First look: Wonderland Adventus

While the Australian caravan industry is slowing moving to full composite construction, there’s a compelling reason why more traditional ‘stick and tin’ construction remains popular, particularly in Australia’s caravan heartland of Campbellfield, Victoria.

Literally hand-building a caravan from scratch with steel chassis, timber frame, custom furniture and external cladding allows small to medium sized builders to cater for the many discerning Aussie caravan buyers that desire a home-away-from-home that exactly fits their requirements, rather than an ‘off-the-shelf’ product that often doesn’t.

A good example is this 19ft 6in family bunk van from Wonderland RV, which was built for a young family wanting all the features of a modern caravan but in a package light enough to be towed behind their Ford Everest SUV.

Wonderland RV was set up in 2014 by a former part owner of Retreat Caravans, and his business partner Kevin Dani, who has a background in design and is Wonderland’s managing director. The company specializes in custom building a range of full height caravans in touring and off-road specifications, in body sizes from 16ft to 23ft, and with a choice of more than 21 couple and family layouts.

The business has grown steadily, to the point where Wonderland RV recently moved to a larger factory in Lara Way, Campbellfied, and services most major regions through either factory-direct sales or via dealerships in NSW and Western Australia.

Plenty of options

This 19ft 6in triple bunk family caravan was ordered in ‘Adventus’ spec, which is one of five specification options offered by Wonderland RV, covering touring (bitumen) and rough roads, all the way to more extreme off-road travel.

Designed to handle some light off-road touring, the Adventus comes standard with independent coil spring, trailing arm suspension; in this case AL-KO’s Enduro Cross Country set-up.

Structurally, the tandem axle van is supported by a 4in (100mm x 50mm) galvanized steel chassis from Roadking, with a 50mm ball hitch, 16in alloy wheels with all-terrain tyres, and 10in electric drum brakes.

Designed for thirsty families, the Adventus also comes standard with two underslung, gal-protected 95 litre fresh water tanks, with an optional 100 litre grey water tank also fitted to the review van.

Most Campbellfield caravan builders continue to use traditional ‘stick and tin’ construction methods, which often include Meranti wall framing with cross members and polystyrene insulating foam, hand-cut to fit in between.

Others, like Jayco and progressive off-road builders like Zone RV, have adopted more modern, European-style composite construction, which is often vacuum-pressed sandwich panels, with aluminium or fiberglass on either side and a urethane-type core.

Wonderland’s 'jigsaw' frame construction is somewhere in between, with the walls and ends router-cut from single sheets of thick structural plywood, with similar, precisely cut foam inserts, resulting in a gap-free, strong and fully-insulated panel.

The CAD-designed and CNC-cut furniture is then screwed into timber wall studs, with Wonderland claiming the use of bolts and screws, rather than staples, for 80 per cent of the fixtures. While we didn’t get to find out how well it all held together over some rough roads, it’s reassuring to know that Wonderland backs up its vans with a three year structural warranty.

Industrial finishes

Similar to big-selling rivals New Age and Lotus, the external wall cladding on the Adventus is a smooth Alucabond-style aluminium composite panel, with fibreglass sheeting for the roof and a one-piece EzyFloor floor.

For a point of difference, the ubiquitous black checker plate lower body protection now found on most Aussie caravans  has been replaced on the Adventus by X-Plate, a tough, injected moulded polyethylene plate normally used in industrial settings.

Some of the other external features fitted, included a rear bar with spare wheel, reverse camera, LED ‘work’ lights, drop-down picnic table, roll-out awning, gas bayonet and mains water connection.

The two 9kg gas bottles were stored in an A-frame mounted toolbox, with a stone-protected tap also mounted on the drawbar.

There were two other external storage options: a small locker on the rear onside, which doubled as a TV ‘entertainment’ box, and an expansive, gal-lined tunnel boot at the front. Fitted with two LED lights, the boot is 100mm higher than usual, so could fit in larger items like a Weber Baby Q.

All up, it’s a striking, solidly-built caravan, and weighs accordingly, with a 2540kg Tare and 3200kg ATM providing a decent payload of up to 660kg.

Family matters

According to Wonderland’s Kevin Dani, more than 50 per cent of current production is taken up by family caravans, with most in the larger 22ft-23ft category in order to fit in a rear ensuite along with a north-south queen bed. In the case of this custom-built van, the buyers were restricted by how much their Ford Everest tow vehicle could haul (3000kg maximum).

In the end, they decided on a shorter 19ft 6in layout to keep the weight down, while fitting a similar level of equipment to the larger versions but with a compromise of a less accessible, east-west queen bed up front.

Other than that, it doesn't miss out on much else in this layout, which includes an L-shaped lounge/dinette and fully-equipped kitchen around the middle, and triple bunks, full-height wardrobe with washing machine, and ensuite with separate shower and toilet at the rear.

As the adult buyers weren’t overly tall, the bed’s length could be reduced to allow for a decent-sized half wardrobe and storage drawers at one end, with other bedside storage options extending to three overhead lockers and a pull-out, under-bed drawer for clothes storage.

To allow for multiple viewing angles, there are two mounting options around the bed for the 24in LED TV/DVD, and a handy Sirocco fan for those hot, balmy nights.

Other things we liked in this layout was the LED strip that highlights the drop-down step near the entry door, to help prevent nasty falls at night, and the Camec security door with built-in rollerblinds to block out external light when sleeping.

Living large

Ideal for a busy family caravan, the large dinette table around the L-shaped lounge is adjustable in various directions to create more space down the centre aisle when required. While we didn’t test it out, there seems to be enough room for four family members to congregate on the well-padded leatherette seating. There’s some storage space under the seats, some of which is taken up by the 120Ah Lead Crystal battery and charger.

The kitchen also appears very family friendly, with plenty of bench space and all the essentials like a stainless sink with drainer, filter tap, four-burner cooktop, grille and oven, microwave oven, 184 litre fridge/freezer and lots of storage cupboards and drawers including a large pull-out pantry.

Adding to this van’s ‘bespoke’ nature were some other special touches inside, including a glossy black splashback with bold textured graphics and a large ‘W’ cut-out for the upholstered magazine wall holder. While it won’t be to all buyers' tastes, it demonstrates what’s possible to set your van apart from the Campbellfield crowd.

Rear retreat

The rear section of this 19ft 6in Adventus is typical of many large family bunk vans these days, with a triple bunk set-up on the offside, split by a full height wardrobe with 2.5kg top-loader washing machine (on a slide-out so it can be easily accessed) and ensuite opposite, with separate shower, vanity and toilet.

There shouldn’t be too many complaints from the kids, with the bunks well equipped with a sturdy, built-in ladder, grab handles, padded bed heads, Sirocco fans, reading lights and iPad-compatible 12V charging sockets.

Likewise, from those using the bathroom, with the swivel cassette toilet neatly tucked away in the corner, next to the vanity with ceramic basin and above-and-below cabinets, while the one-piece fibreglass shower cubicle is also of decent size.

About the only thing we’d change back here is to add a solid, sliding door, instead of the standard, flimsy curtain or optional concertina privacy door, that aren't as good at blocking out light and sound.

Most of the ‘electronics’ including fuse box, switches, gauges and chargers, are stored in an overhead locker above the dinette, close to the large touchscreen display that controls the four-speaker Bluetooth audio system.

The occupants of this van are also unlikely to suffer from claustrophobia, with two large ‘four season’ roof hatches in the main living area, to go with a number of double glazed windows and ‘see-through’ door, spread throughout the van.

Summing up

Family caravans ‘with the lot’ are becoming increasingly common on the Australian market, and priced around $80,000 with a few options included on this 19ft 6in Adventus model, it’s easy to understand why.

Solidly built, thoughtfully designed and with a few special touches to make it stand out from the crowd, about the only downside of a caravan jam-packed with this many goodies is the weight, with a similarly sturdy tow vehicle required.

Wonderland RV Adventus 1906

Travel length: 8100
External body length: 5800mm (19ft 6in)
External body width: 2490mm
Travel height: 3000mm
Interior height: 1980mm
Tare: 2540kg
ATM: 3200kg
Payload: 660kg
Ball weight: 160-320kg
Body: Timber frame, aluminium composite and fibreglass panels
Chassis: Galvanised steel 100mm x 50mm
Suspension: AL-KO Enduro Cross Country independent trailing arm, coil springs
Brakes: 10-inch electric drums
Wheels: 16x8 alloys, 245/75R16 AT tyres
Fresh water: 2 x 95L
Grey water: 100L
Battery: 1 x 120Ah Lead Crystal
Solar: 1 x 150W roof-mounted
Gas: 2 x 9kg
Hot water: 28L gas/electric
Cooking: 4 burner (3 gas + I electric) Swift cooktop, plus grill and oven
Microwave: Sphere 25L
Fridge: 184L Thetford N604 3-way
TV: 24in LED TV/DVD with Winegard aerial
Solar: 150W roof-mounted
Air con: Ibis 3 reverse-cycle roof-mounted
Bathroom: Separate shower, toilet and vanity rear bathroom
Lighting: LED throughout
Price (as reviewed): $81,840 (ex-Melbourne)
Supplied by: Wonderland RV, Cambellfield, Vic