Is this Australia's most off-grid capable hybrid pop-top?

Fledgling Melbourne composite off-road caravan builder Lyfe RV has taken its Hybrid Trakker pop-top model to a whole new level, adding enough battery power and hot water capability to potentially camp off the grid in home-away-from-home comfort indefinitely.

Lyfe RV founder Lou Tedesco is applying the finishing touches at his Epping, Victoria factory to a fully loaded 17ft 6in Lyfe RV17 Hybrid couple's van, which has been fitted with an optional Safiery 48V off-grid power system with 1460W rooftop solar panels feeding into an 800Ah lithium battery bank, along with a 6000W invertor/charger and Victron smart management system to run all the on-board appliances.

If that's not enough, an additional external solar 'blanket' can be plugged in or, if the sun's not shining, the Safiery 'Scotty' in-vehicle charger fitted to the tow vehicle will top up the van's batteries when running between campsites.

"So realistically there's no generator required, as it will run multiple appliances including the air-conditioner for hours, but if you're running out of power you can plug your car in and idle for a bit and away you go again," explained Tedesco.

However, the Lyfe van's main party trick is a dual hot-water system, so when the 16-litre tank in the standard diesel hot water/space heater runs out there's a Safiery 48V continuous hot water system as back-up. And when the on-board 330-litre fresh water tanks run dry, a dual water pump system can draw water from an external source like a creek or lake, to run the internal or external shower.

"It gives you the best of both worlds," he said, referring to the possibility of endless hot showers while camping in the middle of nowhere.

"The external kitchen on this van is also fully electric and includes an induction cooktop, convection oven, air fryer and microwave," he said.

The 'gas-free' pop-top will serve as a company 'demo' as well as a test bed for the latest off-grid technology, with other van highlights including Corian benchtops, a slimline Thetford 152-litre compressor fridge, Webasto air-con, Fusion audio, roof-mounted 'dust buster', a wall-mount washing machine and a SavvyLevel system that works in conjunction with the airbag trailing arm suspension.

The 2670kg Tare/3500kg ATM and 2.16m wide Lyfe RV17 Hybrid also features Lyfe's latest 'twin-room' combination shower-toilet which adds an additional solid door inside to protect the compact Ogo composting toilet from splashes while showering.

"The Safiery system in this van adds around $20,000 to the overall cost, so the price of this one with all the extras comes in closer to $180,000, up from $150,000 for the standard package," he said.

Meanwhile, Lyfe RV is currently building its first 23ft full-height off-road tandem-axle family caravan, called the Tribe, which will cost its new owners around $250,000 when its finished.

The premium-spec custom-built van will run a top-spec Safiery 48V power system including 1000Ah lithium battery bank and 2000W-plus rooftop solar panels, to power a number of domestic-style appliances fitted including a dishwasher, washing machine and clothes dryer.

"We're constantly moving forward," explained Tedesco. "Because we're in a niche market our customers are requesting full off-grid so we need to see how it all goes together before we fit them to the customer vans. But these latest versions really are the cream of the crop."