Caravan Advice Needed
Submitted: Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 18:17
ThreadID:
37782
Views:
2694
Replies:
5
FollowUps:
4
This Thread has been Archived
Pajeroman
My wife an I are planning a trip around oz for 12 months. Previously we had a
soft floor camper trailer which was great but not for a year. Also have hired a
hard floor aussie swag for 3 week trip, god but again not for a year,
So we know we need a caravan of some sort, pop top seems the go. However there seems to be really three types. The first is purely on road, the second is serious off road and the other is a sort of on road hybrid with slighly heavier chasis and more ground clearance. I would feel comfortable towing the hybrid up the Oodnatta Track or the Strezelieki Track (pardon the spelling).
Are these tracks similar to what we could experience in the north of WA and up in the gulf area. We propose leaving the van occasionally and getting into the tent for a few nights here an there to see some of the more out of the way
places.
What is everyones opinion. Very interested any any other tips people migh have, we are experienced travellers but not with a van.
Reply By: Notso - Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 18:30
Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 18:30
I have done the
Oodnadatta with a mate who had a standard road going Golf Van.
We did it with the camper trailer. We then went on to the
Gibb River Rd and depending on the time of year it is pretty much the same as the
oodnadatta. We saw a number of standard Pop Tops and some Bushtrackers and an occasional standard van on it
Any of the "Hybrid" type vans will do both of these tracks as long as you take your time and have good tyres and the right pressures.
If you want to do the Bungle Bungles and such I'd reckon you should leave the van behind. You can leave a van at Drysdale station to do
Mitchell plateau etc.
AnswerID:
194945
Follow Up By: Pajeroman - Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 18:38
Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 18:38
Great, thanks for help.
FollowupID:
453008
Follow Up By: Aandy(WA) - Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 20:55
Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 20:55
Yes I agree leave the van behind if the going gets tough. Tracks like the
Oodnadatta Track are 100kph gravel roads and not to be confused with "off road" travel. Last time I was on The
Oodnadatta Track I saw "Commodore" type cars towing normal road vans without problems.
FollowupID:
453045
Reply By: kimprado - Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 22:26
Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 at 22:26
There are only two manufacturers who provide anything resembling
Off Road caravans.
Current day caravans are designed for the black top and have no place on ungraded roads full of corrugations. I can assure you that a caravan is not suitable for rough conditions.
By all means, make the purchase, but leave it in a caravan park. Then explore.
One other thing people don't consider is resale value. Travelling in the Outback can result in Iron Oxide damage.
This generally occurs when dust is deposited on a vehicle and subjected to heat. Once baked on you will have no hope of removing it.
Hope this helps.
Regards
Kim
AnswerID:
194981
Follow Up By: Trevor R (QLD) - Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 20:46
Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 20:46
Just out of curiosity, who are the two manufacturers that build "Off road vans"? In your opinion and why do you think there is only two?
Thanks, Trevor.
FollowupID:
453260
Reply By: Member - Doug T (W.A) - Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 01:55
Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 01:55
You won't have any problems on the tracks names including the
Birdsville Track .But do make sure if your driving a station wagon type vehicle Troopcarrier/Pajero/Patrol to cover the rear window with something so as to prevent it being broken by stones bouncing back of the caravan, some years ago I used beer cartons and just stuck it on with tape,
Doug
AnswerID:
194998
Follow Up By: Mr Fawlty - Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 18:01
Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 18:01
Wise tip Doug, very wise....
FollowupID:
453228
Reply By: Arkay - Adelaide - Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 09:57
Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 09:57
Our beautiful airconditioned tandem caravan never goes off the bitumen further than a few very slow km to get into a National Park or the like. We ""bush"
camp with it about 2 nights out of 3 when travelling around. When we want to 4WD, which is often & serious, we leave the van at the local Caravan Park (cost is normally from nil to max. $10 a day) and use the "chuck out" tent for between 1 to 10 days (chuck out because you just chuck it out of the 4WD and pop the sleeping bags in). For example to vist
Chambers Pillar or Mt Dare we would leave the van at
Alice Springs. To visit Maree or
Level Post Bay we would leave the van at
Leigh Creek. To visit
Bell Creek Gorge we would leave the van at
Fitzroy River Retreat. This works for us.
AnswerID:
195031
Reply By: ChrisO - Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 18:52
Monday, Sep 18, 2006 at 18:52
I have a Trakmaster van for sale that would suit what you are looking for.
Check out the Trader section of this site. It would comfortably go any of the tracks you mentioned.
Whatever you decide to buy I would suggest it has a heavy duty frame with independant
suspension. I have seen other more standard vans rattle apart on some outback tracks.
AnswerID:
195134