Fantasy F5-A 2020 Review

The elephant in the room that you simply can’t ignore when discussing the Fantasy F5-A hybrid pop-top caravan is its price.

A $42,990 starting price gets you a lot of caravan here: a 15ft long pop-top with a large north-south queen bed, a combination internal shower and cassette toilet bathroom, a dinette that converts into a spare single bed, a large pull-out external stainless-steel cooktop under a power-operated awning, independent trailing arm coil spring and dual-shock absorber suspension, separate fresh and grey water tanks and lots of storage and stone protection.

Then there’s the 'premium package' of no-cost options that come with the Fantasy F5-A, including rooftop air-conditioning, 300W of rooftop solar panels feeding two 150Ah deep cycle batteries, a 1500W inverter, two spare wheels and a separate fully-enclosed annexe and tent for the external hot/cold shower.

That’s an impressive spec list that's only missing electric operation of the pop-top to tick all the boxes. Our review van was also fitted with an optional diesel-powered space heater, which adds $1250 to the equation...

Overseas manufacturing reduces costs

OK, you guessed it, Fantasy Caravans are made in China – like up to 30 per cent of all new caravans sold in Australia. But what’s wrong with that if it saves you big bucks?

The answer relates to your budget and your long-term commitment to remote area off-road travel.

In these COVID-19 times, many people have temporarily swapped their overseas holiday plans for inland travel, but it’s not forever and many don’t want all their money tied up in a top-shelf caravan or hybrid that means limiting other options.

The downside with most Chinese-made campers, hybrids and caravans is that they lack some of the style, finish and finesse of their more expensive locally-built counterparts and that’s certainly true of the Fantasy F5-A when compared with similar-sized pop-top hybrid caravans costing up to $38-$60,000 more – some with less standard equipment.

So, while you might successfully complete that birthright ‘lap’ of Australia including many unsealed major roads, you can expect a few small catches and clips to fail on the journey.

You’ll also need to spend a little time afterwards blowing dust out of places it doesn’t reach in many more expensive RVs. The Chinese don’t camp like we do and while they can produce world-leading products from iPhones to Nikon lenses, they will also build RVs to a price. The compensation is that you can relax on your travels knowing that your outlay is relatively small.

Off-grid potential

Let’s say you are planning to travel ‘off-the-grid’ and see what the Fantasy F5-A offers.

For a start, the hybrid camper sits on a solid 150 x 50 x 4mm hot dipped galvanised steel chassis and A-frame topped by a DO-35 off-road coupling and a dual-wheel Ark XO-750 height-adjustable jockey wheel, with independent trailing arm coil spring and twin shock suspension underneath.  

Brakes are 12-inch drums and the steel wheels are shod with 265/75-16 all-terrain tyres. All good here!

The conventionally-styled body has composite, aluminium-clad walls, while the pop-top and front wall are made from fibreglass. The aluminium composite cladding is weighty and contributes to the F5-A’s 2150kg tare weight.

However, with an ATM of 3000kg, that still leaves a totally adequate payload of 850kg for a 15ft van, provided you can keep its ball weight to 300kg or less.

Checker-plate stone protection covers the lower waistline of the front and body sides. I’d also like the extra protection of a stone-mesh shield up front, but this would further reduce the Fantasy’s turning circle, as the A-frame is quite short and the tow car can come into contact with the frame or jockey wheel if you work its turning limits.

Underneath, the two 100 litre stainless steel fresh water and single 80-litre grey water tanks are both protected by more checker-plate, but the plastic rear drainage pipes could do with some stone-shielding.

I’d also like to see a guarded water tap on the drawbar and I’d give the diesel fuel tank mounted on the front bodywork with its very vulnerable feed-pipe and filter some protection. As it stands, I’d give it about 15 minutes to be destroyed on an unsealed highway, like the Oodnadatta Track!

In contrast, the Fantasy’s two 9kg gas bottles are well out of harm’s way in their own front locker, while rock bars along each flank protect the lower sides in tight off-road tracks.

Pack for the long haul

With a good payload and plenty of storage lockers, you don’t need to skimp on what you take on a long Outback trip.

Working down the door side there’s a roomy storage locker, next to a vented locker with a slide for an (optional) large cabinet fridge/freezer.

Adjacent to that, the Fantasy’s stainless steel kitchen slides out of the adjacent body locker. Once out, it unpacks quickly to reveal a four-burner gas stove protected on three sides by folding wind-shields.

A stainless steel sink with a short mixer tap and a fold-up spice rack and plate-up tray are matched by a lower slide-out cutlery and separate utensils tray, while a flexible light wand lets you see what’s cooking.

Immediately rear of that locker is a lift-up pantry with five compartments, while a drop-down picnic table doubles as a servery. To summarise: it’s a comprehensive, external kitchen.

Working the right side, there’s another storage locker up front next to a larger one to its rear. On our review F5-A the second locker housed the Fantasy’s standard awning and external shower tent, but upper and lower sliding trays suggest it could double as a place to house a portable generator, or a small Weber BBQ.

Compact but well-equipped interior

You need to duck your head as you step inside by the rear entry door, where you pass a rear wall bench that incorporates a stainless steel sink.

If the weather is filthy, there’s room to sit a portable gas cooktop next to the sink to boil some water for a cuppa, or to locate a coffee pod machine, as the F5-A comes with a 1500W inverter to run one off the grid.

Cupboard space below allows it to be stored when travelling.

The F5-A’s fixed north-south queen bed dominates the front of the van, with a deep bedside locker along the door side and the bed flanked by twin 12v fans to supplement the relatively small double-glazed, hopper-style front-side windows.

At the foot of the bed there’s a small café dinette table on the door side, which converts into a single bed large enough for a teenager by relocating the table and inserting an infill cushion.

A shelved cupboard and a nest of drawers opposite sits on the wall next to the F5-A’s roomy right rear corner, combined shower and cassette toilet, which is supplemented by a second exterior hot/cold shower.

Needs a powered pop-top

Setting up reminds me how much I have come to appreciate the power lifting mechanisms making their way onto most of the latest pop-tops, as raising the F5-A’s roof requires some upper-body strength.

And once you’ve raised the roof, there's no reassuring latch to ensure it won’t come crashing down again. Maybe I’m asking too much for $42,990..

Also on the debit side is the overall level of finish, which is much more in keeping with the Fantasy’s price. A spaghetti of wires and pipes in the cupboards doesn’t breed confidence for long-term remote area travel, so the first thing I would do is some internal plumbing with some quality fittings, and then be very careful not to pack solid objects in those areas.

But you get what you pay for and what you pay is ‘not a lot’ for the F5-A.

Plus, you get an impressive five-year structural warranty that covers the drawbar and chassis, plus a two-year manufacturers’ warranty and 12-month appliances’ warranty, both of which are excellent by today’s RV industry standards.

The other impressive thing about the Fantasy f5-A is how well it tows, which is always reassuring in a van that owners might take thousands of kilometres off the bitumen.

Plus, its relatively narrow 2160mm wide body and the assurance of checker-plate clad sides and rock bars give you the confidence to take it down tight tracks.

As I said, you get what you pay for and in the case of the Fantasy F5-A, you get a hamburger with the works!

Conclusion

The Fantasy F5-A is an intriguing package, with its very average detail finish excused by its low price and high level of standard equipment.

However, at half the price and more of its closest locally-built competitors it deserves to be considered as an option that will leave you money in the bank to enjoy on your post-lockdown travels.

How much does the Fantasy F5-A cost?

Price: From $42,990
Travel length: 6200mm
Body width: 2160mm
Travel height: 2400mm
Tare weight: 2150kg
ATM: 3000kg
Ball weight (Tare): 210kg
Body: Aluminium composite clad walls with fibreglass pop-top and front
Chassis: Hot dipped galvanised steel, 150mm x 50mm x  4mm chassis and drawbar
Suspension: Independent single axle with trailing arms with coil springs, twin shock absorbers per wheel
Brakes: 12-inch electric drums
Wheels: 16-inch alloy wheels with 265/75-16 all terrain tyres
Water: 2 x 100L fresh and 80L grey
Battery: 2 x 150Ah deep cycle
Solar: 2 x 150W rooftop glass panels
Gas: 2 x 9kg
Hot water: Truma Ultrarapid gas
Cooking: Four gas burner hobs in external slide-out stainless steel kitchen
Fridge:  Optional external cabinet fridge/freezer on slide
Air conditioner: Rooftop
Space heater: Diesel ducted ($1250 option)
Shower: Internal with cassette toilet in shared ensuite, plus external hot/cold shower
Lighting: LED throughout
Supplied by: Fantasy Caravan Brisbane, Hamilton, Queensland
More info: Fantasy Caravan