Upsized the caravan

[goingbush]

After 7 years in the Trakmaster, time for an upgrade.

http://goingbush.com/AULRO/newoldvan.jpg

The new van looks huge compared to the old pop top. (thoroughly over pop tops) I can't believe people drag these around with utes.

The Trakmaster wont be in their yard for long., used prices for this model are usually upwards of 40k , they have it for 27K , pristine inside but the exterior looks like its been through a meteor shower.

Obviously wont be venturing along the same overgrown tracks as the old one, but we happy to leave it in a park and tent it.

Now to get to work with the hole saw and drill for a few special modifications.

[Homestar]

Nice!👍. What mods you got planned?

[goingbush]

Nice!👍. What mods you got planned?

I ordered the Van specifically with a compressor fridge as my 3 way fridge blew up in the last van, I explained to them that when I pulled the old fridge out there was a 10 liter bucket full of dust in the fridge cavity , which is why I sealed up the external vents when I fitted new Compressor fridge, Thus I wanted a the new van to have no external fridge vents.

FFS , the new van is fitted with the two bloody big Dometic vent panels for a 3 way fridge. Obviously these people dont listen.
Ive sealed the vents up and put the original cover panels back on to maintain looks, now to drill some holes through internal cabnitary and cover with some internal louver panels to allow air convection, The fridge will work better with cooler internal air conviction than hot outside air anyway.

Original spec had two 100AH AGM batteries in boxes bolted to the chassis rails behind the wheels . I have two of Drivesafe Tims LiFePo4 AMPS batteries and didn't want them where they could be easily stolen, nor in a position vulnerable to damage so had them fitted internally under the bed which is ideal, as its a nice roomy place to install my 2000/4000 Inverter. Because of the LiFePo4's I also had a 3rd solar panel fitted and upgraded to a Redarc charger / controller.

I'll also need to make up some rock guards for some vulnerable plumbing underneath. They have-not done a bad job, but I see places that rock pelting over long term use could still be a problem.

[Saitch]

Cyclic, isn't it. Started with a canvas tent, went to synthetic tent, then to a custom, soft floor, tent trailer, moved on to a Goldstream wind up camper trailer and now have a 16' pop-top.

I really only wanted to go to 15' but couldn't knock back what I found. A lot of areas where we go camping are not suitable for a full height van and I reckon the length and perhaps more so, width would come in to play.
A B-I-L has a really specced up 21' Bushtracker van and after 2 years of travelling around, he now wishes he had gone smaller.

What are the issues with a pop-top? Going from a wind up, push out beds camper to the Evernew seems like easy living to us.[bigsmile1]



p.s. we still have several tents and also a swag each for minor jaunts.

[101RRS]

Another bloody house on the road [bigsad].

Looks like a comfortable van [thumbsupbig]

[Chops]

Very nice looking rig. Congratulations.

[mick88]

Nice looking set up.
About 12 months ago we were away for a few days and got chatting to bloke from Tassie who had spent his
second six month stint travelling the mainland, with a Land Cruiser and a pop-top.
Was he over the pop-top!
I think he was going home to burn it.
Is the AC on your new van a reverse cycle? If so what do you intend to run it with if mains power is not available?

Cheers, Mick.

[goingbush]

Cyclic, isn't it. Started with a canvas tent, went to synthetic tent, then to a custom, soft floor, tent trailer, moved on to a Goldstream wind up camper trailer and now have a 16' pop-top.

I really only wanted to go to 15' but couldn't knock back what I found. A lot of areas where we go camping are not suitable for a full height van and I reckon the length and perhaps more so, width would come in to play.
A B-I-L has a really specced up 21' Bushtracker van and after 2 years of travelling around, he now wishes he had gone smaller.

What are the issues with a pop-top? Going from a wind up, push out beds camper to the Evernew seems like easy living to us.[bigsmile1]



p.s. we still have several tents and also a swag each for minor jaunts.

yes, cyclic exactly , I keep forgetting the size, just checked paperwork its 20'6"

its one of these , Kimberley - Red Center Caravans (https://www.redcentrecaravans.com.au/detail/kimberley.html) ,
had the suspension upgraded to 3500kg and deleted the washing machine / dryer / ESC / external gas bayonet / water tap and speakers / added a 3rd solar panel.

Its certainly a big compared to the old one one but tare is only 400kg heavier believe it or not . Must be helium filled tyres.

Rationale is a less crap we need to carry because its all there. Maybe I've evolved into someone I used to criticise

The pop top was a pain to put up & down , I could hardly reach the latches so left it down for the odd cuppa stop and got sick of hitting my head on the roof lift bar which sat bang in the doorway at head height.

The new van is also a pseudo office for my wife who needs a bright quiet place for writing, the old one was too enclosed and dark inside. --- in retrospect the Jayco wind up would probably still be serving us well if I weren't worried about the cable system letting go in a strong wind.

[goingbush]

Nice looking set up.
About 12 months ago we were away for a few days and got chatting to bloke from Tassie who had spent his
second six month stint travelling the mainland, with a Land Cruiser and a pop-top.
Was he over the pop-top!
I think he was going home to burn it.
Is the AC on your new van a reverse cycle? If so what do you intend to run it with if mains power is not available?

Cheers, Mick.

yes its a Reverse cycle A/C, never had one before , even in a house , so I think we can deal without it when bush camping. Im not a generator type , cant stand the stink or the noise . We had a sail track added to the offside and have a shade screen to go on there and on the awning side , worked well in the old van to keep cool. The Aircon is 3.2Kw , I would not even try to plug it into the Inverter.

[Graeme]

Hopefully the manufacturer built an H frame into the roof to take the weight of the a/c, unlike the manufacturer of my van who didn't. The original purchaser of my van optioned the a/c then I discovered in the rain on the way home from purchasing it that inappropriate attempts had been made to prevent water ingress due to the roof having sagged under the weight. It was easily fixed by the addition of an external H frame once I was clued-up but for a short while it left me wondering its fate.

[Pedro_The_Swift]

Graeme, "our" installer did this H thing in the AC install in 1990,, we have the paper work![bigrolf]

GB, 20/21 feet is our next size,,
for us, putting the toilet and shower across the back releases more kitchen bench space in the middle, though the "bedroom wall" will need to be kept somehow..

[goingbush]

Hopefully the manufacturer built an H frame into the roof to take the weight of the a/c, unlike the manufacturer of my van who didn't. The original purchaser of my van optioned the a/c then I discovered in the rain on the way home from purchasing it that inappropriate attempts had been made to prevent water ingress due to the roof having sagged under the weight. It was easily fixed by the addition of an external H frame once I was clued-up but for a short while it left me wondering its fate.


I know nothing about this H frame but the van has a 6 year structural warranty and a 2 year general warranty and they know my intended use, and have the old van as a trade in, which is totally pummelled, so they must be confident the new one will stand up.

The roof does appear to be about 100mm thick , more than I expected so hopefully its light and strong.

[Graeme]

My van's roof is the same approx 30mm composite material as the sides that is without any frame. The metal square insert around the roof opening allows the a/c unit to be clamped properly but provides no weight support.

[loanrangie]

Another bloody house on the road [bigsad].

Looks like a comfortable van [thumbsupbig]Block of flats on wheels is my name for them :)

[JDNSW]

I wonder whether it can get into my place?

[p38arover]

Don't drive it on a NSW tollway - you'll get charged as a B-Double!

'''You can'''t avoid these tolls''': higher rates for unhappy campers (https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/you-can-t-avoid-these-tolls-higher-rates-for-unhappy-campers-20191030-p535uz.html)

[goingbush]

Don't drive it on a NSW tollway - you'll get charged as a B-Double!

'''You can'''t avoid these tolls''': higher rates for unhappy campers (https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/you-can-t-avoid-these-tolls-higher-rates-for-unhappy-campers-20191030-p535uz.html)


Thanks for the tip, I took the old van to Bellevue Hill a few times , parking it was a problem, I think the new one will be impossible . I will steer well clear !!

[Pedro_The_Swift]

I wonder whether it can get into my place?


Thats a good question!!
mines somewhat lower than that----

[Xtreme]

I wonder whether it can get into my place?
Easier with that than the 26' 5th wheeler we got in there in 2011 - although it did need a little assistance across the creek.

[JDNSW]

And from memory left the odd bit in bed of the creek!

[goingbush]

just written a web page on our caravan problems and fixes,

probably common problems with all caravans. As far as I can tell all the Vans made in the last 10 years are the same box with different logo.

Going Bush (http://goingbush.com/RC.html) <-- this is the link to the page

[loanrangie]

Even more so if they are imported Chinese junk. There are a lot of quality Aussie made vans but the price on some of them is eye watering.

[goingbush]

Even more so if they are imported Chinese junk. There are a lot of quality Aussie made vans but the price on some of them is eye watering.

Yes ours was 85k in 2019 , same van now is 130k , For a reasonable insurance premium Iv'e agreed on 65k, clearly that wont buy a new replacement.
I'll self build the next one. Wished I'd done that before buying this quality Australian made piece of garbage. It does have a nice chassis though.

[Pedro_The_Swift]

I had always liked the Red Centre's.... until now..
but yes, some of those things are hard to fathom..
nothing should go under a chassis rail in a van offered as off road..
pointless getting upset about the shower now.. but a couple of things were built in our crusader that could have ONLY been done before any walls were thrown up..
That brand tyre is a safety hazard. Across the Industry.

Keep on going... if you are not working on your van, it lives under a cover.

[DoubleChevron]

Even more so if they are imported Chinese junk. There are a lot of quality Aussie made vans but the price on some of them is eye watering.

Nah, my brother repairs caravans... and I've fixed a few. The aussie vans are every bit as crappy as the chinese ones. most leak from the day they are built. They are just junk as soon as you remove the cladding. the wiring is horific ... the plumbing terrible. there is no quality to be found at all from what I've seen. There is a couple of exceptions. There is one qld brand that looks exceptionally well built (the name escapes me at the moment). I'm unsure if they still make 'vans, but there were not cheap!

[simonmelb]

My In-laws have a 17ft Hilltop Feathertop van and extremely happy with it - they seem to get excellent reviews and it seems very well finished but I haven’t looked under the hood.

[goingbush]

Our first Van was a Jayco, Then a Trakmaster & Now the Red Center. The Jayco was the best but had the worst reputation. Once the screws that came loose were glued in & a kitchen draw put back together it was teriffic.

The wiring in this Red Center is diabolical, & if that's typical its no wonder there are so many Caravan fires, & it seems to be the Gas or Lithium Batteries always pinned as the cause. The more I dig, the worse it gets.

Did a little adjustment of the graphics, don't want to carry their name any more [bigwhistle] [bigrolf]

oh , while I'm looking at that photo, I'm replacing that useless reversing camera, with a 120 degree . The existing camera is 45 deg, great for seeing truck 2 miles behind me , but totally useless for reversing & parking.

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