Complete Campsite Exodus 9

There are a few different varieties of camper trailers springing up and one of the more recent additions to the market is the hybrid.

The hybrid camper is typically a blend of caravan and camper trailer, with versatility and off-road touring ability the focus. Oh, and a fair bit of luxury, too.

The Exodus 9 is the entry model to Complete Campsite’s four-tier hybrid range (although Complete Campsite refers to them as ‘hardtops’), which also includes the Exodus 11, Exodus 14 and the new Exodus 16.

The Exodus 9 is unique in the Exodus range in that it has its entry door at the rear of the camper rather than on the nearside rear like the other Exodus models. It’s also a bit shorter and narrower than the Exodus 11.

Complete Campsite does a great job with making the Exodus 9 look the part for off-road adventures, with graphics down the flanks and a contrasting white and dark grey finish with red highlights.

There’s quite a bit of substance underneath to complement the style up top. There’s generous ground clearance (except for departure angle, which is impeded by the spare wheel slung underneath at the rear) and all plumbing is well out of harm’s way.

The spare wheel is secured with an innovative winding cable system that’s operated via a ratchet at the drawbar. This makes removing and replacing the bulky, heavy wheel a lot easier.

The wheel is supported in a strong RHS carrier and the wheel face is protected from damage from the underside with checker plate. There are also two substantial recovery hooks at the rear, stone protection for the front storage box and alongside the lower body sides, and the front-end has a stone guard.

The only negative with the underside is the sealant used to cover screws looks a bit ordinary. This is more an aesthetic concern than anything else, although the sealant may break off when it becomes brittle with age.

The hitch is a D035 coupling with handbrake and a swing-up jockey wheel is a standard fixture.

Setting up camp is very easy; all you have to do is drop the four stabiliser legs, release the (optional) swing-up rear roof, pull out the step, jump inside and push up the gas strut-assist pop-top roof.

Given its ground clearance, using the supplied folding step is also a good idea for all but the long-legged of us.

Once inside, you’re presented with a lounge area to the rear and a north-south queen-size bed up front.

The lounge area is really versatile, as you can set it up for one person to sit with the bed in use or alternatively fold the rear section of the bed over (the mattress is sewn in two sections for this purpose) and have seating for three.

Then you can slide in the supplied table in its base and you have a ready-made indoor dining area.

Sliding in the table leg is a bit fiddly until you become used to having to push against the mattress to ensure the leg is vertical to slide it into the tight fitting.

With the table installed this is a small space but still very useable -- perfect for those wet days at camp when living outside isn’t an attractive option. The table top sits neatly in a dedicated spot below the bed end.

The interior feel a little dark with just the front, off-side and door windows (the nearside wall is taken up with cupboards) but with the pop-top windows open, this improved the ambience markedly.

Lighting is quite acceptable inside, with two bright LED reading lights at the bedhead and an overhead light.

The diesel heater outlet is on the nearside at the bed end. Having spent a week camping in the Exodus 14, I can vouch for the Exodus’ fibreglass shell being a well-insulated space.

This is one camper where winter camping in the southern states isn’t as unpleasant as you’d think, and here is made more appealing with the (optional) diesel heater. A three-speed fan is also fitted in the camper.

The floor is covered in vinyl while marine-grade carpet lines the walls and ceiling.

Storage inside is quite good, with two wide lockers accessed via lift-up, strut-assist hatches alongside the bed on the nearside.

On the rear nearside, there’s also a drop-down hatch (which also makes for a useful light-load table) giving access to a small locker and below it are three drawers. There’s also an internal access door to the external locker space in the offside rear corner, which is a convenient spot for a portable toilet.

The external door is a two-piece unit with the inner section a screened, locking security door. The front and off-side hopper windows are double-glazed and also have sliding mesh-screens and concertina privacy screens.

The canvas pop-top skirt contains a side window on each side and a rear window, and all have zippered canvas and clear screens plus fixed mesh screens.

Outdoor living is what camping is all about and the Exodus 9 has abundant sheltered areas to keep out the harsh sun and wind.

A Fiamma F45 awning rolls out of the nearside and attached to this are shade awnings to the front and rear. These awnings are also secured to the camper on sail tracks.

The rear roof has a wall attached to the rear and zippered to this on the offside is the (optional) shower cubicle. The cubicle forms its shape with poles on the offside end tensioned with a spreader pole.

The shower rose is pulled out of a compartment in the rear offside wall of the camper, where the shower taps are also located.

External storage is offered in the front box, which is a generous size for most needs. The box has a large top door and another smaller door on the offside.

The off-side access is enough for a small generator, while the top door gives access to limited space, thanks to the space taken by the optional fridge. This space is probably best for the awnings or tarps and the like.

At least Complete Campsite has housed the fridge in its own caged enclosure, so you’re not faced with your gear falling into the fridge’s space when it’s pulled out on the slide.

The camper body’s locking off-side compartments, from the front back, give access to the pole compartment, the diesel heater, the water plumbing and electrics, then the rear compartment for the porta-potti. This last compartment also has a 12v socket for a shower light to be plugged in.

The beauty of the diesel heater and plumbing/electrics compartments is that if you strike problems when in the bush, you have easy access to most of the components in one spot for easier trouble-shooting.

The camper’s nearside has a really well set-up kitchen area, and we particularly liked the lift-up hatch that reveals a long pantry storage area.

This is covered in a mesh cover to keep everything contained within the lipped, carpeted shelves, so that when you open up the hatch after a run on the corrugations, you don’t have half your food trying to escape.

The stainless-steel kitchen slide is another nice, Complete Campsite touch — it slides out 90 degrees to the camper as you’d expect, but its party trick is that it then pivots around 90 degrees to the rear and locks in so it’s parallel to the camper.

The slide contains the bench food prep area, two drawers, the sink and the cooker.

There’s a load of bench space, and this is augmented by an optional rear nearside drawer that contains a small stainless-steel pantry with benchtop surface. The fridge slide is handily located to the front of the kitchen.

The Exodus 9 towed well behind the Mitsubishi Triton (max tow rating of 3100kg), although it’s on the heavy side for a camper at 1350kg. However, the weight penalty for being an enclosed hybrid camper instead of a conventional canvas-topped camper isn’t as much as you’d think.

VERDICT

The Complete Campsite Exodus 9 is a great camper to rough it in comfort.

However, without the options ticked on this camper as featured, the Exodus 9 does seem a bit light-on for equipment for $55,950.

Adding the $17k of options fitted here seems a lot, but if ‘glamping' is your thing, it’s well-worth it for the versatility and creature comforts.

WE LIKED:
>> Solid, well-finished construction
>> Clever kitchen slide and pantry
>> Easy plumbing and heater component access

NOT SO MUCH:
>> Lacking features as standard
>> A bit dark without pop-top windows open inside
>> Screw hole sealing underneath

COMPLETE CAMPSITE EXODUS 9

Travel length: 4970mm
Body length (open): 3270mm
External body width: 1830mm
Travel height: 2250mm
Interior height: 1440/2150mm (min/max)
Tare: 1100kg (approx)
ATM: 2000kg
Ball weight: 120kg (approx)
Body: Moulded fibreglass
Chassis: 75mm x 50mm RHS galvanised steel
Suspension: Independent, coil springs and shocks
Brakes: 12in electric
Stability Control: Not available
Wheels: 16in alloy wheels and 265/75R16 LT tyres
Fresh water: 120 litres
Battery: 105Ah AGM deep cycle
Solar: 2 x 120w panels with regulator
Air-conditioner: Not available
Gas: 2x 4kg
Hot water: Diesel
Cooking: Three-burner SMEV cooker
Fridge: Evakool 82L fridge/freezer
Microwave: Not available
Toilet: Not available
Shower: External separate enclosure
Lighting: LED
TV: Not available
Price: from $55,950 plus on-road costs ($71,550 as tested)
Options fitted: Larger moulded fibreglass front storage box, 82L fridge/freezer, external slide-out pantry, diesel hot-water and heating, external draw water source, pop-up rear roof with ensuite, 2 x 105a/h AGM batteries, 2 x 120w solar panels, additional polyester wall, wedge-shape roof attachment.
Supplied by: Complete Campsite, Lisarow, NSW