kimberley karavan

I looked at buying one 12mths ago , it had discovery wheels fitted , i enquired at the manufacturer if the hubs could be changed to suit landcruiser rims , reply was no , have to change suspension arms etc , cost in excess of $3000 , also to get annex walls made they advised i would have to bring the van to the factory to have it tailor made (interstate for me ).

If you find one that is right for you i believe they are a top unit ,

Tim, depending on wheel offset, I think they weren't giving you the whole story.
Easy enough to change hubs on any sort of axle, but they probably didn't want to go outside their "normal" course of doing things.

Same with canvas additions, but any good quality canvas maker could have done the job !

Great unit, and if I had the coin, they would get a serious look at ...

Gronk is on the money re the wheel offset.

If changing wheels and the offsets are the same then you can just change hubs.

If the offsets are different, then the swing arms have to be changed.

Alternatively, leave the wheels alone, even if they're different from the tug. Not ideal, I know, but in 8 years of outback travel that has never been a problem for me. I carry 2 spares for the car, one for the Karavan. I rationalise that as one for each axle.

Kimberley's Bedouin awning for the Karavan is a bit special but very nice.

You can get smaller conventional awnings made up with a quality poly tarp or canvas, with or without walls - your choice. Many in our club use a bag awning such as Fiamma Caravanstore 3.1. Perfect fit, easy setup for single overnights and easily removable to sailtrack on the other side if you want to replace it with a full awning for a long stay.

Advice for the OP - since you're looking for second hand try and find a 2009-2010 LE model with the long hatch in the floor that enables easy access to the lifting system for inspection and maintenance. Later models did away that and access is from underneath, after dropping water tanks. Too damned hard for my liking.

Karavans are pretty power hungry. If you can find one with a lithium battery conversion you'll be ahead of the game.

Cheers

Not necessarily, it depends on wheel offsets & clearances behind the wheel. I can't fit Toyota rims to my Tvan that was factory built with Nissan rims, as they would foul on the shock absorbers.
I also think that if I put a Nissan rims on my AORC Quantum they would protrude well past the body line.

Yes the offsets were different hence the cost quoted to change the swing arms , but as i said a top unit.

What didn't the missus like about it ?

Unless someone intends to do a lot of outback/4wd type trips, buying a hybrid type van is probably a waste of money.

Me personally, I have access issues at home, restricting a van to less than 2m wide and no more than 2.1m high, and less than approx 4.5m long.

Doesn't leave me with many options ( currently have a Lifestyle AT10 ), so it will always be a compromise with me. If I had the money, the KK would be high on my list !

John
I had the opposite experience with the Kimberly factory a couple of years ago with my Kamper which developed compounding problems due to a failed shock absorber 120km from Bamaga. Despite being years out of warranty I couldn't praise the staff highly enough, sourcing & making parts up same day and shipping them to Bamaga, so much so I bought them a case of good beer a few months later when I passed through Ballina!
Mark

Yes, I have found similar with out-of-warranty help from both the factory and my dealer, Express Campers in Unanderra (suburb of Wollongong). Excellent people.

Cheers