Classic Olympic vans

By Susan and Keith Hall

This fibreglass caravan might be approaching 40 years old, but it is still tough enough to do the big round-Australia trip.

The Olympic range of fibreglass vans were manufactured from 1965 until the late 1980s by a Brisbane-based company. It is not related to the Olympic Caravan Company that now operates out of Melbourne.

Bob and Loretta Taylor bought their 1968 model Olympic van in 2001. Since then they have become real enthusiasts of the brand, collecting as much history as they can about it.

While travelling around Australia with a small pop-top van, a chance encounter with some people who owned a fibreglass Olympic got them interested in buying one themselves.

Back at home in northern NSW, they were able to track down and buy their 16ft (4.9m) van, which is a Contessa model. It’s a four-berth van with a double bed, although various other layouts were available at the time, including single beds that were separated by vanity drawers.

Special features of the caravan include fibreglass moulded seats and beds, and a double-skinned front. Later models were fully fibreglassed inside and out.

What particularly attracts Bob and Loretta to the old fibreglass vans is that they have no problems with leaking or dust, and they are easy to clean. Apparently the Olympic company was so keen to show that its vans were watertight, that it had one of its caravans towed across Sydney’s Parramatta River by a power boat.

The completely enclosed shell of the van means that even the base has an aerodynamically smooth surface. The van is 7ft (2.1m) wide and it is tapered at the front, which further improves the aerodynamics.

For their big 2006 marathon trip around Australia, Bob made a few of his own improvements. The double bed now lifts up and slides out for shoe storage. The roll-up awnings are also Bob’s own design and extend over the car.

Bob has established a registry of Olympic fibreglass caravans. He has put together a photographic record of the exterior and interior of these vans and collected details about the different models.

Not only does Bob know about the special features of his own van, but he is a ‘full bottle’ on many of the other old fibreglass Olympic vans that are still in use around Australia. In fact, Bob says many of these caravans still belong to their original owners who appreciate the van’s unique features.

Bob and Loretta are such keen historians of the old fibreglass Olympics that they have travelled to Canberra to do research at the National Library. They also spent a fruitful day in the Caravan World office in Melbourne, looking through the magazine archives for information.

So far Bob and Loretta have collected information on 170 of the old Olympic fibreglass vans and are always keen to hear from anyone else who owns one. They can be contacted on 0428 850 666.