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RobertRyan's avatar
RobertRyan
Explorer
Dec 06, 2018

IVECO Motohome bases are booming in Australia

Australian motorhome buyers are increasingly opting for Iveco Daily-based platforms as their vehicle of choice for extended travel across Australia.

According to local importer Iveco Australia, sales of Daily cab-chassis have almost doubled over the past three years, since the updated Daily was released locally in 2015 with a 125kW/430Nm 3.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine and eight-speed automatic transmission.( goes to 200hp, same engine used in the Mitsubishi Fuso light Truck)

Iveco said the surge in popularity of the Iveco cab-chassis with motorhome buyers is reflected in the latest Truck Industry Council sales data, which confirms the Italian vehicle as Australia’s highest-selling European light truck cab chassis with 8.5 per cent o“Unlike some other manufacturers that supply to the motorhome market, the Daily has retained its tough, C section truck chassis, delivering added durability for Australia’s varied and demanding road conditions, while also providing motorhome builders with a simple platform on which to build their bodies,” the local truck importer said.

Australia’s major motorhome manufacturers are also offering more models based on the Daily platform, including Avida which uses the Iveco Daily as a base for its latest Ceduna, Esperance and Fremantle motorhome models.

“The best features of the Daily for motorhome applications are the full automatic transmission, rear wheel drive orientation and a generous towing capacity which really suits our requirements for these models,” Avida Dealer Development/Sales and Marketing Manager, Billy Falconer said.f the market.
Australia’s top-selling RV manufacturer Jayco bases its mid-range Conquest and top-spec Optimum motorhomes on the Iveco cab-chassis.

“In the range we use the Daily, it is the only cab chassis model that we would consider,” Jayco National Sales Manager–Motorhome, Scott Jones said. “Our buyers love the luxury and power the Daily offers. It makes driving a large motorhome easy for them and the trip more enjoyable.”

Fast-growing caravan and motorhome manufacturer Apollo also builds five of its Winnebago-badged models on the Iveco platform at its Brisbane factory.

“Iveco represents an important component of our retail motorhome product range,” Winnebago Marketing Manager, Isaac Stefaniw, said. “We receive a lot of positive feedback from customers based on (the Iveco's) features.”

SunLiner Habitat 1

Extreme Off Road EarthCruiser
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Also used as a 5th Wheel tug
Class C
  • DRTDEVL's avatar
    DRTDEVL
    Explorer
    Dec 16, 2018
    pnichols wrote:


    BTW, why can't 7.3 drivers merely manually choose the lowest necessary of the 4 gears and then just push the gas pedal down far enough to maintain whatever speed the driver wants or the 215 horsepower is good for ... whichever comes first?

    That above approach is how I drive my RV's 305 HP gasser to maintain highway speeds (if I want to go that fast) in the mountains.


    The limit of a 7.3 PSD is only about 3,400 rpm, if I remember correctly. Your gasser can likely rev towards 6,000.
  • pnichols's avatar
    pnichols
    Explorer II
    Dec 15, 2018
    DRTDEVL wrote:
    pnichols wrote:
    RobertRyan wrote:
    ROBERTSUNRUS wrote:
    :) Hi, these trucks look like a Chevrolet van with a melted hood.

    Very very different though, maximum GVWR is 15,000lbs GCVWR is 23,750lbs


    Those GVWRs appear only a little higher than those of the venerable Chevy 4500 and Ford E450 trucks chassis used here in the U.S. under many Class C motorhomes.

    For the life of me, I don't see how 200HP could adequately haul around that much weight in, say, the Canadian or U.S. Rockies. Horsepower is horsepower, and diesel horsepower is no different than gas horsepower - assuming that the designers put the right gear ratios into tansmissions and differentials in order to transform crankshaft torque into drive axle torque.

    Maybe Iveco Daily RV drivers are happy with going slower overall, than North American RV drivers?


    Horsepower sells vehicles.

    Torque moves vehicles.

    The engine quoted above only has 200 hp, but can be optioned to about 350 lb-ft of torque. The 7.3 mentioned by another poster is non-intercooled (unlike the trucks), and only good for 215/425. The key difference is that the 7.3 was backed by a 4-speed, while the IVECO has an 8-speed, keeping it at max torque no matter what speed you wish to travel. With twice the available gears, 200/350 can likely pull a lot better than 215/425 with half the gears.


    To be more precise ... "torque at the drive wheels" moves vehicles.

    BTW, why can't 7.3 drivers merely manually choose the lowest necessary of the 4 gears and then just push the gas pedal down far enough to maintain whatever speed the driver wants or the 215 horsepower is good for ... whichever comes first?

    That above approach is how I drive my RV's 305 HP gasser to maintain highway speeds (if I want to go that fast) in the mountains.
  • DRTDEVL's avatar
    DRTDEVL
    Explorer
    Dec 15, 2018
    pnichols wrote:
    RobertRyan wrote:
    ROBERTSUNRUS wrote:
    :) Hi, these trucks look like a Chevrolet van with a melted hood.

    Very very different though, maximum GVWR is 15,000lbs GCVWR is 23,750lbs


    Those GVWRs appear only a little higher than those of the venerable Chevy 4500 and Ford E450 trucks chassis used here in the U.S. under many Class C motorhomes.

    For the life of me, I don't see how 200HP could adequately haul around that much weight in, say, the Canadian or U.S. Rockies. Horsepower is horsepower, and diesel horsepower is no different than gas horsepower - assuming that the designers put the right gear ratios into tansmissions and differentials in order to transform crankshaft torque into drive axle torque.

    Maybe Iveco Daily RV drivers are happy with going slower overall, than North American RV drivers?


    Horsepower sells vehicles.

    Torque moves vehicles.

    The engine quoted above only has 200 hp, but can be optioned to about 350 lb-ft of torque. The 7.3 mentioned by another poster is non-intercooled (unlike the trucks), and only good for 215/425. The key difference is that the 7.3 was backed by a 4-speed, while the IVECO has an 8-speed, keeping it at max torque no matter what speed you wish to travel. With twice the available gears, 200/350 can likely pull a lot better than 215/425 with half the gears.
  • RobertRyan's avatar
    RobertRyan
    Explorer
    Dec 07, 2018
    pnichols wrote:
    RobertRyan wrote:
    That Quigley conversion above , would not cut it either in Australia, think about two reasons why


    Given three conditions instead of two, 1) A right-hand drive version, 2) Adequate Ford service locations, and 3) A gasoline-centric culture instead of a diesel-centric culture ... I can't think of any other important reasons why the various Ford and Chevy truck chassis models would not get along just fine underneath 2WD and 4WD motorhomes Australia.

    By the way and FWIW, I'd love to tour-camp in and explore both the Australian outback with the DW for rockhounding, and the great circle route along the beautiful Australian coastal areas. ;)

    Pretty well summed some reasons why the E450 as run in the US would fail in Australia. Payload is pretty light for the Quigley as well. Plenty of service stations though
    As Ihave said before, if you drive like you describe on non Paved areas, you would be arrested for dangerous driving, and endangering yourself and your passengers safety, think why? :R Not a joke overseas travellers who have travelled in Australia have died because they were not aware of what to do
  • pnichols's avatar
    pnichols
    Explorer II
    Dec 07, 2018
    RobertRyan wrote:
    That Quigley conversion above , would not cut it either in Australia, think about two reasons why


    Given three conditions instead of two, 1) A right-hand drive version, 2) Adequate Ford service locations, and 3) A gasoline-centric culture instead of a diesel-centric culture ... I can't think of any other important reasons why the various Ford and Chevy truck chassis models would not get along just fine underneath 2WD and 4WD motorhomes in Australia.

    By the way and FWIW, I'd love to tour-camp in and explore both the Australian outback with the DW for rockhounding, and the great circle route along the beautiful Australian coastal areas. ;)
  • Skid_Row_Joe's avatar
    Skid_Row_Joe
    Explorer
    Dec 07, 2018
    RobertRyan wrote:
    Skid Row Joe wrote:
    Do you own an RV, or motorhome, Robert Ryan? If so, which one?

    What we sell here do not exist in the US, so very hard to compare

    So, you don't own an RV of any kind then, right? Certainly none of the ones you keep showcasing.....
  • RobertRyan's avatar
    RobertRyan
    Explorer
    Dec 07, 2018
    wolfe10 wrote:
    Guys,

    Let's see if we can get this thread back on track.

    This is not about what is best, certainly not what is best for everyone/every situation.

    I, for one, enjoy seeing what RV's are available in other countries.

    Thanks, Robert.

    My point is showing what could be introduced into the US, negative it is a diesel motorhome
  • wolfe10's avatar
    wolfe10
    Explorer
    Dec 07, 2018
    Guys,

    Let's see if we can get this thread back on track.

    This is not about what is best, certainly not what is best for everyone/every situation.

    I, for one, enjoy seeing what RV's are available in other countries.

    Thanks, Robert.
  • RobertRyan's avatar
    RobertRyan
    Explorer
    Dec 07, 2018
    pnichols wrote:
    RobertRyan wrote:
    PNicols the E450 lacks so many attributes of the IVECO, and you certainly would not be driving it in the Outback:? It is like comparing a Ranger ( E450) to a F350( IVECODaily)by the way the GAWR of the Daily is greater than the E450
    You can happily have your love affair with the E450, we will not take it away from you, but Ford might
    Slow driving here would either you end up being fined or in an accident


    We've gone around on this before and the result is always the same. My Class C is not a "near expedition, or military type , or rock crawler type RV" as you seem to show in some photos.

    Ours is a reliable and rugged "small U.S. family Class C" that just happens to have pretty good non-4X4 ground clearance, a 500+ mile travel range, pretty good sized facility tanks and inside/outside storage, and a chassis with components way beyond strong enough to carry the weight it has to carry reliably mile after mile. Speaking of chassis overkill, in over 71K miles our front brake pads have never needed to be replaced because they're too large for what our RV's weight requires. Oh ... and as you know our Ford E-Series van has around 305 smooth 10 cylinder horsepower to do what it does, too.

    Here's us way out camping just off a 4X4 road - and we did have to creep around some rocks to get there:


    Here's a photo of a Ford camper van that I'm pretty sure could go anyplace in your neck of the woods that an IVECO camper could go:

    I have been with through tbis with you before Pnichols and after agreeing your camper would not work in Australia you then turn around and say it would. Maybe your Ford Camper can be used on Mars or run in the Indy 500.LOL That Quigley conversion above , would not cut it either in Australia, think about two reasons why :B
  • pnichols's avatar
    pnichols
    Explorer II
    Dec 07, 2018
    RobertRyan wrote:
    PNicols the E450 lacks so many attributes of the IVECO, and you certainly would not be driving it in the Outback:? It is like comparing a Ranger ( E450) to a F350( IVECODaily)by the way the GAWR of the Daily is greater than the E450
    You can happily have your love affair with the E450, we will not take it away from you, but Ford might
    Slow driving here would either you end up being fined or in an accident


    We've gone around on this before and the result is always the same. My Class C is not a "near expedition, or military type , or rock crawler type RV" as you seem to show in some photos.

    Ours is a reliable and rugged "small U.S. family Class C" that just happens to have pretty good non-4X4 ground clearance, a 500+ mile travel range, pretty good sized facility tanks and inside/outside storage, and a chassis with components way beyond strong enough to carry the weight it has to carry reliably mile after mile. Speaking of chassis overkill, in over 71K miles our front brake pads have never needed to be replaced because they're too large for what our RV's weight requires. Oh ... and as you know our Ford E-Series van has around 305 smooth 10 cylinder horsepower to do what it does, too.

    Here's us way out camping just off a 4X4 road - and we did have to creep around some rocks to get there:


    Here's a photo of a Ford camper van that I'm pretty sure could go anyplace in your neck of the woods that an IVECO camper could go:

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