Camper Trailers

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We just bought a camper trailer, and spent 18 months going to shows and talking to people about them, but the ones you are looking at were out of our price range :-(.

Some people on this forum will be able to help, but there is also:

www.campertrailers.org and thier associated yahoo group

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/campertrailers.

You will get some comprehensive answers there.

Best of luck in your new ventures.

They are all impressive trailers.

The KK would have to be the nicest looking and best finished camper on the market(excluding the really expensive ones like the Ultimate) but it comes down to how much your'e willing to pay? I bought a 2005 KK escape (but I'm not biased !!) for 20,000 and am VERY happy with it. Looked at Pioneer but thought final finish and attention to detail wasn't there. Looked at Odessey and although they were nice price was a bit high(but so are the dearest KK's ) If you look at the size of the chassis of a KK it is almost inderstructable. You won't get a bad camper out of any of these 3 just comes back to personal choice and dollars.

http://www.cootacampers.com.au/

If you want a great camper check out this one.

Richie,
I looked at the pioneer models very closely and came close to making a purchase and as luck would have it saw an add in the local rag for Kimberley campers at Swansea - looked at them -went back to pioneer and compared - went back to swansea and ordered the kimberley argyle model- very happy with it even if it weights more than the pioneer - no comparison on quality etc. I think that resale might be an issue.

Hi Ritchie1770,

It just happens that we are about to sell our Australian Offroad Camper - Odyssey ZR 2003. Our health situations have changed.

It has travelled about 35000kms and comes in near perfect condition with a range of 'extras'

We searched for about two years before we settled on the Australian Offroader.
The only three which we considered were the Cape York, The KK -top of the range only and the Odyssey. Off forum I can tell you why we went with the Odyssey.

We did a three month trip from the Sunshine Coast to Broome via Lawn Hill, Mt Isa etc and then back via the Gibb River Road and the Savannah to Cairns with some very interesting side trips.

Have a look at www.Australianoffroadcampers.com.au and/or give me a call 0418883609

Kevin Johnston

Try a Track Trailer Tvan or Jurgens Xpedition. We had our TVan for 4yrs and the Jurgens for 6 months. Both are excellent camper trailers. The KK we found very nose heavy (ball weight - 160kg), the TVan is also nose heavy (140-150kg), whilst the Xpedition is about 100kg. Makes a huge difference when towing. Once the twins have left the nest, we maight go back to a Tvan or Jurgens Oryx.

Hi Richie,
We bought a new KK Limited Edition last year and just love it. We would have been just as happy with a cheaper model KK except for ONE thing. That Gull Wing box on the front is the most convenient storage option we had seen anywhere. You just open up either side gullwing and you can see all the stuff you have stored in there without having to stretch up or pull things up an out and you don't have to reach in all the way to the bottom of a storage box with a lid on the top. You also don't have to drag your clothing/ribs over the edge of the box and gas bottles and jerry cans getting dust/mud all over your shirt.

Gull wing box is just fabulous for storage and as Julie says when your camping...if it's too hard...it's not an option.

We opted for the Aluminium upgraded Gull Wing box instead of the standard steel construction as it is 50 KG lighter meaning less ball weight on the tow vehicle.

Just our observations...hope it helps
Cheers
Rick n Julie

go for the kimberley escape or sports rv they have independent suspension & australia wide service agents solid chassis & in 3 years sell it for what you payed for it because in the end you do get what you PAY FOR [no i dont own one]

Hi,

I have the bottom end hard floor Pioneer. A mate has a Campomatic. There is no doubt that there is some difference in build quality between the Pioneer and his but not that much. Positives are that they are cheaper for similar spec units of other brands and much lighter. Keep in mind the weight it makes a big difference off road.

I know that the agent in Brisy has the Pioneer Onyx that's been used as a demo for a couple of months and he's willing to sell it for cost. If you want his details let me know.

Also have a look at the newsagency for the Camper Trailer guide - it covers around 30 CTs - all up and only about $6.

Can't speak on the latter two, but the KK is good overall - has everything you need and holds its value well.... the gull-wing box is a winner IMO. Can't see you having any negs there, other than the spare being right under the body of the camper - a real bugger to get out at times - one forumite mentioned having to dismatle the underside to get the spare out because the winder was siezed with mud and stones ! We nearly ordered the KK but went with a Campomatic (the same formula) because the ball weight was much less and suited our vehicle a lot closer - get yourself fully up to speed on the KK's ball weight implications, if you want to go that way.
The Aussie swag also interested us, but we went "off" the kitchen system .... a great quality product though, and the owners were very helpful people. If the Pioneer and the Odyssey are quality hardfloors, resale / trade-ins should not be much of an issue if you want to change later........ hell ........... there are hoards of trailer makers now.

Hi

If you are thinking KK, have a close look at Aussie Swag first
Very similar design but Aussie Swag IMO
cheaper
better kitchen arrangement
light ball weight
2 awnings small for O/N, and large awning for long stays, much easier to put up than KK
seperate sun awning to keep heat off roof
good people to deal with, you buy direct from maker
better brakes

had ours for 3 years and really pleased, no probs

have fun shopping but I guess if you stick to the 3-4 major names you can't go far wrong

We looked at them all and chose the Aussie Swag.
Why??
It suited our needs (work out what you want and then tick it off as you look) and we got to speak with the people who build them and have done so for 20 years. And then when we actually went to their workshop/outlet we were even more impressed.
cOncur with the comment above. Get onto campertrailers.org and look at their list of tips for buying a camper. Then, if necessary, ask a question and you will get lots of replies. Great group.
Rusty

The choice of a CT is very much a personal issue and I feel it not essential to "bag"
any product. For the record we spent almost two years looking and building the profile of what we were going to use the CT for and what we wanted in terms of features. Soft floor vs hard floor. Power supply. Water capacity. Tyre size
Much is to be gained from reading forums such as this and filing away the snipets of info which come along. When we were looking KK was having some real poor press about reliability and service issues and we have had these issues confirmed in discussions at beer o'clock sessions particularly in the far north west. They- the KK sales people - also tried to decide what we wanted and were not prepared to talk any issue eg.about drawbar length to accommodate the large rear door of our Pajero or fitting tyres to match. The Odyssey has a full queensize bed - not truncated at corners and space at each side to put reading material glasses etc. Reading lights are the best. Clothes storage drawer underbed in s/steel. Roll out s/steel kitchen with h/c flicmixer to s/steel sink. And the best of all the unit is completely dustproofed. I hate sleeping in dust. The other one we considered was a Cape York and again the differences came down to personal assessment of what was 'lacking'. We believed we knew what we wanted but the salesman tried to foist us with a demonstration unit and told us why we would not need the model we chose. Also the Odyssey has a full width step built in for bed access which doubles as storage for the annex poles. All hoops S/steel. Special matting for annex floor included Gas hot water system. External shower with H/C water. 120 litre water tank. It was these little things which made our decision easy and the fact that it was some $8000 cheaper than the top KK at that time.
The other big issue was the fact that it was built at Caloundra just down the road and all dealing was with the owner/designer.
There are many good CTs out there and some that are better than others. Ours is great for two people but would be inadequate for a family of say 4 or more. Horses for courses.

Kevin

We chose the 2005 KK Classic for a number of reasons that fell in line with our personal preferences and price range. The competition was pretty good and the choice was not easy. Some of the positives I have found since ownership include:
A truly dustproof shell, even in the red dust of the outback.
Easy to tow with good tracking over gravel.
A decent bed - I’m 194 cm!
Easily accessible kitchen for road side stops.
Adequate water tank with both manual and electric taps.
Good ventilation in the tent.
Optional tropical roof – it should be standard in this country.
It will erect (without annex) in five minutes and fold up in about ten.
The annex takes a little time but is worth it for longer stops. I would probably recommend the optional zip on sunroof that may be left attached when folded.
The 70-amp hour battery pack is sufficient for at least three or four nights if you run your fridge off the dual battery set-up in the tow vehicle.
We have towed it about 15,000 km behind a 3litre TD Prado with an average fuel consumption of 14.7 l/100 km. It has been through outback Queensland, the gulf country and the Victorian alps. I think it’s the ducks guts!