Maxxi expands in size and price

Avan’s Scott van Baardwyck shook up the pop-top ‘expanda’ caravan market when he launched his self-penned Golf Savannah Maxxi 501 at this year’s Victorian Caravan Supershow in February.

Despite the passage of eight months, no one else has come out with a compact 16ft six-berth pop-top with a separate shower and toilet ensuite on a rough-road chassis.

Now, like most Aussie van makers, he’s appealing even more to families with his new Maxxi 531 pop-top built on the same theme.

Visually, the Maxxi 531 is simply a one foot longer Maxxi 501 sitting on tandem trailing arm and coil spring independent suspension, rather than the otherwise similar single axle set-up of the latest 501 models.

All Golf Maxxis – like most Golf and Avan models – are now also being fitted with Dometic’s very solid (and weighty) $1600 optional one-piece security door, overcoming buyer resistance to the previous two-piece, barn-style Avan/Golf door that wasn’t an effective insect barrier.

The drop-down, hard lid queen-size front and double rear beds of the 501 are also unchanged, as is the long slide-out kitchen that the 531 shares with the 501.

However the extra length makes itself felt inside with more kitchen bench space on the door side, two new cupboards ahead of the twin-door separate shower and toilet ensuite on the right hand side and slightly more leg space in the café dinette.

Like the 501, the 531 can be a true six-berth caravan, as the dinette converts quickly into a second double bed by dropping the tabletop and re-arranging the cushions.

At its tare weight of 1975kg, the 531 tips the scales at around 300kg more than the 501 we tested recently and costs approximately $4000 more at $57,980 as displayed at Melbourne Leisurefest, depending on extras fitted.

However with a 400kg payload, it still remains ‘Prado-friendly’, with the sales folk at the show confident it would outsell its smaller sibling that has since its launch proved quite popular, particularly in sunny Queensland.