Innehållsförteckning för Issue 553 från Caravan World

Wheels, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, South China Morning Post, 4x4 Australia and Motor. He began tow-testing on a 4WD magazine before joining CW as chief tow-tester and general tech-head in 2007. The caravanning bug bit soon after and he bought his first van, a 1979 Viscount Grand Tourer, which he restored before selling it. Phil now combines his love of all things automotive with RVs. Where’s your favourite place in Australia to visit and why? Kakadu National Park, NT. Steeped in Aboriginal history, a beautiful place to camp and with the best swimming holes I’ve ever seen. Your top mechanical tip for life on the road? Check, check and re-check the basics: fluids, tyre pressures and condition, van bearing heat and tension. What three things would you take…

It’s been a while since we’ve looked at Jayco’s premium pop-top, the Journey. For the 2016 model year, it’s been given a spruce-up inside with new fabrics, while outside, Jayco has splashed new graphics along its flanks. We’re looking at the 17.55-8 Touring model here, which has a 5.18m (17ft) body with a double bed layout (a 17ft model with two single beds is also available). There’s also the 4.88m (16ft) model, which doesn’t have a bathroom but also has a choice of a double bed or two singles. The Journey is built on a hot-dipped, galvanised chassis, which is well made with no weld spatter or rough joints. The C-channel lateral supports have cut-outs, which help to reduce weight, and the A-frame has a centre-mount jockey wheel, making life…

Queensland caravan manufacturer Bushtracker has earned a strong and impressive reputation for its offroad caravans. And because offroaders are the only type of vans this company builds, it has plenty of experience in that department. Casual observers might have the impression that Bushtracker caravans don’t seem to change much and, while that might be true in terms of the overall appearance and basic structure (when you are on to a good thing, why change it?), it is not the case with product development, which is constantly evolving. Indeed, the Bushtracker team spends a large amount of time on the road, not only testing its own gear but the supplied components as well. That might sound like overkill, but there are some products out there that don’t stand up to extended…

There have been a myriad of successful business partnerships from all walks of life in the world. And it would be fair to say that most have been based on a few core common denominators: clarity of vision, unswerving objectives and goals, and forward planning. Take for example Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google Inc.); Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak (Apple); Bill Gates and Paul Allen (Microsoft); and Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard (Hewlett-Packard). While Australian caravan manufacturing might not reach the same atmospheric heights as the aforementioned list, the burgeoning relationship between Essential Caravans in Campbellfield, Vic, and Ian Grant's Caravans in Traralgon, Vic, is founded on a similar tenet. And some would say that's been essential in their blossoming business partnership. Essential Caravans director David Wilson cut his…

MAMBI ISLAND Lower Ord River, WA Far downstream of the dam wall that turns the mighty Ord River into Australia’s largest man-made lake, the river finally runs free, turning briny on tidal reaches where anglers and barramundi meet. About 70km north of Kununurra, Mambi Island on the Lower Ord River is one of the best places to launch a tinny and the free campground on its grassy banks rates as of one of the east Kimberley’s best. It might be little more than a grassy clearing but its location can’t be beaten and there’s a concrete boat ramp for easy access to a wide stretch of the river. This surprisingly scenic spot may prove difficult to leave, so arrive with ample supplies of drinking water, firewood and food, and remember…

Hot on the heels of Al-Ko’s Enduro Outback independent suspension, which was launched late last year, the technological giant has again sprung into action, bringing a new, and lighter-duty, independent setup to market. The result is the Al-Ko Enduro Cross Country suspension and we tested it recently under a Nova Pride Platinum. However, Nova is not the first caravan maker to fit Enduro Cross Country; Concept has had a caravan running around outback Queensland to evaluate it, and many of the other major builders are looking at making it standard, or optional, on their premium models. The release follows Jayco’s bold move, in 2014, of fitting its new in-house JTECH independent suspension to all its range-topping, on-road Silverline caravans, as well as all Outback model camper trailers, pop-tops and caravans.…

Such a lot has happened since the last time I sat down to write this column, including three of the coldest nights I’ve ever spent without a heater. When I tell you that it was in the Mercedes dealer’s yard in Orange, NSW, you will know what I mean. So – how did I land in that predicament? Well, I’d left the wonderful free camp at the Richmond Club, headed up through the hills to Lithgow and then, somewhere between Bathurst and Orange, Yemmy lost power on the hills. Knowing that a loose or split vacuum hose often causes this, I stopped and opened the bonnet to investigate. I was busy shaking hoses when one of them came off and very hot coolant sprayed out over my hand, among other…

I have always been fascinated by the similarities between well-known dishes from different parts of the world. Rice is probably the most popular food source known to mankind. Very popular in Asia, it spread across the globe with explorers and colonisation. Incidentally, I’ve read that it may have originated from the wild rice of the Australian continent. This month, we’ll start with those who brought rice dishes to Spain and then travel with the Spanish as they introduced rice dishes across to the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. Easy Paella Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes The following quantities will serve four Handy Hint 1: Bomba rice is the absolute best for absorbing the flavours of the ingredients, but long grain rice is an acceptable alternative. Soaking…

You may well have noticed, when driving the highways and byways of this country, the proliferation of signage along the road sides – some, of course, are important warning signs alerting you to obstacles, the need to stop or a particularly sharp upcoming bend. But others seem less pertinent and CW blogger John Mack reckons the sheer abundance of signage on our roads has become a danger and a distraction in itself. “Beautiful road journeys are slowly being obliterated by more and more mindless road signs, mostly created by local authorities because they have a budget to spend and the great Federal Nanny State Authority in Canberra has determined that they erect signs to protect us from our own stupidity,” John writes. We’re interested in your thoughts on this. Is…

Melbourne’s Nova Caravans is very proud of its history in an industry where reputation and longevity are highly valued assets. That’s why its 2016 caravan range, marking Nova’s 10th anniversary, is so important. It’s a statement of not only how far the company has come in this relatively short time, but where it sits today and where it’s going. In this respect, Nova has led from the top in its new six-model range of touring and offroad caravans, and the latest Pride Platinum exemplifies what Nova wants to showcase about its products and its future. Since its introduction in 2011, when it won Caravan World’s Legends Series Luxury Caravan category, the Pride Platinum has been Nova's flagship and innovation leader. Back then, its wow-factor was its Al-Ko slide-out bedroom that…

We used an Isuzu MU-X to pull the Jayco, and it’s not the first time we’ve sampled the seven-seat Isuzu 4WD wagon. Like the last few times we’ve hauled a van with the MU-X, it was a pretty impressive tow tug. This isn’t a truck that overwhelms you with its abilities the moment you hitch up and drive away: it’s a slow-burn realisation that dawns on you as it quietly goes about the business of eating up the miles on tour. The MU-X towed without that gut-wrenching feeling that the caravan is about to push the whole rig off the road. No sway and only a small amount of pitching. This was the case on our last trip, with a 2600kg caravan behind, and the Isuzu barely felt the weight…

It can be hard to stand out from the pack, but New Age Caravans has gained a reputation for building vans that are a little different to the norm, which is a good thing in what is quite a crowded market. One of its latest offerings, the Gecko, is a testament to that, with its expanding front bed. Although not a new idea in itself, it offers the benefit of a decent living area in a relatively short caravan. My review Gecko was the 14ft model, which actually has an external body length of 4.8m (15ft 9in). It sits in the middle of the Gecko range, which also includes 13ft and 16ft models. One of its major assets is its low weight, with a Tare of 1650kg and an ATM…

Idon’t usually start a caravan review by mentioning the weather but, in this case, I feel it’s pertinent. Having collected my Swift Explorer 584 review van from its Unanderra, NSW, dealer David Carlon, I headed out to Lake Illawarra to put the van through its paces around the lake and to find a great lakeside location to take some photos. It seemed like a good idea at the time and I found a nice position for the van where the sun was in a good location and not hiding behind a cloud, the grass was flat and the lake was looking good. However, what I had not factored in on this otherwise nice, sunny day was the blustering south-westerly wind that was blowing across the lake. It became apparent very…

Year after year, the popularity of caravans continues to grow. According to the Caravan Industry of Australia, caravan registrations are up to almost 600,000 nationally, showing around five per cent growth since 2014. That’s despite a minor slowing in production recently, which, according to the association’s RV production statistics for March 2016, showed a 2.5 per cent decrease in production of caravans, and campers for the same period last year. Nonetheless, it’s fair to say that with registration numbers on the rise, the risk of caravan theft is growing also. Caravan industry statistics show that the biggest group of caravan buyers and, therefore, those that are most likely to find themselves hit by caravan theft, are families, but all owners are at risk to some degree. The difficulty is that…

In 2004, Ian Clark, a bricklaying contractor from Coffs Harbour, NSW, sat in front of a doctor. He was one of the lucky ones. He’d just survived a battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), an often-fatal blood cancer. The doctor asked him if he had any hobbies or interests. When Clark said he and his wife had often spoken of going travelling with a caravan, the doctor responded immediately, “Good, then that’s what you’re going to do from now on. I didn’t get you through this to go back to work”. Ian and his wife Kerry were no strangers to caravans. When they were first married, they lived in a Viscount caravan for three years, moving from their native Lismore down the coast to Coffs Harbour in search of work. As…

As I write this, the news of the Brexit referendum result is reverberating around the world. Now, I understand this is not a political column or magazine, so I am not going to debate the result here, but just point out that anyone who thinks we are not living in a global economy will need to think again! To give a specific example, not only does our local caravan industry use a variety of European-sourced components, but there are currently British-manufactured caravans and motorhomes available via importers in Australia and a larger range available across the Tasman in NZ. If the British pound keeps dropping, the price of these caravans and motorhomes may drop, too. Will that affect our local RV industry? Like the uncharted fallout from the actual Brexit…

Location Violet Hill, Great Lakes, NSW Gear Canon 1DX, 16mm, ISO 400, f5.6, 1/200th second Composition In landscape photography, the foreground is a vital part of composing a good image and can be captured in many ways. Handy hint Consider the angle you are taking the shot from and how this provides perspective. Taking a lower angle can change the feel and give a different perspective to an image. For this shot, I was low in the grass to capture its sweeping movement. Photographic fact Often, framing a subject with foreground elements helps draw the viewer’s eye toward the main subject and enhances it. In this example, it’s the opposite – the background is giving the context to the foreground, which is the subject of the image. When you arrive…

“Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing – absolutely nothing – half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats,” said Ratty from The Wind in the Willows. There’s a feeling of freedom generated by boating, in fact, it is more like an infectious disease. Combine fishing with boating and, like me, you’ll be hooked. Add a houseboat to the mix and you will feel more like Huckleberry Finn leaving the trauma of modern life behind in the rippling aquatic flow. Just like ol' Huck, simply cruisin' ‘n' fishin' on a raft gives me a feeling of calmness, peace and total relaxation. Boats extend your angling outlook and range exponentially, but houseboating brings the whole family or a bunch of mates to the soiree. Sure, it’s exciting…

UPSIZING ISSUES? Regarding Steve Shaw’s enquiry in the May issue (CW 551) regarding ‘upsized’ wheels, I was interested in doing the same to my Jayco Silverline as it has the factory under-slung suspension, but I know the compliance plate on my van has the size of the wheels stamped on it. I assume you would need to get a new compliance plate from your Jayco dealer after it has authorised the larger wheels. For insurance and roadworthy purposes, I would want to check this out before any changes are made. Look forward to CW magazine each month, keep up the great standard. Jeff Campbell Mackay, Qld Yes, I would confirm the legality of any proposed wheel change with your state roads authority, but there is no legal impediment I can…

There are many ways an adventurous caravanning couple can see our vast land. Some take the kitchen sink and are blissfully happy with all the comforts of home humming under the stars; some prefer the bare essentials, eschewing modern caravan comforts to commune with nature. But there’s a middle ground that Golf’s Savannah 499 really nails: a nimble, true offroader that combines all the essentials in a compact caravan, yet is light enough to be towed by most medium-sized 4WDs. With its mid-$50,000 price tag, depending on model and options, it’s little wonder that, until the arrival of the Maxxi last year, it was the most popular model in the Golf caravan range. The 499 has been around for just over two years now, with the buyer’s choice of either…

Bushmaster Caravans’ owner Terry Ryan adopts a unique approach to building offroad caravans. But his ideas and philosophies don’t simply emanate from left field; it's more a case of clear methodology and pragmatic thinking. And late last year, Terry’s strategy was to build what he claims is the toughest offroad caravan on the market. Enter the 5.18m (17ft) Ironbark – clad completely in checkerplate! That’s unusual enough in itself and, coupled with such a bold claim about its ability, I really didn’t know what to expect before seeing it in the flesh - but the Ironbark certainly emits a feeling of toughness and a sense of security when tackling the tracks. The full black checkerplate with white trim also has a unique aesthetic appeal that surprised me. And with all…

The large offroad SUV segment has been busy with both new and refreshed models launched in the past 12 months. We’ve already tested the new Toyota Fortuner (CW 549) and Mitsubishi Pajero Sport (CW 552), and now we’ve had the chance to hitch up a van behind Ford’s new entrant, the Everest. The Everest is based on the Ranger ute, so it has a body-on-chassis design, live rear axle, 3.2L five-cylinder turbodiesel and six-speed auto. The key difference with the Everest (aside from the obvious body change) is that the rear axle is suspended on coils in place of the Ranger’s heavy-duty leaf spring design and the 4WD system is torque-on-demand rather than the part-time system in the Ranger. ATTRIBUTES There are three Everest models: the entry-level Ambiente, mid-spec Trend…

Many years ago, Elizabeth and I took our kids for an outing in the Brindabella bushland west of Canberra. It was hot and, as they were only little tackers, they took it in turns to ride on my shoulders. I was much younger and fitter in those days but, nevertheless, playing the beast of burden in the midday heat soon had me gasping. The kids, meanwhile, were enjoying themselves immensely; so much so that, while the littlie was taking her turn to ride, she suddenly declared, “Bushwalking’s great fun”. And so it is – a fact recognised by many travellers and the national parks staff who maintain thousands of kilometres of walking tracks for our enjoyment. Over the years, we have tramped over many trails, with and without the kids,…

You don’t have to be a Rhodes Scholar to understand that solar is a natural, renewable power supply. It’s also a free energy source (following initial start-up costs) that is autonomous, flexible and silent. It is, therefore, an almost perfect solution to the power needs of caravanners. Quite simply, solar power is a maintenance-free process where the sun’s energy is converted to electricity (photovoltaic effect). But how can caravanners get the most out of this environmentally sustainable energy supply? USE A MPPT REGULATOR AND CONNECT PANELS IN SERIES Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) matches a solar regulator’s load to the voltage and current from the solar panel in order to achieve the greatest output power. It’s claimed many upmarket solar regulators with built-in MPPT technology can recover up to 20…

I’m standing for the senate in Queensland as I write this and enough people have noticed to keep asking me why. I mean, why does someone who loves the solitude of the bush, who’s always had trouble with committees and conciliation want to go to Canberra? The answer’s simple – because I doubt very much I’ll be elected, that’s why! As David Leyonhjelm, the bloke who talked me into this gig, said, “You’ve got about a one in 12 chance of a one in a 100 chance of bugger all”. But we both agreed: this is an issue we need to put on the high table of politics and the only way to reach those illustrious heights is to have a go. Otherwise, they don’t notice. Trust me on this:…

Following on from last month's campfire building column, this month I'll share one of my all-time favourite, three-course campfire meals that will have you eating like a queen at camp. All you need are the ingredients below and a cast iron or spun steel camp oven, preferably two, so you can prepare all the courses. The best way to enjoy campfire tucker is with a group of friends, with everyone contributing to the feast. We used to do this annually with the Mt Lofty Rangers 4x4 Club in the Adelaide Hills, sA, and it was a real degustation, sampling all sorts of tucker from curries, casseroles, roast meats, desserts and even salt and pepper squid, each infused with smoky flavours. This menu kicks off with a fruity damper, followed by…

QLD – Sarina Sarina is a small township just south of Mackay on Queensland’s ‘Serenity’ Coast. GETTING THERE From Mackay, it’s 36km south on the Bruce Highway. ATTRACTIONS Sarina’s proximity to a range of unspoiled beachside communities, its sense of pioneering history and its proximity to Mackay and Cape Palmerston National Park all work in its favour. VISIT Tour the Sarina Sugar Shed, where you can learn the history of Australia’s sugar cane industry, see how the process works and taste the results of all the hard work. TOURIST INFORMATION Sarina Tourist Art and Craft Centre, Railway Square, Bruce Highway, Sarina, (07) 4956 2251, sarinainfo@mackay.net.au QLD EVENT OF THE MONTH Sep 3: Sarina Beach Coconut Festival, Sarina Beach. Get on board with a host of ‘nutty’ games, including coconut relays,…