Kimberley Kampers USA
- Thread starter Catastrofe
- Start date
Trixxx
Well-known member
Seriously? Their site sucks for $150k trailers. Should someone really have to message their manager saying.. “hey, why not add some decent photos/videos of each unit? Why not convert the mentric units to American measurements?”
I don’t sell trailers for a living (or at all) but that seems like common sense
FYI: https://olivertraveltrailers.com has all the information I mentioned above. Great pics, videos, and details.
I’d also be willing to bet the quality is just as high if not more, they just aren’t “off road” oriented. They’re also made in the US and the customer support seems second to none for trailer manufacturers.
Also - They’re a true 4 season. Fully enclosed and heated underbelly with dual pane windows.
Not trying to derail, just giving an example of what one should expect to see when shopping high end trailers.
4 season must either have an enclosed/heated underbelly or heated tanks/lines underneath. My casita does flawless down to freezing with its furnace. Below freezing is when you need the “true” 4 season to keep lines from busting.
Romer
Adventurer
Everyone is entitled to their opinion on what the seller should be doing. It's a well known Australian company that has a dealer for the first time in the US. I stumbled onto Kimberley because I saw one in 2009, then bought a used Kamper in 2010. I sold it and bought a Karavan direct from the factory since there was no dealer. Yes I used google to convert to inches and pounds. I bought the karavan based on my experience with the Kamper and also a friend on here bought a Karavan in 2011 and I saw were it would go. He was very happy with it
I have no idea about the Oliver trailers, I hear they are nice, but they would not work for me. Being able to off road and also fit in my garage are key requirements for me. Why I didnt get a Kruiser instead. And my Karavan isnt $150K or even a 100K trailer unless you really add lots of options
I understand you want better information and for it to be easy to get to. That is a valid complaint. David just started as the sole US rep. The info is there via google. Lots of youtubes reviewing products and the Australian website Converting from metric, etc.
Everyone is different and needs different things to make an important personal decision on an expensive trailer. A web site update isnt as important to me vs the experience of other people I knew and seeing the units in person.
I want to be clear I am not disagreeing with your opinion of what their web site should do, just adding a different perspective as we all make decisions for different reasons
I have no idea about the Oliver trailers, I hear they are nice, but they would not work for me. Being able to off road and also fit in my garage are key requirements for me. Why I didnt get a Kruiser instead. And my Karavan isnt $150K or even a 100K trailer unless you really add lots of options
I understand you want better information and for it to be easy to get to. That is a valid complaint. David just started as the sole US rep. The info is there via google. Lots of youtubes reviewing products and the Australian website Converting from metric, etc.
Everyone is different and needs different things to make an important personal decision on an expensive trailer. A web site update isnt as important to me vs the experience of other people I knew and seeing the units in person.
I want to be clear I am not disagreeing with your opinion of what their web site should do, just adding a different perspective as we all make decisions for different reasons
Last edited:
Catastrofe
Member
Your points are valid. Maybe you should take your suggestions directly to Kimberley US as you’d get more traction vs posting in a forum.
Catastrofe
Member
Above is Australian date/time. For the US:
donthompson
Member
I agree with much of what you said about Oliver Travel Trailers and Kimberley with a few differences. I owned an Oliver Elite II for four years. Mine was the 127th Elite II manufactured. Oliver has sold almost 800 Elite II trailers. Oliver has done an incredible job with its website since I purchased my Elite II in October, 2015. They have provided owners with a huge amount of information on maintenance and operation of the trailers, components and systems. The Oliver trailers are built to the highest standards and the quality is the best of any U.S. manufactured trailer, in my opinion. They are truly 4-season campers as you noted. There are two reasons I no longer own an Oliver. First, the design. You have a choice between a king bed version or a twin bed version. Most people I know who have the king bed version keep the bed deployed most of the time which makes the interior space very small. You also have to use the stock cushions to make the bed unless you want to try to install a residential mattress and never use the king bed area for a table and seating area. I don’t know anyone who has ever done this. The twin beds are very small—I’m only 5’6” and I can’t imagine a person over 5’10” being comfortable on one of the twin beds. The second reason I sold my Oliver was that it is not, and doesn’t purport to be, an off-road capable camper. While you can equip it for boondocking, it is not well-suited for traveling to many of the BLM and Forest Service dispersed camping sites I prefer. I pushed mine to it limits and spent an inordinate amount of time trying to keep things tightened and in shape. I sold it and purchased a Conqueror 490. The 490 lacked creature comforts that I wanted and I sold it after one extended trip to the southwest. I‘ve ordered a Kimberley T3 Kruiser which I hope to have this summer. I’ve talked to David Bates at Kimberley USA about the excellent customer service Oliver provides and the great array of information available on Oliver’s website. David and the folks in Australia are great people and I believe they will provide stellar customer service and will continue to upgrade the information provided to owners and potential customers through the websites—both Australian and U.S. Kimberley is under new ownership in Australia and David Bates has been involved in the U.S. for a little over a year, I believe. Given the pandemic, they have faced many challenges, but I have great faith in them.
Thank you for the interesting update. I have been thinking about buying and off-road capable trailer since I sold my ridiculously gigantic class A diesel pusher. I must say, however, it was a lot of fun to be able to tow my short wheelbase jeep TJ. It could go places that astonished and scared me!
I have spoken with David Bates, and he was super nice and helpful. I am also considering one of the black series, but either way I go, I think my current F150 is going to need to be upgraded.
My lament is that there aren’t Kimberley‘s for viewing and sale on a lot somewhere near LA.
I have spoken with David Bates, and he was super nice and helpful. I am also considering one of the black series, but either way I go, I think my current F150 is going to need to be upgraded.
My lament is that there aren’t Kimberley‘s for viewing and sale on a lot somewhere near LA.
donthompson
Member
I’ve spent time in Ohio at Kimberley USA looking at the new Karavan and the Kamper. I can vouch for the quality of materials, components and build. I gave serious thought to a Black Series camper. Two things caused me to buy a Kimberley instead. First, a former Oliver owner bought a Black Series and has owned it for a couple of years. He’s very savvy and has great engineering and mechanical skills. In my discussions with him, he was very honest about the lack of quality in the Black Series line. He’s made many modifications, improvements, etc. to make the Black Series work for him. I don’t have the skill or the interest in buying a camper that requires this much work to bring it up to snuff. Second, the dealer in Utah is heavily discounting Black Series trailers. People are traveling from all of the country to buy from this dealer. This will make it very difficult for Black Series to successfully build and maintain a dealer network and the discounts will drive down the value of the Black Series trailers on the used market. Oliver and Kimberley do not offer any discounts. I owned my Oliver for 4 years and sold it for a very good price—very little depreciation. You’ll pay a lot more for a Kimberley, but I chose to do so in the belief that I was getting value for my $$.
I am very interested in hearing your continued impressions of the Kimberley. I have hit the road with everything from a tent trailer to a BMW motorcycle, to a Lance trailer, to a 30 foot 5th wheel, to a Four Wheel Camper Hawk, to a big class A. I like the idea of trying a trailer again with the freedom to unhook and take the truck as needed. I don’t want to buy a trailer unless I am reasonably satisfied that the towing experience is going to be comfortable, with excellent tracking. I have had too many pucker experiences on the highway with various rigs—e.g. on a narrow roads with heavy truck traffic and all of the sudden the concrete road barriers appear giving me a foot of clearance on the side. The fifth wheel pulled by a 3/4 ton diesel Chevy and the light camper were the most stable, but fifth wheels are not really designed for the rough back roads that I want to explore.
The light popup camper was just too small. Anyway, I will continue to monitor this thread.
The light popup camper was just too small. Anyway, I will continue to monitor this thread.
Catastrofe
Member
Video overview of the T3. The video starts at about 00:18 even though the countdown show a big “3” for an extended periods of time.
Landlocked
Member
I am very impressed by KK's technical excellence, and their aesthetic decisions. I'm no expert, but I'm not aware of any product in North America that could provide comparable performance and comfort.
I'm sure we all hope that other RV brands in North America will soon offer at lease a fraction of KK innovations. Progress takes time, I guess. For example, the new Winnebago Ekko (Class B+ motorhome) is a major step towards a modest capability for camping in remote areas (on improved roads). It has a very good electric power system, but they declined to offer induction cooking. It has 50 gallons of fresh water, but they declined to offer a composting toilet.
I'm sure we all hope that other RV brands in North America will soon offer at lease a fraction of KK innovations. Progress takes time, I guess. For example, the new Winnebago Ekko (Class B+ motorhome) is a major step towards a modest capability for camping in remote areas (on improved roads). It has a very good electric power system, but they declined to offer induction cooking. It has 50 gallons of fresh water, but they declined to offer a composting toilet.
Catastrofe
Member
I think your assessment is spot on. We looked at every NA brand for something with the amenities and capabilities of the Kimberley (Kruiser models), and there’s nothing even close. Sure, there are some that may have a subset of similar features or equivalent quality, but when you consider the whole package it (unfortunately) doesn’t exist.
Catastrofe
Member
The first US bound S3 Kruiser. Mine is right behind this one.
