When I first saw them displayed at the Sydney Caravan and Camping Show, 2 years ago. One visitor commented that " These should be called Brand Y Caravans" He summed up the mood.
Talvor Apollo Motorhomes could not off load that initial shipment. My feeling is they should stick to do what they do best produce or organise Motorhomes, for their many Rental businesses here , in New Zealand, South Africa and North America
Adria Caravan Interior
Talvor Apollo Motorhomes could not off load that initial shipment. My feeling is they should stick to do what they do best produce or organise Motorhomes, for their many Rental businesses here , in New Zealand, South Africa and North America
More colourful caravans coming
The short-lived experiment of selling bright red, pink, yellow, green and orange โWinnie Minnieโ caravans in Australia is over, but local Winnebago distributor Apollo Motorhomes is still keen to inject some colour into the local caravan market.
Speaking at the Sydney Caravan Supershow, Apollo fleet sales manager, Shayne Culverhouse, said thereโs a good chance the new Australian-built line of Winnebago caravans, kicked off recently with the 19ft Burke, will also be available in a range of bright Minnie-like colours along with traditional white.
He said because the locally-built vans share a similar, gel-coat fibreglass wall construction with their American cousins, offering a range of bright colours is possible if thereโs demand for it.
Culverhouse said there was some interest in the colourful Winnebago models but Apollo stopped importing them before any orders could be fulfilled. He said all imported Winnebago Minnies apart from two of the largest 24ft models had been sold including the colourful display vans, apart from the pink one currently being used for a Dometic promotion.
He said the less favourable exchange rate made importing the US-built vans no longer financially attractive.
โWhen we started with Winnebago the (Australian) dollar was US$1.04, and then we got down to 69 cents, and now weโre back 75 cents or thereabouts, so what we were paying for a caravan increased by just over 30 per cent,โ he said.
โIt took all of the profit out of it, so we decided weโd build the Winnebago caravans in Brisbane.โ
He said it had been a โsteep learning curveโ since the Queensland-based motorhome manufacturer and rental business decided to introduce its first caravan in 2010.
The first range of Euro-style fibreglass models were built at its Brisbane factory and marketed under its Talvor retail brand, before they were dropped for a range of boxier, value-packed US-built models in 2012.
However, these also struggled to find buyers, resulting in heavily-discounted sales and revamping undesirable layouts.
A bright new range of US-built Winnebago vans replaced the American Talvor models in early-2015, before they were replaced with a locally-built version sporting a 'dinki di' model name and interior decor more acceptable to Australian buyers.
Culverhouse said the new Burke is โaggressively pricedโ and โthe best product weโve ever builtโ.
โFive years of learning and a lot of challenges along the way and looking at other manufacturing options and product from other countries was all put in the mix and thatโs where this (latest Winnebago Burke) was developed,โ he said.
He said the Oz-built Winnebago range will eventually include eight models โ four on-road and four off-road โ most with slide-outs.
However, Apollo hasnโt written off a return to US-built caravans โif the price is rightโ. The company is also considering importing the super-sized A-Class motorhomes that Winnebago America is most famous for, despite only a limited market here.
To cope with local caravan production, Apollo is looking to set up another factory, either in Queensland or possibly another state. The company currently builds around 400-500 rental motorhomes annually at its Brisbane facility, down from around 800 units five years ago.
Meanwhile, Apollo has also injected some colour into its European-built Adria range, with a small 15ft 8in model on display in Sydney sporting โpolka dotโ side panels.
While not an official option yet, buyers could have the opportunity to order an Adria 402PH caravan from the factory with a choice of AluDesign side-wall patterns, first seen in Europe in 2014.
Australian buyers could also be allowed to go the full hog and fully customise their caravan in one of 29 eye-catching colour combinations, although Apollo has yet to confirm that.
Adria Caravan Interior
No outrageous Colours were not one of the many problems, as this new Off Road Manufacturer shows
More totally mystified, why they would take up importing Adria Caravans, from Slovenia, when they producing a very similar European type unit, previously?
Adria Caravan
Their European type Caravan
This partly built US Caravan, was case of "what were they thinking" I inspected one at the Sydney Caravan and Camping Show. It was hidden with some Chinese produced Camper Trailers( since disappeared). It was awful, looked rough and gloomy.
More totally mystified, why they would take up importing Adria Caravans, from Slovenia, when they producing a very similar European type unit, previously?
Adria Caravan
Their European type Caravan
This partly built US Caravan, was case of "what were they thinking" I inspected one at the Sydney Caravan and Camping Show. It was hidden with some Chinese produced Camper Trailers( since disappeared). It was awful, looked rough and gloomy.
CavemanCharlie wrote:
Ya, some weird colors for sure. But, I don't know what flips you Aussie's on.
(Sorry tried my best Aussie talk and it didn't work)
As for the exchange rate that is hurting American Farmers and Scrap Iron delvers as well.
Can't seem to win. When the economy is good the exchange rate is bad. When the economy sucks the exchange rate is good.
That;s life
Exchange rate, is a red herring.It appears Apollo, have made some blunders in their Caravans. Winnebago is the latest. I suggest they will go back to rename themTalvor and build lightweight and heavier Slideout models locally. Need to improve, ergonomics and build quality DRAMATICALLY
Original Talvor lightweight Caravan, so far the most successful outside of Adria, Travel,Trailer they have introduced
European looking Caravan, which was replaced by the Adria lightweight Caravan, built in Slovenia
