Kamper Build Aussie Style - Romers new Kimberley Karavan
- Thread starter Romer
- Start date
DUTCH
Curmudgeon
How long can you go with the new Lithiums?
Romer
Adventurer
Longer than 5 days
but haven't been out long enough to see. I will still carry the generator just in caseReally on the hunt for a trailer for my upcoming retirement, this one is on the list. Any chance you could give an up-date as to how you are liking it and anything you would change or problems you have had? Two Aussie companies are on the top of the list but the other is a pop up hard side. Thanks
Romer
Adventurer
I am still very happy with it. Brad Garland on here has had his 9 years. Two of my friends have also just gotten Karavans. With a US rep here it makes it easier to get one and to work out any warranty problems. The only thing I would change is the heater in my unit isnt that great. I have had to turn on the two inside stove burners at night once. As I understand it, they have much better heat options
Looks like Kimberly is out for me, it seems the price has gone way up. If my math was correct a base model was about 65K in Australia but the same model in the US starts at 89K! So I will have to move on and look at some of the US options, 30k to ship a trailer is a little much for me or am I missing something? I understand having dealer support but at what price? Bummer.... If anyone is selling a used one I'm interested.
Last edited:
Corgi_express
Well-known member
Had a phone call with Kimberly's US distributor this week, and am definitely pretty interested. I'd be going with the non-pop top version because I would expect to live in it for months at a time, and all that setup gets old. I have done ~ two months in my camper van no problem but would like to be able to leave the living space behind and get somewhere that the van can't handle. The prices from the current US distributor are definitely pretty steep, but if it holds value like my Class B van did, I won't really mind.
Romer
Adventurer
Excited about getting out this year after the Karavan sat in the garage all 2020. I did get out twice, once rented a house as the whole family came and that was easier and another trip to the maze where I used my Alu-Cab
And of Course the 40's only run
There was one thing that sucked from the factory was the Heater. It used the Hot water system so it was loud at night and also didn't put out a lot of heat. I should have gone with the diesel Heater. I had put a propane heater in my Kimberley Kamper and that worked great and I debated it for quite a while. I settled on the Diesel Espar D2L which is tuned better for high altitudes. High altitude makes other ones work harder creating carbon build up. I almost went with the same Heatsource propane unit until I found this one
www.heatso.com
Just finished the install and so far it seems to put out a lot more heat in my driveway. Moab at night in two weeks will be better test. I do have to get on the floor to read the controller, mostly due to old eyes
I also added the stabilizer legs they are putting on new units and really like them. Much easier to level the unit side to side using a power tool
Water was from filling the tanks and checking everything out to make sure it is all working fine. Hot showers are a nice thing when you gone for 5 days
Unfortunately I wont be wheeling it this trip, just making a central camp as part of Cruise Moab
And of Course the 40's only run
There was one thing that sucked from the factory was the Heater. It used the Hot water system so it was loud at night and also didn't put out a lot of heat. I should have gone with the diesel Heater. I had put a propane heater in my Kimberley Kamper and that worked great and I debated it for quite a while. I settled on the Diesel Espar D2L which is tuned better for high altitudes. High altitude makes other ones work harder creating carbon build up. I almost went with the same Heatsource propane unit until I found this one
Espar / Eberspacher Airtronic S2 D2L 12v (2.2kW) Diesel Heater Kit
The Eberspacher D2L S2 diesel heater kit is the most recommended kit for vans on the market. Fuel-efficient and powerful can reliably function up to 9900ft.
www.heatso.com
Just finished the install and so far it seems to put out a lot more heat in my driveway. Moab at night in two weeks will be better test. I do have to get on the floor to read the controller, mostly due to old eyes
I also added the stabilizer legs they are putting on new units and really like them. Much easier to level the unit side to side using a power tool
Water was from filling the tanks and checking everything out to make sure it is all working fine. Hot showers are a nice thing when you gone for 5 days
Unfortunately I wont be wheeling it this trip, just making a central camp as part of Cruise Moab
Romer
Adventurer
I replaced the Tregg Hitch on my Karavan as I feel the trailer is too heavy for it. It can tow well with no issues, but I had an experience were it bound and I had to use a hammer to get the pin out. I did some research and compared the Mchitch, D035 and thee Hitch-Ezy
https://www.mchitch.com.au/
https://sloopimports.com/products/cruisemaster-do35
https://www.hitch-ezy.com.au/
I went with the Hitch-Ezy even though there is no US distributor and it was twice as much. It is beefy and real easy to connect. Rather than having to get it aligned perfectly for the TREGG, if it is anywhere under the cup is will work, watch the video on their web site. Super easy to connect and disconnect
The Desiel Heater I installed worked awesome. Used little fuel, fairly quiet after the initial startup and was nice and toasty
Spent the last week in Moab at the Toyota event, Cruise Moab
It was great to have two Karavans and a Kamper made by Kimberley in our own circle the wagons area
https://www.mchitch.com.au/
https://sloopimports.com/products/cruisemaster-do35
https://www.hitch-ezy.com.au/
I went with the Hitch-Ezy even though there is no US distributor and it was twice as much. It is beefy and real easy to connect. Rather than having to get it aligned perfectly for the TREGG, if it is anywhere under the cup is will work, watch the video on their web site. Super easy to connect and disconnect
The Desiel Heater I installed worked awesome. Used little fuel, fairly quiet after the initial startup and was nice and toasty
Spent the last week in Moab at the Toyota event, Cruise Moab
It was great to have two Karavans and a Kamper made by Kimberley in our own circle the wagons area
Romer
Adventurer
I was in the middle of Colorado two weeks ago and the temps got down below freezing. We were at about 9000 feet
The Espar D2L (High Altitude) Heater I installed worked great and kept me nice and toasty. It sipped fuel and was very quiet.
We used this remote site as basecamp for a Triple Mountain Pass Run Italian Creek, Pearl and Taylor. Last part of Taylor was 1/4 mile of a big river bed driving across big boulders
I have used this Australian Hitch-Ezy coupler for two seasons now and am very happy with it. Much easier to line up truck with rear camera and does not require the accuracy of the Trgg Hitch with a pin it replaced. Lots of slop. Yes I cleaned up the cables on back before driving
There was a discussion in another thread on cold weather insulation, so wanted to post pictures on the hoses and the 12V membrane heaters on the sides of the tanks. I did not turn the membrane heaters on, I guess maybe that would have been the conservative thing to do. I have camped down into the 20's and have turned them on then. I have driven over Vail pass in the teens, but did not as did not expect to be below freezing that long and movement I figured would keep things good
The Espar D2L (High Altitude) Heater I installed worked great and kept me nice and toasty. It sipped fuel and was very quiet.
We used this remote site as basecamp for a Triple Mountain Pass Run Italian Creek, Pearl and Taylor. Last part of Taylor was 1/4 mile of a big river bed driving across big boulders
I have used this Australian Hitch-Ezy coupler for two seasons now and am very happy with it. Much easier to line up truck with rear camera and does not require the accuracy of the Trgg Hitch with a pin it replaced. Lots of slop. Yes I cleaned up the cables on back before driving
There was a discussion in another thread on cold weather insulation, so wanted to post pictures on the hoses and the 12V membrane heaters on the sides of the tanks. I did not turn the membrane heaters on, I guess maybe that would have been the conservative thing to do. I have camped down into the 20's and have turned them on then. I have driven over Vail pass in the teens, but did not as did not expect to be below freezing that long and movement I figured would keep things good
Huc
New member
Great info and images, thanks for posting, and thanks to all the others here for sharing their thoughts, images and experiences. After what seems like forever, we're finally hitting the road first week of October to make the trek to the US Distributor in Ohio to pickup our new Kimberley Karavan. Seeing where the rigs have been here in Colorado and other places puts some giddy-up in our step to experience some awesome places throughout our state and elsewhere. Sadly I don't have any images of our new rig in suitable settings but for what they're worth - here they be from production in AUS and pickup here in US.
Again, thanks to everyone here who posted candid thoughts on the subject, all of it was helpful in the decision making process.
Again, thanks to everyone here who posted candid thoughts on the subject, all of it was helpful in the decision making process.
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eatSleepWoof
Do it for the 'gram
It's interesting that the muffler/silencer from your Espar heater (kit?) does not seem to have a drainage hole. That hole is preset on mufflers that come with all Chinese diesel heaters, which are (claimed to be) clones of the Planar/Espar design. I just looked up some photos of the Planar kits and their mufflers are also lacking the drainage hole. I haven't noticed this difference before. I don't doubt that the Planar and Espar units are both of higher quality than the myriad of clones, so it's interesting that their designs do not incorporate the drainage hole. Just an observation.
On another note, is there no way to route the exhaust such that the fumes are outside of the trailer body/frame? With the layout in the photo I'd be a bit concerned about them building up and seeping into the interior. If you don't already have one, get CO2 meter for your interior. I use a (battery powered) one in our tent whenever we have the diesel heater in use.
Romer
Adventurer
Thanks for your feedback. I installed and routed the exhaust and am confident with its location that it will not seep into the cab. It is outside the Frame and a few inches from the edge of the body I would have smelled it if it did and I have used it a lot since installing it. I could easily extend the exhaust a few inches, but don't want it outside the external area as it could get caught on something.
Interesting comment on the drain hole. The Hot water heater and cook top have them. However, I would have to get in water above the top of the tire for it to be an issue
Interesting comment on the drain hole. The Hot water heater and cook top have them. However, I would have to get in water above the top of the tire for it to be an issue