Ezytrail Parkes 16R Quad 2026 Review

Ezytrail has been one of the leaders in the rapid rise of Chinese-based campers and caravans in Australia. The Melbourne-based business started off in 2005 with canvas camper trailers, before following the now proven Aussie importer path into hybrids and, more recently, full-sized caravans.

Ezytrail's Parkes hybrid pop-top series launched in 2016 has been an important part of Ezytrail’s success, which saw the importer deliver just under 2000 'vans in 2025, or the fifth highest in the country.

The company has had plenty of time to refine the concept and recently unveiled the Mark 4 generation, which includes six off-road variants in total. Here we're reviewing one of the bigger Parkes' models; the family-focussed 16R Quad.

The Ezytrail Parkes 16R Quad is priced competitively, from $69,990, and suits a family looking for a relatively compact, off-road-oriented camper that's not overly bulky (3000kg ATM). The “16R” part of the model designation refers to a 16ft body with rear door, while “Quad” translates to four-berth.

To sleep four people in a 16-footer requires a bit of layout creativity, and Ezytrail achieves this by utilising a king-sized bed that converts into seating.

Undoubtedly, there is a bit of faffing around reconfiguring the bed every time you want a meal or somewhere to sit, but the payoff is a nimbler 'van better suited to being dragged into harder-to-get-to places.

Underneath the skin, the Parkes 16R Quad benefits from a frameless full-composite construction, with PET vacuum sandwich panels for the walls, roof and floor. The fibreglass body sits on a hot-dip galvanised 'one-piece' chassis with an extended gooseneck drawbar and McHitch off-road coupling.

Suspension is Ezytrail’s Ezyrider V3 independent coil/shocks set-up, which features beefy swing arms and an anti-roll bar.

Peering underneath, the swing arm grease nipples are conveniently located for easy maintenance but look vulnerable to being smashed by a rock.

Stopping is via Bigfoot V3 12in electric-drum off-road brakes.

The rolling stock is appropriately chunky for the van’s off-road intent, with 1500kg-rated 16in alloys wrapped in 265/75 R16 Kenda 'rugged terrain' tyres.

Starting at the front, the king bed/seat conversion is made possible thanks to a hinged mattress that can be folded forward out of the way. 

The mattress has one hinge cleverly placed in the lower third when folded out, which means you won’t feel it around your shoulders to hips when lying down.

Sitting underneath the mattress are a couple of cushions that function as seating backrests. The end result is a large L-shaped lounge that should easily accommodate two adults and two kids.

The king bed is offset to the driver’s side, allowing room for a bank of four cupboards running along the passenger side of the bed.

Above the driver’s side of the bed is an open overhead compartment fabricated from powdercoated pressed metal. It’s useful additional storage space but looks quite utilitarian compared to the rest of the stylish interior.

Jumping to the back, the double bunks have been shaped wide at the head and narrower at the feet to make space for the bathroom. Little kids will be blissfully happy, but larger teenagers may not be entirely comfortable.

The unusual shape of the bunks will make it harder to make up the bed nicely but, on a more positive note, the lower bunk has two generous drawers that will hold a decent amount of clothing.

Also helping prevent family fights are the inclusion of four wireless smartphone charging pads!

The design also delivers a very workable all-in-one bathroom, featuring a detachable shower rose, compact basin, Thetford cassette toilet and triple soap dispenser.

If the convertible front bed or asymmetrical bunks aren’t your cup of tea, check out the slightly larger 17ft Ceduna Quad – it has a dedicated front bed, separate seating and regular shaped bunks.

The central kitchen gets a nice-sized bench on the passenger side with a dual induction cooktop (1800W/1500W) and a reasonably sized sink. Underneath the cooktop is a handy pantry with sliding baskets, which also has external access.

The Dometic 126L compressor fridge/freezer is compact enough to allow room for triple drawers underneath. However, the drawer storage means the layout runs out of room for a microwave.

One of the downsides to pop-tops is that the top part of the wall is simply a sheet of vinyl with very little insulation properties. This tends to contribute to condensation and makes it hard to keep the warmth in.

Ezytrail has countered this by adding a quilted layer of insulation on the inside (similar to what Snowy River been doing lately with its pop-tops), which I reckon will make a real difference.

Another downside of pop-tops is the roof can often be difficult to lift manually. Ezytrail has addressed this by incorporating an electric scissor lifting system activated at the press of a button.

The slide-out external kitchen ticks the boxes with a hot and cold water sink, three-burner cooktop and utensil drawer. The MK4 version now runs the sink wastewater into the grey water tank, which is a handy improvement.

Forward of the kitchen is a fridge slide fitted with a myCOOLMAN 78L chest fridge. It’s an excellent addition because the internal fridge is not the biggest going around.

The drop-down table beside the kitchen has a neat recess for the supplied chopping board. Often the storage behind a drop-down table is fairly shallow, but thanks to the dual external/internal access, it's quite deep and very usable on the 16R Quad.

There's also a powered cassette awning for sheltering the kitchen area, and electric entry steps.

Up front, the gullwing toolbox has a slide for carrying bulkier items and a handy shelf for smaller bits and pieces. The top of the box also gets adjustable tie-down rails to strap stuff down.

The front of the box boasts a solid metal shield to protect twin 8.5 kg centrally located gas bottles, and a diesel heater tank on the driver’s side. The driver’s side also gets a couple of handy drawers tucked away inside a hatch, and a pop-out clothesline.

The rear platform bar is a burger with the lot, and features full-length storage, two jerry can holders, spare wheel and a substantial wood box on top. The underside of the bar holds two recovery boards.

The Parkes 16R Quad's off-grid electrical package packs plenty of punch, with sufficient storage and energy capacity to stay away from powered sites for a decent stretch, provided there's enough sun to keep its large battery bank topped up.

Standard are twin 24V 235Ah lithium batteries that add up to 470Ah at 24V. That’s equivalent to 940Ah at 12.8V or 12kWh.

Feeding the batteries is a substantial 1190W of 48V rooftop solar, via a Victron SmartSolar 100/50 MPPT controller.

However, charging from the tow vehicle through the Victron DC-to-DC charger is modest. A nominal 12V input and 24V output delivers 15 Amps (360W). This means the big solar array will do most of the heavy lifting.

The Victron MultiPlus-II 3000VA inverter/charger (nominal 2.4kW) delivers a decent amount of 240V power for running more power hungry equipment.

Water capacity is generous for a compact 16-footer, with 240L of fresh water and an 80L grey water tank. There's also 17kg gas storage for running the external cooktop and instantaneous hot-water system, while the dual induction cooktop inside can run off the batteries.

You won't get cold on Outback nights with a 2kW Aufocus bluetooth diesel heater included along with a rooftop air conditioner.

The 2470kg tare is on par for this category of imported hybrid – not the lightest, not the heaviest – and it needs all of the assigned 3000kg ATM for a 530kg payload. After filling the 240L (240kg) freshwater tanks, it leaves 340kg for all the family gear – decent but not over the top.

The 3000kg ATM sits within the theoretical tow rating of plenty of dual-cab utes and large SUVs. However, it is likely to be at the practical upper limit once the GCM, GVM and tow vehicle to 'van weight ratio, are factored in.

The 190kg tare (unloaded) towball weight provides a reasonable margin to load sensibly and stay within most tow vehicle towball limits.

As always, it’s important to verify real-world loads by putting the rig over scales.

At $69,990 plus dealer delivery and on-road costs, the Parkes 16R Quad packs a lot into a relatively compact footprint. Its full-composite body, off-road running gear, big 24V battery bank and solar array, plus generous exterior storage, add up to a solid value package.

The biggest dealbreaker for many will be having to convert the front king bed into seating every day, while the oddly shaped bunks are better suited to younger children.

But for a family that values compact dimensions, outdoor living and off-grid capability above a conventional caravan layout, the Parkes 16R Quad makes a convincing case.

Price from $69,990 plus dealer delivery and on-road costs
Travel length: 7320mm
External body length: 4877mm
Travel width: 2400mm
Travel height: 2770mm
Tare: 2470kg
ATM: 3000kg
Ball weight (Tare): 190kg
Body: Frameless full-composite construction with PET vacuum sandwich-panel walls, roof and floor; electric pop-top roof
Chassis: Hot-dip galvanised
Suspension: Ezyrider V3 coil independent suspension
Brakes: Bigfoot V3 12in electric drums
ESC: Optional
Wheels: 16in off-road alloy; 265/75 R16 tyres
Water: 240L fresh, 80L grey
Battery: 2 x 24V 235Ah lithium Ezypower-Pro 24V management; Victron MultiPlus-II 24V/3000VA inverter/charger; Victron 12/24-15 360W DC-DC charger
Solar: 1190W of 48V panels; Victron SmartSolar 100/50 MPPT charger
Gas: 2 x 8.5kg
Hot water: Instantaneous gas
Cooking: Dual induction hotplate (internal); three-burner gas (external)
Fridge/freezer: Dometic NRX1130
Microwave: Nil
Toilet: Thetford cassette toilet
Shower: Combination
Lighting: LED
Air-conditioner: myCOOLMAN CCA3000
Space heater: 2kW Aufocus bluetooth diesel
TV: 24in smart TV with Starlink CAT6 connection
Audio: Android Auto/Apple CarPlay-ready MP5 player with four speakers
More info: Ezytrail Australia