Major milestone for Euro brand

Seven years after becoming the official distributor of the Slovenian caravans, R.V Asia Pacific is celebrating the sale of the 1000th Adria caravan Down Under.

After a slow start – just 25 were sold in the first year – sales of the lightweight European models have averaged more than 150 a year.

R.V Asia Pacific general manager Chris Swann said with the continued trend towards economical, mid-sized SUVs and sedans, the lighter Adria vans have struck a chord with buyers who don’t want to replace their existing family car with a bigger tow vehicle.

The largest, 22ft Adria caravan available in Australia has an ATM of just 2000kg, while the 14ft 6in 390DS, weighing just 1100kg fully laden, is light enough to be towed by a four-cylinder Toyota Camry.

Swann also cited the establishment of a nationwide dealer network, as well as “reliable aftersales support” from a network of service, parts and panel centres, as reasons Adria has outlasted other European brands previously available in Australia such as Geist and Hymer.

But despite the 'beefing up' of Australian-spec Adria vans to go with the five year water ingress warranty, it’s been a hard slog to convince local buyers that they can be as tough as locally-built versions. Last year R.V Asia Pacific went so far as to display a cut-away model to illustrate the enhanced construction, while it has also promoted various ‘real world’ durability tests over the years.

And not all models from the 48-year-old Slovenian RV manufacturer have hit the target, with plans to introduce a Fiat Ducato-based campervan shelved, after a lukewarm response to a prototype displayed at shows.

Dealers have also been forced to slash prices and spruik value-packed ‘show specials’ to keep sales ticking along.

However, Adria’s success has helped pave the way for the recent influx of lightweight caravans from the UK, including Bailey which has clocked up around 250 sales since arriving here in late-2011.