Centaur Freedom Plus 2026 Review

Based in Kilsyth, Victoria, Centaur is a diverse Australian manufacturer with deep expertise in fibreglass and composites. Over decades, the company has built fibreglass products from police detainee pods through to truck components.

Centaur entered the caravan market in 2012, and unsurprisingly, the products feature abundant fibreglass, including the furniture.

The local manufacturer has focused on the small, lightweight segment of the market with its larger 17-foot Karavane range starting at 1700kg Tare, and its smaller 15ft Freedom Plus range starting at 1500kg Tare.

Who is the Centaur Freedom Plus aimed at?

It seems to me Centaur is trying to find some middle ground in the smaller 'van segment.

It would be possible to build a lighter 'van with more basic suspension and smaller wheels, but Centaur has opted for a more robust underpinning. It makes the Freedom Plus more capable in venturing down some corrugated roads and negotiating some bumps and hollows.

However, it certainly isn’t an expedition vehicle thanks to modest electrical and water capacity.

What’s the Centaur Freedom Plus like inside?

The Freedom Plus experience starts with walking in the rear door. The entry is a little squeezy due to the rear corner bathroom, but you do get a sense of length looking all the way from the rear to the front of the 'van.

This 'lengthiness' is accentuated with the bench/kitchen running quite some distance along the offside of the van.

There's room for a long bench/kitchen because of the small Bushman 135L compressor fridge that sits under the benchtop, whereas a full-height fridge would eat up bench space.

Visually, the space looks longer thanks to the glass-topped kitchen sink and Dometic three-burner gas cooker being embedded in the bench top. An optional NCE 20L microwave ($500) completes the cooking appliances.

Poking my head into the bathroom reveals one of the most uncluttered, aesthetic combination shower/toilets I've witnessed, in an esteemed RV reviewing career that has seen me walking through, prodding and poking what must be now many hundreds of 'vans...

This most appealing 'combo' is achieved by omitting any internal storage. It takes away some utility, but it will make the space much easier to clean/dry with a squeegee. I quite like it!

The bathroom door appears to be very well sealed to prevent water from escaping while showering, and there is a decent fan to extract steam. There's also a shower curtain inside the door, which doesn’t seem to have much purpose apart from giving me flashbacks to that famous scene in Psycho!

Around the corner from the bathroom is the L-shaped lounge and swivel table. It doesn’t look as fancy as some other upholstery I have seen, but it was comfortable to sit on and that's the most important thing.

The front bed area is different from most I've tried. The bed is a little narrower at 137cm, as the overall 'van's external width is also a little narrower at 2.48m.

The bed is also offset towards the offside of the 'van to allow for the robe space that runs along the driver’s side. This, in turn, means there's only a 'bedroom window' on the offside. You still get plenty of natural light and ventilation through the large front skylight/hatch though.

There are compact wardrobes on either side of the bed, along with little integrated bedside tables, but there are no bedside drawers.

True to theme, much of the interior is made of easy-to-clean fibreglass. I'm talking about the furniture carcass, the bed base, the doors, the drawer fronts, even the table and bench tops. The stuff's everywhere!

Another distinctive feature is the boat cabin liner in the ceiling, which will help with insulation and condensation; two big bugbears of mine.

What’s the Centaur Freedom Plus like outside?

The Centaur Freedom Plus exterior is best described as functional and minimalist. You won’t find a slide-out kitchen or a picnic table (you'll need to go to the Jayco dealer down the road for those sort of excesses).

But you will find a basic A-frame mounted storage box constructed from, you guessed it, fibreglass!

The tunnel boot is also integrated into the fibreglass front panel. A vinyl cover protects the lower sections of fibreglass from stone chips.

The spare wheel sits on the frame but can be repositioned to under the chassis to make room for a bike rack.

A roll-out awning is standard on the rear of the van because that’s where the entry door is. Our review model also had an optional side awning ($2500) so if you find awnings a chore this might not be the 'van for you.

Anyway, as the 'van is quite small, the coverage of each awning is modest. I would love to see Centaur come up with a clever way to fill in the gap between the two awnings. I suppose you could toss something up there but it wouldn't be quite the same...

How is the Centaur Freedom Plus built?

Centaur is also a metal fabricator and has the resources to manufacture its own chassis. If you're into the technical details, we're talking a 100mm box section through the A frame and main rails, with the finished product hot-dip galvanised.

Suspension is taken care of with AL-KO Enduro-X trailing arm suspension. The clamshell arm design is known for a good strength-to-weight ratio and, along with the coil springs and twin shocks, we'd classify this system as 'dirt road worthy'.

As far as moving the thing goes, Centaur has fitted 16in alloy wheels with 225/75/16 LT tyres, and the optional AL-KO ESC ($1250) is a welcome addition.

Also fitted was the optional AL-KO off-road coupling ($400), but if it was mine I'd ask for the more popular Cruisemaster DO-35 coupling instead.

No surprises here: the body is largely a fibreglass affair. The side walls are quite conventionally made from outsourced 28mm fibreglass-skinned sandwich panels, while the in-house manufactured fibreglass twin-skinned front, roof and rear panels have great insulation properties.

The only part of the body that seems comparatively low tech is the marine-grade ply floor, where many manufacturers are shifting to composite honeycomb floors.

I was mightily impressed with several aspects of the plumbing. For example, on the rear wall is an external access panel to make it so much easier to identify and fix any potential 'behind-the-wall' leaks in the shower.

Also, the plumbing lines running under the floor are very neatly protected against stone damage with corrugated conduit. The plumbing lines that run from under the floor to inside the van also use bulkhead fittings rather than just using ugly blobs of silicon.

Finally, the water pump is mounted under the floor, where it won't cause any grief if it springs a leak. Bravo!

What’s the Centaur Freedom Plus like off-grid?

You will be able to avoid costly caravan parks for a few days, but the design intent is again minimalist. That being said it's also premium, with top-notch South Australian-built Redarc components dominating the system.

The Redarc Manager 30 enables you to monitor the system, while the Redarc DC to DC charger tops up the system when you're driving, and the 180W Redarc solar panel does the job when the sun is shining.

The 100Ah AGM battery is the weak link in the package. Old school buyers, perhaps nervous of 'exploding' lithium batteries, may appreciate it, but I think many will proceed to tick the option for higher capacity lithium batteries.

Two 4.5kg gas bottles align with the design intent of the Centaur Freedom Plus. You only get single 95L fresh water tank as standard, but you can option a second one. The 62L grey water tank fitted is another hard-to-swallow option ($1800).

What is the Centaur Freedom Plus like for towing?

We can't really tell you, although on paper the Freedom Plus' 2100kg ATM opens up a world of possibilities when it comes to SUV tow vehicles. Hitch one up with a 3500kg tow-rated dual-cab ute and you'll be in towing heaven!

A 1640kg Tare gives you a respectable 460kg payload. The tare ball load is light at 100kg and should go up when loaded, as most of the storage space is concentrated in the front.

I can’t give you any numbers, but the low-profile front is not going to hurt aerodynamics or fuel economy either...

Should I buy a Centaur Freedom Plus?

The Centaur Freedom Plus is a niche kind of product. Bu niche in a good way.

At nearly $80,000 as reviewed, there are similar-sized 'vans available for less coin. There are also 'vans with more features for the money.

But where the Freedom Plus shines is the execution. Centaur focuses on doing less with the 'van but doing everything well. Call me old-fashioned but I like the approach!

If you're looking for a compact caravan from a quality Australian manufacturer that’s a little bit different from the norm, we recommend freeing up some time to check one out.

Price: from $69,995, as displayed $79,425
Travel length: 5920mm
External body length: 4500mm
Travel width: 2480mm
Travel height: 3030mm
Tare: 1640kg
ATM: 2100kg
Ball weight (Tare): 100kg
Body: Fibreglass
Chassis: Hot-dip galvanized
Suspension: AL-KO Enduro X coil
Brakes: 12in drum
ESC: AL-KO
Wheels: 16in alloy, 225/75/16 tyres
Water: 95L fresh water, 62L grey water
Battery: 100Ah AGM
Solar: Redarc 180W
Gas: 2 x 4.5kg
Hot water: Truma gas/electric 14L
Cooking: Dometic three burner gas
Fridge/freezer: Bushman 135L
Microwave: NCE 20L|Toilet: Thetford cassette
Shower: combination shower/toilet
Lighting: LED
Air-conditioner: Houghton Belair rooftop
Washing machine: No
TV: No
Audio: No
Supplied by: Centaur Caravans, Kilsyth, Victoria