We have been looking at vans and have taken a look at a new semi off road Exceutive Supreme.
We would love to hear from any owners that can give us any feedback. We have looked at the single axle 1890 with the new alucobond smooth cladding,however we are also considering what The dual axle version Would offer in terms of any advantages.
Cheers
Scoota
Possum3 said
11:12 PM Dec 28, 2017
Whatever van you choose ensure you obtain an accurate Weighbridge Tare also ensure your choice can comply with Caravan Council Compliance checklist www.caravancouncil.com.au/compliance
The van you mention has had some mentions on Lemon Caravans www.facebook.com/groups/lemoncaravansinaus/
I would prefer the dual axle model for better road control on heavy van.
You did not mention your Tow vehicle - be aware of GCM of your vehicle including occupants and all your gear. All Jurisdictions are now doing roadside weight compliance testing
Go into it with eyes open and ensure your Dealer is reputable. Follow the guidelines and you will get a good unit.
Look forward to meeting you out there.
Possum.
PeterInSa said
09:07 AM Dec 29, 2017
I could not see the payload in the Tandem Specs (ATM-Tare), I would be going for 650Kg minimum.
Peter
mullpadd said
07:59 PM Dec 29, 2017
HI Scoota,
We purchased a Supreme Executive 21 ft and picked it up in September this year.
We have done four small trips and all is good. We are very pleased with it.
I have a high level of confidence in the van but would not like to do much off road (ie on gravel) because I don't think any long van can handle corrugations without some impact.
Weight is an issueas with most/all vans. You don't get 400 kg to play with after you take into account awnings, water, etc so make sure you check weights carefully. This is not a criticism of Supreme specifically, it seems that all manufacturers do it. It would be nice if they gave you the weight without water, mattress, etc, etc.
We use the Andersen WDH and it works really well and saves a bit more weight over the other options.
Cheers
Tony
dieseltojo said
12:14 PM Dec 31, 2017
Scoota, I am not sure if it is or was made by the late Supreme caravan mob based in Frankston Rd Dandenong in Vic.
That place went broke and I put it down to poor product and poor customer relations. I am speaking only from my own dealings with them of course, others might have different points of view. They seemed to have just lost interest.
Drummer Boy said
08:45 AM Jan 1, 2018
I have a nearly 3 year old Executive. The basic van has held together very well. There were a multitude of minor problems which Qld agent referred me to original supplier which mostly were nowhere near Brisbane. I ended up taking care of problems myself. I accidentely ended up on the road from Hells Gate and west to Booroolola. Worst road I have every been on and when we found out it would take about 600 km to go round we continued. The van survived it with no more than dust entry. Rear entry step is far too low, after bending it too many times I am now in the process of making a removable step.
scoota said
01:45 PM Jan 1, 2018
Hi All
Thanks for posting, great feedback. The people that have commented who have the executive vans are they all dual axle vans? We donāt intend on going to far bush but will be spending time in some state forests for sure (and free camps areas). Supreme executive vans do look and appear solidly built for gravel to light corrugated tracks. We intend to rent out our place and travel for as long as we want to, intially for 1 year and then see from then on. We intend to purchase a van to be ready for later on in 2018, our intentions at this stage are to buy a new sx Dmax as the tow vehicle.
Cheers
Scoota
Ours is dual axle. Worth mentioning however is that dual axle vans apparently do not get into the sway situation as easily as single axle vans. Having towed single axle's and got into sway problems I would not go back to single again. Scared the hell out of me.
Check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nd-hUX8memY
We have ESC as well and so far (touch wood) towing is a breeze and trucks passing/overtaking do not cause much movement.
Dual axles also give a bit more flexibility if you get a flat on a road with no shoulders. Can maybe limp to a safer spot to fix.
PeterD said
11:44 PM Jan 2, 2018
mullpadd wrote:
Ours is dual axle. Worth mentioning however is that dual axle vans apparently do not get into the sway situation as easily as single axle vans. Having towed single axle's and got into sway problems I would not go back to single again. Scared the hell out of me.
Why? The main thing with sway is how the van is constructed. You need to concentrate your heavy items in the middle and not the ends. Dual axle do not contribute to more stable towing. People come to that conclusion because it is much harder to swing a van on its axle at rest. As soon as you get up to walking speed it is very easy to steer a van by hand. I have done it myself. In caravan yards it is not unusual to push vans around by hand if they have a good level hard surface. My 2 tonne van was pushed by two other blokes whilst I steered it. If the supposed stability of a dual axle disappears that much at walking speed, how much is left at normal travelling speeds - SFA.
Fifteen years ago a friend and I both changed our vans. He had a 19' Future Systems dual axle full van and changed it with the same size body with a similar model with minor internal changes with a single axle. In my case it was a 19' 6" Spaceland pop-top for exchanged for much the same layout 18' 6" single axle. Neither of us detected any change in the dynamics with our single axle vans. If you are going to compare changes in towing dynamics you need to have much the same thing with just a change of the number of axles.
If you don't have near identical vans you are not making a true assessment of the difference between twin and single axles.
-- Edited by PeterD on Tuesday 2nd of January 2018 11:45:04 PM
scoota said
01:45 PM Jan 8, 2018
Thanks every who has posted, it has been a very informative way of receiving information on such a important purchase
Cheers
Scoota
Hi,
We have been looking at vans and have taken a look at a new semi off road Exceutive Supreme.
We would love to hear from any owners that can give us any feedback. We have looked at the single axle 1890 with the new alucobond smooth cladding,however we are also considering what The dual axle version Would offer in terms of any advantages.
Cheers
Scoota
The van you mention has had some mentions on Lemon Caravans www.facebook.com/groups/lemoncaravansinaus/
I would prefer the dual axle model for better road control on heavy van.
You did not mention your Tow vehicle - be aware of GCM of your vehicle including occupants and all your gear. All Jurisdictions are now doing roadside weight compliance testing
Go into it with eyes open and ensure your Dealer is reputable. Follow the guidelines and you will get a good unit.
Look forward to meeting you out there.
Possum.
Peter
HI Scoota,
We purchased a Supreme Executive 21 ft and picked it up in September this year.
We have done four small trips and all is good. We are very pleased with it.
I have a high level of confidence in the van but would not like to do much off road (ie on gravel) because I don't think any long van can handle corrugations without some impact.
Weight is an issueas with most/all vans. You don't get 400 kg to play with after you take into account awnings, water, etc so make sure you check weights carefully. This is not a criticism of Supreme specifically, it seems that all manufacturers do it. It would be nice if they gave you the weight without water, mattress, etc, etc.
We use the Andersen WDH and it works really well and saves a bit more weight over the other options.
Cheers
Tony
That place went broke and I put it down to poor product and poor customer relations. I am speaking only from my own dealings with them of course, others might have different points of view. They seemed to have just lost interest.
Ask your agent about this.
Hi Scoota,
Ours is dual axle. Worth mentioning however is that dual axle vans apparently do not get into the sway situation as easily as single axle vans. Having towed single axle's and got into sway problems I would not go back to single again. Scared the hell out of me.
Check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nd-hUX8memY
We have ESC as well and so far (touch wood) towing is a breeze and trucks passing/overtaking do not cause much movement.
Dual axles also give a bit more flexibility if you get a flat on a road with no shoulders. Can maybe limp to a safer spot to fix.
Why? The main thing with sway is how the van is constructed. You need to concentrate your heavy items in the middle and not the ends. Dual axle do not contribute to more stable towing. People come to that conclusion because it is much harder to swing a van on its axle at rest. As soon as you get up to walking speed it is very easy to steer a van by hand. I have done it myself. In caravan yards it is not unusual to push vans around by hand if they have a good level hard surface. My 2 tonne van was pushed by two other blokes whilst I steered it. If the supposed stability of a dual axle disappears that much at walking speed, how much is left at normal travelling speeds - SFA.
Fifteen years ago a friend and I both changed our vans. He had a 19' Future Systems dual axle full van and changed it with the same size body with a similar model with minor internal changes with a single axle. In my case it was a 19' 6" Spaceland pop-top for exchanged for much the same layout 18' 6" single axle. Neither of us detected any change in the dynamics with our single axle vans. If you are going to compare changes in towing dynamics you need to have much the same thing with just a change of the number of axles.
If you don't have near identical vans you are not making a true assessment of the difference between twin and single axles.
-- Edited by PeterD on Tuesday 2nd of January 2018 11:45:04 PM