Gibb River makes a splash at Sydney Supershow

Melbourne's Network RV is hoping to grab a slice of the fast-growing imported composite caravan market dominated by Snowy River, with the unveiling of a new range of Chinese-built dirt-road caravans at the 2024 Sydney Supershow at Rosehill Racecourse.

Sitting below its more upmarket VanCraft range, Network RV's latest brand, Gibb River Caravans, offers a range of six budget-friendly models aimed at buyers with off-road touring in mind, with the display models standing out with their glossy white and black checker plate exteriors and bold Gibb River decals.

Unlike Network RV's other brands including Network RV, NextGen and Victory which are all built at its big Melbourne factory, the caravan bodies on the Gibb River models are manufactured in a Chinese factory and are shipped to Australia, before being bolted to an Australian-built Network Engineering chassis and fitted with locally-sourced suspension in Melbourne.

Attractively priced around the $80,000-$85,000 mark, the tandem-axle, two- and four-berth vans are available from 19ft 6in to 23ft body length, and all effectively share the same equipment level.

Three models are offered in the 19ft 6in body size (the GR196FD Front Door, GR196RD Rear Door and the GRD196P Pantry), while 21ft and 22ft Family Bunk (GR21B and GR22B) and 23ft Rear Club (GR23RC) models round out the selection.

The new Gibb River models are fully insulated with fibreglass sandwich panel construction for walls, roof and floor, while the now-expected checker-plate protection along the sides is 600mm high.

Outside, each Gibb River van is finished off with a Dometic roll-out awning, dual slide-out toolbox, LED light bar, picnic table, external shower, gas bayonet, reversing camera and two 9kg gas bottles, while the basic off-grid package includes 400W rooftop solar panels and twin 100Ah AGM batteries.

Water capacity is what you’d expect in this size and class of caravan; that is, two 95L fresh water tanks and one 95L grey water.

Inside, many of the display models featured a colour scheme that goes heavy on piano black, on bench tops and drawers, often with contrasting white/grey furnishing.

The interior specs include a 173-litre Thetford 12v compressor fridge freezer, 20L microwave, top-load washing machine, Milenco 360 TV dish digital aerial, radio/CD/DVD player with internal/external speakers, a three-plus-one cooktop and grill, Girard instant hot water and a Belaire reverse-cycle air-conditioner.

All Gibb River vans come with an internal ensuite with separate shower cubicle.

The Network RV chassis uses 150mm Permagal black finish longitudinal beams with a Cruisemaster D0-35 off-road coupling on the extended A-frame. Suspension is Teko TuffRide 3.5-tonne independent with dual EFS shocks. The 12-inch electric drum brakes and 16-inch alloys finish off what is a fairly typical off-road chassis.

All the Gibb River vans boast a 3500kg ATM rating, with Tare weights in the 2700-2900kg range.

The Gibb River Caravan range comes with a three-year structural, chassis and suspension warranty and is available from 28 Australian dealers, including Sydney Supershow exhibitor Fair Dinkum Caravans, with four outlets also selling the brand in New Zealand.

You can also check out the Gibb River Caravans being offered for sale on caravancampingsales here.