windsor rapid

gid'ay mick
it's not built for those conditions,don't do it mate.
regards toohey.

Hi Mickpaj. I took mine into the Karinjini camping area and the road was shocking but the van and contents lasted and didn't suffer any damage. I won't do it again though and only did it then as the ranger said the road was in good condition!
It may have been to him I suppose.
Good van but definitely not meant for that sort of condition.
Cheers.
Alan.

I have a 7 week old Rapid, and have towed it to Fraser Is no probs. I agree that it probably isn't built for serious offroad or corrugations, but the occasional rough road should be fine. I'd have my doubts about towing it to Cape York or the Canning stock route.
Captain however appears to have towed his all sorts of rough places. Look back on earlier posts- search under Windsor Rapid.

Hi Mickpaj,

I have the off-road version of the windsor rapid and have taken it on some pretty extreme conditions, this includes wiping off both sides off the van!

In a nutshell, I reckon the off-road windsor will go virtually anywhere it will fit. I have found its biggest problem is its sheer size and weight. It will not go where a camper trailer will simply because its too big and heavy (trust me, I've tried and lost!).

But as far as strength goes, it has 6" chassis rails with fully independent suspension with 7 leaf springs and treg hitch. I have never had a problem with any cabinent work after rough corrugated roads etc...

Check out my rig pics for a few shots of where its been. If you want any further info, just ask.

Cheers

Captain

PS. sorry for the late reply, have been in Europe for the last 4 weeks on holiday (tough, but someones gotta do it!!!)

I live in WA but do plan to do the Cape one day. However, I reckon I would park the van and tent it once I got to FNQ. From what i have seen of the Cape, it looks too tight, particularly the crossings.

Kedron took one of their vans to the tip (made a video) and they claimed to be the first to do so. From what I saw, they really had a hard time, not something I would want to do on a holiday.

From what I hear, while camper trailers do the trip, even they struggle depending on conditions. After my last episode of having the van resheeted on both sides, not quite as willing to be as hard core. I reckon the off-road chassis is up to it, but any aluminium sided van is just too soft, you need plenty of clearance if you don't want damage. The Windsor is just too big and wide for so many tracks, yet its relatively small for a van.

I am very happy with my van, but at the end of the day it will not go as far as a camper trailer due to its sheers size. I reckon the Rapid is the best compromise van of its type on the market, but if you want real off-road ability (read sand, mud, very tight overgrown tracks, etc...) you need a camper trailer IMHO. Its all about compromise, you simply cannot get everything in one package. But for corrugations or rough tracks (not overgrown), the off-road rapid is very good IMHO and provides an almost instant campsite setup with all the luxurys.

Having said all of that, I am currently contemplating selling my Rapid after I complete a 4 week trip to Queensland mid next year and getting a camper trailer, but not really sure what I will do longterm.

Cheers

Captain