Exclusive Walk-a-bout 640ST

WE LIKED

• Uncluttered layout
• Airy and well ventilated bathroom
• Excellent galvanising on chassis

NOT SO MUCH

• Instructions on front of microwave in Chinese, although local microwaves will be fitted from now on

Yet another fully imported caravan has hit our shores in the form of Exclusive Caravan’s Chinese-built Walk-A-Bout 640 ST; thanks in part to the value of the Australian dollar against the greenback.

What was once a transaction treated with suspicion and disdain, importation of this type of recreational vehicle is becoming more common as the skill level of tradesmen in the Orient increases along with the quality of their machinery.

The ‘suspicion’ had everything to do with quality control which in the early years was lacking across the board whether it be in trailers, boats or furniture. The ‘disdain’ came about from the stigma of ‘buy Australian’ which has a nice ring to it but so does a cash register going out of control with a similar product coming into the country many thousands of dollars below that home grown.

There comes a time then that one has to make a decision and current economic situations are usually the decider.

TOUCH OF EUROPE

Entering the 'van via the rear positioned door gives you immediate access to the Italian made, Indel B 195 litre, fridge/freezer which features a mammoth freezer at floor level. It’s a 12 volt system and runs off the installed 120Ah battery.

Above the refrigerator a microwave is installed, with cupboard space above that. The instructions on the microwave were in Chinese so you’ll need the manual handy till you get the gist of it.

Before heading through the rest of the van let’s duck into the bathroom via the sliding door immediately on the right as you come through the entrance door.

Directly ahead against the rear wall of the bathroom sits a vanity basin unit in a cupboard module that features plenty of bench space. Directly above is a large push out, hopper style window that makes it open and airy. As with all of the windows on the Walk-A-Bout, pull up heat deflectors and insect screens may be deployed if required.

To the right, behind a bi-fold door is the shower cubicle, consisting of a one piece fibreglass module and air vent and 12-volt exhaust fan in the ceiling and a small hopper window in the wall. There’s good elbow room inside when swinging around under the shower head and the rounded corners of the moulding will make it easy to keep mildew at bay.

The toilet is a cassette type, which can be emptied from a hatch in the offside wall. While seated, there’s cupboard space on hand here and overhead cupboards across the back wall.

The bathroom amenities occupy the entire back section of the van on three sides, which allows the best ventilation possible when three windows and two roof vents are opened.

COOK UP A STORM

Back in the van proper, you’ll find a neat kitchen recessed into a large module full of cupboards, doors and a slide out pantry -- with port style access in its sides to prevent contents spilling out during a bumpy ride.

The three gas burners on the Thetford cooker/oven unit sit under a glass top to continue the bench top space for food preparation. A neat rangehood sits above here in the long run of overhead cupboards, which are mirrored on the other side of the passageway as well.

It was pleasing to note that all of the cupboard doors that swing up are fitted with gas struts and every door that’s hinged throughout the 640 ST is fitted with push button catches that may be locked down for travel.

Installed under the single bowl sink is a Truma 14 litre gas or electric hot water service along with a cartridge water filter that has its own tap at the sink.

A panoramic window interrupts the white splash back behind the sink and stove. Toward the front of this section a 12 volt, 19-inch flatscreen TV swings on a pivot to suit viewing on the double bed or the dining and lounge area.

For audio entertainment a radio/CD player is installed just above with speakers in the ceiling.

Opposite the kitchen, two double lounges finished in vinyl Leatherette face each other and a tri fold table folds away against the wall for use as a coffee table.  When people are seated for a full meal it unravels from the wall into a sturdy table top.

Under one of the seats the 120aH battery is stored, topped up by a Waeco automatic charger with remote switch. The other seat base offers further storage.

In the ceiling above this area the reverse cycle air conditioner is installed to maximise coverage to the kitchen, dining and sleeping areas. The brand fitted for this review is superseded and future models will feature Dometic B3000+ units.

ACCESS ALL SIDES

Sitting against the front wall is the queen size bed, with hinged top base to access storage space underneath. It too operates on a set of gas struts for easy lifting.

This walk around sleeping area (on three sides) has ceiling cupboards at the head and floor-to-ceiling cupboards with mirrors and short bench top, on each side, for bedside comfort.

In keeping with the van’s open airy feeling, three large panoramic windows open with their bottom sills just above mattress level. This would give great ventilation on warm nights and reduce the need to run the air con.

The Walk-A-Bout looks spacious and really is. The astute use of the ‘bentwood’ effect of convex cupboard doors maximises internal cupboard space while opening up the room around one’s peripheral vision when moving around inside.

The extensive use of meranti (similar to Philippine mahogany) timber and meranti laminated ply throughout the internals of the 640ST also works well.

GOOD GAL

Generally speaking the quality of galvanising coming out of China, is superior in finish to what is readily attainable in Australia. I can say this with authority having seen the diminishing quality of finish in boat trailers made here over the last two decades.

The Walk-A-Bout's hot dipped galvanised chassis looks up to scratch too, consisting of an ‘A’ frame constructed of 100 x 50 x 4mm, 450 grade steel, with the surrounding chassis under the superstructure made from 100 x 50 x 3mm steel with 50 x 50mm cross members.

The floor is a one piece laminate made up of a 1.2mm single sheet of alloy providing a waterproof barrier to the outside. There’s a  20mm slab of PU foam on top, finished with a 9mm plywood floor compressed and glued together, then sika-flexed, screwed and bolted to the chassis. The internal floor covering is vinyl in timber look pattern.

The superstructure consists of walls made up of a plywood inner liner behind which a sheet of 20mm PU foam provides rigidity and insulation from the elements. The outer skin is fibreglass.

The draw bar has no added extras so there’s plenty of room to mount bicycle racks or perhaps storage boxes, outboard motor racks or just a mesh floor on which to tie down firewood.

A full width boot houses a pair of 9kg gas bottles in a sheet metal lined compartment, and tools and charger system are installed nearby in another compartment.

A full width, double door, boot features at the front and under the extendable awning there’s a hatch to access the TV mount and aerial connections.

In the offside wall a hot and cold shower is available on a hand rose.

The fibreglass outer shell of the 640ST has a nice sheen and being moulded, the rounded finished on corners and contours give it a smart look.

A wind foil on the upper edge of the rear end will deflect a lot of dust off the back of the van when on the dirt, and a rear nudge rail across the back will fend off some of the smaller obstacles when reversing blind. And you could probably swing a bicycle or two here as well.

VERDICT

There are couple of issues some potential buyers may have to get over when heading in the direction of the Exclusive Caravan Walk-A-Bout 640 ST.

The first is ‘Made in China’; a cliché that previously had people turning away but one that’s fading as fast as the setting sun.

There’ll be a huge influx of this style of RV coming from the Orient in the not too distant future and most should have the quality seen in this van.

The other small hurdle is ‘Buy Australian’, but the ‘as reviewed’ price of this caravan of $69,990 has just helped you jump that one.

The manufacturer, an Australian importer based in South East Queensland, has also posted a video of a ‘sway test’ on its website below. Done without the aid of anti sway bars or ride levellers, it's an impressive performance and worth checking out.

EXCLUSIVE CARAVANS WALK-A-BOUT 640ST

Body length: 6.4m (21ft)
Overall length: 7.95m
External width: 2.5m           
Internal height: 1.99m          
Nameplate tare: 2550kg      
Nameplate ATM:  3000 (can be optioned to 3500kg)     
Ball weight: 220kg    
Cooktop: Thetford 3 burner with oven                         
Fridge: Indel B 195 litre upside down fridge/freezer                         
Gas:  2 x 9kg                                
Freshwater: 2 x 85 litre with drain tap                 
Suspension: Ridemaster tandem axle rocker leaf spring with shock absorber each wheel
Price: $69,990 (tow away, Qld)
Supplied by: Exclusive Caravans, Qld