Decissions decissions

rosco532 · Senior Member

Decissions decissions

Baz421 · Guru

Hi guys,, welcome to forum. Haasts Bluff lovely place I was there for work about 10 years ago would like to go back one day.

Anyway to your question. In my experience in seeking a new van in 2007 we planned for 2 years and visited caravan shows etc, and I recommend you allow 3 days at Brissy show.

Day 1 look at everything, note what interests you and come back and look at these on day 2 discard the rubbish and make a short list of what you like.

Day 3 . Revisit your short list from day 2. See what they do internally and what you like inside. Marry what you like underneath the van (ie quality product) with what you like inside. Inside is the easiest because you can have it custom made (costs more) or an existing layout.

Historically manufacturers had "off road vans",,, now generally they don't,,, legal reasons I'd suggest. So I believe you will need to sort out what you need, whether it be van , 5th wheeler or truck style etc.

I would look at air bag suspension as a must for what you describe and where you intend to go and then chassis and suspension strength, protection under van from stones etc. So when you start to find things that you may like,,, GET UNDERNEATH FIRST. Be critical if it looks like it's thrown together and poorly built, with poor attention to detail, and with pipes and electrical wires and hoses a mess,,, move on.

Keep going and compare things,,, you will soon see what's better than the next, especially if you are relatively self sufficient and resourcefull, and living bush will give you some skills at this.

We went to 3 factories and watched them build vans (including ours),,,, a true eye opener. One made their own chassis and painted welds,,, why would you buy this rather hot dipped mass produced galvanised chassis, with a good reputation???

Write things down in a book,,,, never believe a single person,,, ALWAYS VARIFY INFO YOU GET.

Ask others as you are doing here,,, stop people travelling in the bush ask what works and what doesn't OFF THE BITUMEN.

You'll get there,,,, look look look and ask questions. As you get closer to a decision,,, then ask can you see how they build vans. If they say no walk away.

We go bush regularly so,,, Good luck, cheers Baz

-- Edited by Baz421 on Sunday 28th of April 2013 09:14:05 PM

ronnie and luigi · Newbie

Hi everyone smile My hubby and I are new to this forum so please excuse us if we do anything wrong cry At the moment we are both still working however Luigi will be retiring in a couple of years time and we want to, by that time, have a van or 5th wheeler and vehicle. At the moment we have an 80 Series which wont do at all to tow whatever we choose. So we have a lot of decissions to make in the next couple of years. At the moment we have a camper van and go away as often as possible in it. When we get our new home that will be it and we will travel for as long as we can and then live in it somewhere. We are going to the Brisbane Caravan show in June and hope to see something that will be suitable for us. What we are wondering is if the 5th wheelers are okay on dirt roads (not bush bush) we live at Ikuntji Community Haasts Bluff (250 ks outside Alice) and we have 100 ks dirt one way and 57 dirt the other way and is quite corrigated. Once we buy our home we will be travelling on the dirt road to go anywhere off community for trips, so we need to make sure what we get is going to suit our needs. When we start travelling we will still at times be going off road e.g. Plenty Highway, Tanami and roads like that. So are 5th wheelers okay for that and also wondering about slideouts. I would love one to give us more room while travelling and also once we cant travel any longer. However, I dont know if they take the rough corregated roads?? I have heard some negative stories in relation to slideouts but wasnt sure if it was just one of things? is there anyone out there that can answer the first of probably many questions lol. It is wonderful to be able to get experienced comments as I know when we go to the show they wouldnt be telling me probably the whole truth in relation to things that can go wrong :) thanks for your time guys it is very exciting to start the beginning of our journey, knowing eventually we will be out there with you guys as Grey Nomads :)

Rip and Rosie · Guru

welcome

briche · Guru

Hi guys, welcome to the world of the grey nomads. It's a wonderful life and you are starting on one of the most exciting phases of the journey. I might offer this advice, on the site ask any questioYs you need answers to. There are people here who will give you the information you need. That was our case when we were in your place and the way they responded to our needs was nothing short of amazing. All the best for your journey

Brian and Cheryl

Andrea · Senior Member

Hi, Ronnie & Luigi, and welcome -

When you visit the Brisbane Caravan Show, have a look at the Southern Cross 5th wheelers (and say hello from us!). They are built to go pretty well anywhere (we've seen photos of where the owner, Barry Beattie, has taken his!), with independent trailing-arm suspension and rolling-sleeve airbags, high clearance, and are not over-heavy - our 'prime mover' is a Mazda BT-50. We bought ours - our permanent home - in 2008 and wouldn't trade it for anything else. And we have no slide-outs - the layout that we decided on gives us plenty of room without.

Just something to consider... smile

Cheers -

Andrea & John

neilnruth · Guru

Welcome from us too ronnie and luigi. See how much useful advice you have already been given? We can't help with your question but others have. Great.

Landfall · Guru

Welcome.

An interesting fact for you to ponder on.

Very few people buy and keep there first RV for very long.

It is highly recommended by the experts that the first time buyer should purchase second hand so as that they can get the experience to know what they like and dislike, without losing a lot of money.

We kept our first van for 18 months and lsot a heap of dollars, the tow vehicle lasted just over two years , with the same results.

Our present van and tow vehicle, the replacements for number1, are now 7 years old and we couldn't be happier.

Ken

gordon_adl · Senior Member

Very interesting indeed. maybe a good idea to hire out a few times before deciding on a permanent van?

Landfall wrote:
Welcome.
An interesting fact for you to ponder on.
Very few people buy and keep there first RV for very long.
It is highly recommended by the experts that the first time buyer should purchase second hand so as that they can get the experience to know what they like and dislike, without losing a lot of money.
We kept our first van for 18 months and lsot a heap of dollars, the tow vehicle lasted just over two years , with the same results.
Our present van and tow vehicle, the replacements for number1, are now 7 years old and we couldn't be happier.
Ken

Tim thetruckie · Senior Member

Personally I would look very seriously look at a 5th wheeler . I would stay well away from the US imports . Look at the Aussie built units like Southern Cross http://www.southerncrosscaravans.com.au/ , Dryden and Im sure there are others .

I meet a couple back in 2008 at Camooweal with a Southern Cross 5er that were heading to NT to work in the community's (may have even been Andrea and John) . They were very proud of it and more than happy to show it off . It was a very well built unit .

Yuglamron · Guru

Hi Guys,

Just one thing from my perspective,The legal ramifications of buying an imported 5th wheeler second hand are a minefield. I recently read an article in "Caravan & Motorhome Magazine" about on selling 5th wheelers. Scary stuff from the legal angle. Might be worth checking out.

I would seriously look at the Southern Cross,from all reports I have heard they are a great product and a friend has a custom 36' towed behind an F350 4x4 dual cab with air suspension and an air suspended hitch.He has done the full lap a couple of times and swears by his.

There will be other reccomendations so enjoy the process of sorting what will suit you.

herbie · Guru

Was talking to a couple who owned a imported 5th wheeler,who were very unhappy with it, he was stuck in some place he told me for three days dur to very heavy rain,as he could not push the slide outs in ,due to the weight of the water sitting on top .He also told me they were a beast of a thing to turn( his words not mine ).

B-T · Veteran Member

There is no way that you could make a really informed decision in three days by visiting a show! The first things to consider is (1) Where you want to travel - bush roads - tar roads only - caravan parks always or some indepentent camping. (2) For how long you intend to travel - full time or just the occassional trip (3) What is you budget?

Then could could think about potential models that meet your above criteria - spend a lot of time on the internet doing reasearch. Finally, spend time in caravan parks and camping areas talking to EXPERIENCED owners who have traveled the sort of country you want to travel. Crawl under (good advice from a poster above) and through as many vans as you can

You will note I have not said visit a caravan show. The inexperienced caravanner will be butter in the hands of the highly skilled sales people. You will only hear good things (and lies - dammed lies) - even from manaufacturers (or Agents) of the poorer quality vans and there are plenty around. Ignore the glitzy finish and look at the manufacturing quality.

If you dont wan't to do the hard yards of research then go with Jayco. They make a reasonable van for a reasonable price and have the best warranty on the market. You will ahve to accept their one of their standard layouts. Expect a few small niggly problems but they will be fixed promptly under their warranty. Alternatively, if you have the cash, go for one the top brand machines - Bushtracker, Free Spirit or Spinnefex etc.

We were novices 10+ years ago - did 18 months of detailed research and have now had our first and only van travelling full time for 8 years, and there is nothing we would change.

Caveat Emptor

John

herbie · Guru

herbie wrote:
Was talking to a couple who owned a imported 5th wheeler,who were very unhappy with it, he was stuck in some place he told me for three days dur to very heavy rain,as he could not push the slide outs in ,due to the weight of the water sitting on top .He also told me they were a beast of a thing to turn( his words not mine ).It took me three vans before i got what i was happy with, and that was only because i had it made to my spec's. We trudged around c/van expo's for i do not know how long and all we came away with from them, was more confused and baffled brains.Best idea is to work out where and what you want to be useing the van for and go go from there.

Shuttlebugs · Veteran Member

Welcome from us too :)

I agree with taking time to research. We spent two years looking at other people's rigs, asking how things worked, trolling the second hand yards etc before settling with our second hand rig. We think it is great so far but are yet to test it over time.

I didn't realise most people don't keep their first rig for long, John. Interesting.

Landfall · Guru

Shuttlebugs wrote:
Welcome from us too :)

I agree with taking time to research. We spent two years looking at other people's rigs, asking how things worked, trolling the second hand yards etc before settling with our second hand rig. We think it is great so far but are yet to test it over time.

I didn't realise most people don't keep their first rig for long, John. Interesting.

HI,

I didn't realise it myself until I read it recently in a survey.

After our experience I now understand the reasoning behind the statement.

We spent a fair bit of time deciding on the brand and size of the first unit, (Jayco) 21' with shower/ensuite, etc, very respected (Toyota) 4wd, and as someone else posted, we where actually putty in the hands of slick salespeople. Glitz and glamour won us over, second rate quality on the van and poor performance with the Toyota lost us.

No amount of talking to other people, reading mags, trolling forums, attending shows will get you the right combination first up.

It WILL give you some idea of where to go in your choice, but until you have lived and breathed it for a season or two, you won't be 100% there yet.

For those people who say that they chose right first time, I guess I should admire you for sticking to it.

Ken

Andrea · Senior Member

Landfall wrote:
...
For those people who say that they chose right first time, I guess I should admire you for sticking to it.
Ken

We did do about 18 months of research, but no trial runs with anything. Then we went to the Brisbane show to see the one we thought looked best for us, as well as several others; we didn't see anything to change our minds. Southern Cross took us to their factory, then gave us tickets to return to the show the following day.

Four-and-a-half years later, we consider ourselves very lucky to have picked the right rig and layout first off; we're not just 'sticking to it' - smile - it's still just what we want.

Oh, and no, it wasn't us at Camooweal, Tim thetruckie! And welcome to the forum! smile

Cheers -

Andrea & John

Baz421 · Guru

B-T wrote:
There is no way that you could make a really informed decision in three days by visiting a show!
I don't think anyone would do this,,, and no one on this post has said that.
The OP said they had 2 years to choose,,, so they have planty of time.

Shuttlebugs · Veteran Member

Guess we'll know in a year or two or three then, considering we can't go a on a big long trip for awhile yet! biggrin

ronnie and luigi · Newbie

Thanks guys for your warm welcome and information. It seems that Southern Cross are proving to be a reliable and well built 5th wheeler, from some of your comments. I am still unsure about the slideouts as they definitely give the van more room. Luigi is very conscious that he needs to make sure the underneath is going to cut it. I think I turn off at times when he is in full "let me explain this to you " mode lol I am leaving that up to him and I will look after the inside :) We definitely will start chatting to people in caravan parks when we stay there. Luigi is the king of have-a-chat so will be easy for him to strike up a conversation:) Once again thanks everyone and will no doubt be talking to you all in the future :)

Baz421 · Guru

ronnie and luigi wrote:
Thanks guys for your warm welcome and information. It seems that Southern Cross are proving to be a reliable and well built 5th wheeler, from some of your comments. I am still unsure about the slideouts as they definitely give the van more room. Luigi is very conscious that he needs to make sure the underneath is going to cut it. I think I turn off at times when he is in full "let me explain this to you " mode lol I am leaving that up to him and I will look after the inside :) We definitely will start chatting to people in caravan parks when we stay there. Luigi is the king of have-a-chat so will be easy for him to strike up a conversation:) Once again thanks everyone and will no doubt be talking to you all in the future :)

Good luck with research and "avachat",,,, remember without the "underneath" it will not cut it.

-- Edited by Baz421 on Tuesday 30th of April 2013 09:10:43 PM