Toyota Dolphins are
really nice; top of the line as far as class C campers go. Prior to getting my current RV I had my heart set on a Dolphin of a similar make and year. But as ped, said, I soon realized they're hard to come by, and are overpriced. The long hood of the Toyota truck is also a little inconvenient; extending 3.5 feet out from the camper body and making city or lot parking difficult/impossible even with the smallest Dolphin.
I ended up with a very small 76 Dodge Superior with a very Dolphin-esque interior, that I bought for about 1/4th the price, and far less length with the flat-nosed dodge van base.
Also, don't be discouraged outta buying a class C. I spend around 80% of my time in cities in my Class C; and I get harassed far less than when I lived in a stealth van. I've found that being conspicuous is a lot better than being suspicious; and a dirty traveller kid sneaking in and out of a van at odd hours or dumping piss into the gutter or trying to operate a rocket stove was the surest way to raise suspicions of locals and depending on the neighborhood, have the cops called. When you stick out and walk around openly like you belong; you seem less out of place. Sometimes I even knock on the door of the house I'm parked outside of after a couple days and say "Hey, I just thought Id introduce myself; I live in that RV, and I'll be parking here a few more days, in case you were wondering what was up. If you need anything, just ask." Aside from that; most folks seem to assume only a "respectable folks", like a retired elderly couple, would be parking in the middle of public view. The cops have only given me problems once since I've lived in my Class C; and a neighbor I had spoken with the previous day actually rushed out to tell the cops to leave me alone, that I resided there. The pigs promptly left and the person apologetically invited me in for dinner. I've stayed overnight for multiple nights in cities including Chicago, Champaign, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, St. Louis, Evansville, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Louisville, Memphis, Nashville, Savannah, NOLA, various cities in Northern/Central FL, Richmond, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, DC, Brooklyn, Boston, & Denver and I've managed just fine. The key is to outsmart the law, pick good parking places, be tactically open about what youre doing, and never spange/panhandle/steal/scam in the immediate vicinity of where you're planning to park for any extended period of time.
As far as gas mileage; I get around 13-16 MPG depending on if I'm on a highway or in a city.
My beast:
