ditch was 500 feet deep, otherside a cliff straight up from the edge of the road. A motorcycle came up behind me and would not pass, and I had moved right as far as I could go and it still would not pass. Went through a town gate with mirrors folded and 1 inch clearance each side. Those were the easier comments, other than someone hit and ran away.
No thanks.
What Howard said, also not enough floor space to put my metal Colman cooler, had to downsize..
No thanks, over $7k for half a tent is to much money, Personally I would rip the camper shell off and build it into a flat bed.
The good news: 16 miles per gallon.
The bad news: the top speed is 16 miles an hour.
That’s terrible, I rented an 27 foot (about) RV in Germany. It was on a Fiat chassis with a 4 cylinder diesel. After all conversions about 30-31 miles to the gallon including many mountain passes.
Wow, so many haters. My two cents after decades of camping in tents and a class a motorhome and almost everything in between is that this is a great size camper for a couple or a single person. Everything has gotten so ginormous today. Something like this is in the sweet spot – more comfortable and secure than tent camping and small enough to fit in regular parking spaces.
I had a friend (George RIP) in Naples, Florida that bought one of these. Him and his wife sold their house and hit the road. They made it to somewhere in Georgia and decided to buy another house and stay put. I guess motorhome living didn’t fit so well for him and his wife (Joyce RIP) after giving it a try.
God Bless America
What, no mention of an LS transplant? Even a 302 would do the trick (might be the best thing due to smaller dimensions. I thought about buying one of these, but the first time I got in and out of it, that overhang over the door turned me right off.
Wow Howard, you might need new friend. Just about everyone I know who travels, loves it. Sure we all encounter some problems, but that just makes our stories more interesting. I’ve always liked the idea of these campers (smallish footprint and decent fuel economy) but it seems like too much of a load for this small truck. A VW bus would have almost as much room, and would hold its value better (for now at least).
Hi RexFox, it’s true, I could use a friend, but few have the, um, outlook on life that I have. You must consider, I drove a lot and driving for me is no vacation. Those “interesting stories” you mention, are nothing but another PITA for me, and I have a couple. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a sweet little unit, I got a rather nice tent at a yard sale, but camping on the ground isn’t for me anymore. These are safe from weather, critters and not an ultimate behemoth you can’t maneuver. The biggest problem I see today with traveling, is you are always a stranger, and strangers tend to get the shaft. Heaven help you if a breakdown in an unfamiliar place happens, and with a unit like this, it’s entirely possible. I heard of vacations RUINED by a mere mechanical breakdown. It’s not 1976 anymore.
i was the sales manager at Valiton AMC JEEP in Toledo Ohio during the late 1970’s and we sold both the Chinook on the Toyota chassis as well as its big brother that was a full size on I believe a GMC chassis. Loved the Toyota version, was very easy to raise the top for standing near upright. Don’t remember the exact selling price but believe it was under $8000.
A friend of mine who was a master mechanic at our
local Toyota dealer told me that you had to be careful
when using a lift to work on them as there’s a lot of
weight behind the rear axle.