To boldy go where no camper has gone before...

[JaredWPhillips]

THIS is insane.

[avoidcrowds]

Yes, they did it the right way - support vehicles, proper equipment, and most importantly, sponsors! With all the decals, you know this was not an out-of-pocket expedition. Where can I get some sponsors for my fun?

[zman-az]

If you look at the video this trailer is definitely leaf spring. It just looks like beefed up tires (to match tow vehicle), diamond plate wrap on the bottom half (upper half looks like traditional aluminum siding) and some welded on tubing on the bottom. Still looks like a regular trailer thats been modified to me. Now this could be the maiden voyage, may be in pieces in a few years but I just don't see anything special other than the mods I mentioned.

[pnichols]

GordonThree wrote:
Having a support truck and mechanic follow you around must be handy.

Having friends go along with you in their separate RV whenever you go out into the middle of nowhere is also very handy. :C

[GordonThree]

Having a support truck and mechanic follow you around must be handy.

[RobertRyan]

No one lives in 4x4 Sportsmobile Class B for 1-2 years Off Road, somewhat cramped.

[pnichols]

samuraiowner wrote:
we do have something in the U.S.A. that do's what they do! we have the 4x4 van conversions and truck campers that will go any where they go with that trailer as well as a lot of places they can't.
years ago I took a truck camper on a chevy 4x4 places they could not go, but it is fun watching them

I agree 110%!

I think it boils down simply to economics. The Aussy camping trailers are probably often towed with their owner's 4X4 SUV-type daily drivers and the camping trailer by itself is probably a lot less $$ to own than a 4X4 van conversion that is not suitable as a daily driver. A camper plus a properly set up 4X4 pickup to deal with the camper is probably a lot more $$ to own than a camping trailer plus a 4X4 SUV-type daily driver, and the TC's 4X4 pickup may not be as comfortable a daily driver.

The trailer plus an SUV-type puller of course works in many situations, but is not optimized to the point where a 1-ton 4X4 van conversion or 1-ton 4X4 TC can be. BTW, a van conversion or TC can of course be made to stay out as long as a trailer plus SUV-type tow vehicle.

[RobertRyan]

I meant a Off Road Caravan is used for much longer periods Off Road i.e. 1-2 years.

[RobertRyan]

Eurocamper . Yes they are certainly NOT a normal Travel Trailer. Most of your Travel Trailers would easily disintegrate in those conditions. Yes you can do the same thing in a 4x4 Motorhome like the Sportsmobile, but they do not have the internal space and "homelike layout " of an Off Road Motorhome, which is geared
For much longer trips Off Road. This type of RV is having a spectacular growth in
Australia. Typing from my hotel room in Vienna, Austria. Will be a month doing the rest of my European Trip

[samuraiowner]

we do have something in the U.S.A. that do's what they do! we have the 4x4 van conversions and truck campers that will go any where they go with that trailer as well as a lot of places they can't.
years ago I took a truck camper on a chevy 4x4 places they could not go, but it is fun watching them 😄

[RoyB]

I think this is what 69AVION is referring to for the suspension of most of the AUSSIE OFF-ROAD guys...


Another consideration for importing to the US is that the power requirements is different in Australia. You would have to change out all of the appliances for 120VAC. Perhaps you could install a large step-down transformer.

I have been watching the AUSSIE line of off road campers for a few years now and it blows me away when they list there prices down there... Anything good is usually 100K US dollars...

Of course their way of camping life down there is so much different than ours. Most brochures I see show all the kitchen setups on the outside.

Our so-called outback is fairly impressive as well and it does seem like somewhere down the road there should be a market for this type of camping setup.

My early camping days was in the Arizona high country days with Jeeps and then to Jeeps with trailers. We had some impressive off road experiences back then...

Roy Ken

[69_Avion]

What I noticed about the Australian Caravans is that most of them use a trailing arm coil spring suspension that would be great for off road use. They have good ground clearance and seem to handle well off road. I checked out a small trailer at the 2013 Overland Expo that had a similar suspension, but it had an air bag setup instead of coil springs. The trailer was nowhere near that large.
The difference that I see between the Aussie trailers and many of ours is that they don't seem to carry much water and very little propane. They like heating water with a diesel heater instead of LP.

When I built my trailer for my Avion C-11 camper, I split the difference for my needs. In the desert, we can't just go out and put the suction side of a pump in the nearby stream to get water. We have to take our water with us. My trailer won't go as far back as some of those but it will carry a quad that will go back much further than any of those. It also carries 80 gallons of water, 20 gallons of gasoline, 100# of LP (upgradable to 120#) space for 7 batteries, 15" of ground clearance, short overhang, and uses the same tires and rims as my F-350 truck. My trailer is 5,500# fully wet and will carry more than 7,000# gross which gives me over a 1,500# payload.

It all comes down to your needs. Personally, I like the Australian Caravans, but many of you are correct in realizing that they probably wouldn't sell a lot of them in the states.

[UTCoyote]

Several of my overlanding friends use the offroad trailers with roof top tents attached to the lids, like you'll see a lot of at the Overland Expo. A couple AT Chasers, one Tentrax, one homemade from an FJ40 tub. Those things really don't appeal to me. But, I can see where the right one, combined with a 4 door JK or 100 Series Cruiser, could get a family of four just about anywhere it's legal to go with some conveniences in shelter/sleep system and galley over my traditional tent and camp kitchen.

Importing an Aussie caravan... I wish. The world may be open to me, but my wallet ain't quite that open to the world .

Do also agree, the market might be small here, but one does exist. I think a lot of the same people that buy those offroad trailers just mentioned above, would be prime candidates. I've seen several guys spend $15-$20K to try one of those, with hopes of getting his wife or kids more interested in his remote explorations. But, at the end of the day, those things are still just tents, not very big or weatherproof ones at that. Nearly every instance I've seen of a guy getting into one for those reasons, has not really worked out. One of these caravans though, you give the ladies a little indoor plumbing, some counter space and a "real" bed with a hard roof, they warm right up to that! My own wife is a good example. She only tolerated camping about once a year before we got the TT. Now she loves to go. Granted, what we now call "camping" is fairly far removed from what we used to call "camping", but, regardless, she didn't like the old kind, she really enjoys it now and the amenities I just mentioned are the reasons why.

So, yes, I think you are right, there would be a few folks in this country quite interested in one of these.

Like I said, I'd be extremely interested myself, just not in a position to buy one new at this time. Maybe after the youngest is done with college...

- Coyote

[Less_Stuff]

Next May Flagstaff Arizona will be the place to see lots of over the road vehicles.
Sadly this year I did not see any Travel Trailers. Smaller over the road tent trailers were abundant.

Overland Expo 2014


You could import one. Aussies buy American truck campers.
If it will fit in one of these the world is open for you.

Container dimensions

[Eurocamper]

I see these videos and think about how awesome it would be to have one of these to explorer Southern Utah. The Uintas, too.

I currently have a tent trailer that works well for mild offroading, but I wouldn't mind moving into a travel trailer that offered as much or more off-road capability. It's frustrating to see what's being offered overseas and know there's no way to get anything like that in the states.

I think you're right about the market being small for something like this in the US, but that doesn't mean it's non-existent. Overland adventurers and backcountry explorers eventually get older, acquire families and start looking for something larger and more comfortable, but that doesn't compromise their ability to get into the backcountry. Right now there's next to nothing in the way of options for them.

The larger US manufacturers seem to be uninterested in filling this niche, but given the quality of their current products that's probably a good thing. I think there's room for a small manufacturer - something on the level of Sportsmobile, maybe - to move in and fill the need. I would sure like to see somebody try.