MDC Forbes 12+ 2019 Review

Let’s not beat around the bush; in the early days of imported Chinese campers, buyers were confronted with all sorts of quality issues: showroom rust, crappy canvas, dodgy ‘no name’ appliances and wonky chassis welds.

No surprise, warranty claims were high and customer satisfaction low.

However, times have changed and a noticeable step up in build quality, attention to detail, overall fit and finish and fitment of 'brand name' accessories and appliances has helped raise the status of Chinese-built RVs to a level where, they now deliver far more ‘highs’ than ‘lows’.

That’s my belief, anyway, after recently testing two similar-design hybrid campers from different brands in the space of a few weeks.

The first was a 15ft four-berth family pop-top from fledgling, Melbourne-based company Fantasy Caravan, and the second (and the subject of this review) a slightly smaller 12ft hard-wall family off-road camper from top-selling Market Direct Campers (MDC).

Hard-wall hero

Introduced in early-2019, the MDC Forbes 12+ is the smallest model in MDC’s Forbes range of off-road, single axle hybrid pop-top campers, which also includes the bigger three-berth Forbes 13+ and five-berth Forbes 15+.

In the case of the Forbes 12+, cooking is outside with a slide-out stainless kitchen and slide-out fridge, like on a traditional camper trailer, while the interior is more like a conventional caravan’s with a queen bed for the adults that extends out the back, a bench seat with removable table and single fold-down 'top bunk' in the middle, and combination, corner shower/toilet up front, along with some cupboards, drawers and benchspace for storage.

Being a Chinese camper, the MDC Forbes 12+ delivers plenty of bang for your bucks – in fact, MDC boast a list of standard features unmatched by any of its rivals, and with a starting price of $39,990, they might be right.

The standard equipment list is impressive for the price, and includes three 100Ah AGM batteries, 35A battery charger, 1000W Sine inverter and three 100W roof-mounted solar panels, along with 160 litre fresh water and 80 litre grey water tanks, gas hot water, diesel space heater, electric awning, TV and radio.

Our review camper was also fitted with a roof-top air-conditioner, adding $2500 to the price.

Reassuringly there’s a few recognizable brand names including Projecta (chargers), Thetford (toilet), Truma (hot water heater) and Dometic (air-con) that you find in many Aussie-built RVs. One of the 'house brand' appliances is the diesel heater, which got a good workout over the particularly frosty week-end we spent sleeping in the camper.

Apart from some noise and a noticeable whiff of diesel exhaust fumes, it did a good job of keeping the interior warm in near-zero temperatures, while consuming only a few litres of diesel from the container located on the A-frame. However, I couldn't work out how to adjust the amount of air blowing through the three, floor mounted vents using the nearby controls.

The other ‘no name’ appliance fitted to the Forbes 12+ was a Fiamma-style 3.2m wide electric awning, which worked OK although was a bit slow to roll out using the switch located near the floor, inside the door. The electric cable running from the unit into the wall of the camper also looked like an after-thought, although we noticed the Fantasy had a similar arrangement.

Familiar set-upo

Setting up the Forbes 12+ is also similar to the Fantasy, with a few minor differences. There are four stabilisers that drop down and a roof that pushes up from inside after unlatching the corner latches. Despite more weight on the roof, the MDC’s felt easier to push up than the Fantasy's,while rear, solid walled bed extension takes a similar time (up to five minutes) to fold out, adding 90cm to the body length when completed.

You need to take care when folding over the all-metal bed base that it doesn’t drop and bend the side supports, as it’s quite heavy. However, it all seemed well sealed from the elements when set up, and the large caravan-style hopper window on the the rear panel, is great for boosting ventilation and natural light.

The solid walls and window and rubber seals provide better insulation than you get from Aussie-built canvas-walled expanders. The downside is the extra weight from the all-metal construction, along with that of the heavy-duty, strut-assisted steel arm supports for the two spare wheels, which fold down out of the way after removing some fiddly securing pins.

Other ‘outside’ jobs when setting up include unlocking and dropping down the external cover for the Truma hot water unit, which is located next to the outside shower locker and water tank fillers on the rear offside.

The busy-looking drawbar incorporates a large checker plate toolbox containing two slide-out compartments for a fridge and generator (or other items like the annexe walls), while under the top lid is a wide but shallow, marine carpeted area for the annexe poles, fire extinguisher and winding tools. The onside slide also includes a light, Anderson plug and 12V sockets for powering an (optional) 89 litre fridge.

There’s also a small toolbox on the drawbar for two 9kg gas bottles, alongside a couple of jerry holders and the diesel heater fuel container, plus some space for carrying firewood. The diesel container holds around 10 litres, which based on our consumption should be good for at least 25 hours of heating.

Cooking in the outdoors

The Forbes 12+ comes with a typical camper trailer-style slide-out stainless kitchen, albeit one well equipped with four-burner gas cooktop including built-in windshields, and  sink with drainer and hot/cold mixer tap. The kitchen is easy to pull out from its onside locker and is supported at the end by a removable, adjustable pole.

Storage includes a spice rack that flips up above the sink after releasing some tie-down bungy cords, plus a couple of drawers for cutlery and other small items. There’s also another, pull-out drawer in a locker near the kitchen, for storing dry or tinned foods, and another locker with a couple of pull-out pantry shelves (in lieu of a picnic table, perhaps?) that are also accessible from an inside cupboard.

Unlike the Fantasy’s kitchen, all the water and gas connections stay attached on the MDC when closed up, so all you need to do is pull the drainer hose out from below the sink before preparing lunch.

Unlike the interior, there are a lack of external plug-in electrical sockets around the kitchen, although there is a gas bayonet for running a portable BBQ located near the tail-light and one of the two, rear recovery hooks.

MDC has gone overboard with external lights, with two on each side, to go with a glowing grab handle near the entry door. There’s also a drawbar tap and a removable vinyl cover for the gas vent on the door, to reduce dust ingress when driving on dirt roads.

Dirt road ready

There's a touch of 'full metal jacket' about the Forbes 12+, with plenty of body armour for off-road excursions including extensive checkerplate up front, on the sides and underneath, including protection for the water tanks. There are also steel ‘scrub’ bars on all sides, to go with a sturdy 150mm gal chassis, Cruisemaster DO-35 coupling and MDC's trailing arm suspension including a coil spring and twin shocks on each wheel.

There’s quite a bit of exposed piping and hosing if you peer underneath, but it’s mostly tucked up out of harm’s way within the chassis rails, and ground clearance is above-average on the 16in alloy wheels shod with chunky mud-terrain tyres.

The biggest issue we had when tackling some deep ruts and big bumps was the fold-up jockey wheel and side steps acting like ploughs, so fitting a different jockey wheel and removing the side steps is probably required if you want the camper to follow faithfully behind an off-road tow vehicle like our Holden Trailblazer on more demanding tracks.

While adding plenty of protection, the heavy-metal armour also contributes to a hefty Tare weight (for a 12ft hard-wall camper) of close to 2100kg, and even without a full load the  Holden Trailblazer struggled at times to get the trailer moving.

It’s a pity as the compact dimensions (2.15m wide and 2.35m high) of the Forbes 12+ make it quite suitable for bushy tracks with overhanging branches, that bigger off-road caravans would struggle to get through.

Compact caravan living

Although interior space is at a premium, the MDC's compact layout is workable for a small family or couple, especially with the added bonus of an ensuite. Floorspace is limited but headroom is excellent, and there’s no lack of windows to prevent claustrophobia  - seven meshed, zipped flaps in the the pop-top roof vinyl and three caravan-style windows around the bed, all with built in blinds and screens.

Immediately on the left as you enter is a good storage area including large benchtop, four drawers and a cupboard with shelving, along with a light and set of 12V and 240V sockets.

There’s some more benchtop space on the right (big enough for a large suitcase), along with more cupboards and shelves as well as panel for the electrics (switches for hot water, water pump, diesel heater and fridge, plus monitors for batteries and water tanks).

This cupboard also has  small mirror set at an awkward height, and there's some more, harder-to-get-to storage options under the dinette seats and bed.

The Lagun swivel table slots in at the base of the bed to create a two person dinette, but you need to remove it to fit the ladder that provides access to the top bunk. Perfect for children up to primary school age, the single bed has a foam mattress and pop-up side supports for safety, and can be pushed up out of the way when not in use.

The main issue here is finding a home for both the ladder and dining table when not in use (we stored the ladder outside, which isn’t ideal).

You'll also struggle to fit three on the dinette seating, so at least one person will have to eat dinner outside, on a camp chair near the ensuite or perched on the queen bed.

The queen bed comes with a comfy pillow top mattress that folds in half when travelling but is quite heavy to move around. There are a couple of handy storage pouches located around the bed, plus connections for the TV and mobile phones, etc, as well as an adjustable Sirocco fan.

There are no reading lights though, so you’ll have to make do with the two bright LED ceiling lights and the LED strip lighting over the two benchtops.

The dials for the hot water and diesel heater units are also located near the foot of the bed, along with another 12V socket, with much of the underbed storage space  taken up by the batteries, two Projecta chargers and 1000W inverter, along with the diesel heater, water pump and hot water unit.

Inside shower and toilet

One of the main attractions for families is the combination shower/toilet, which includes a fixed cassette toilet and painted aluminium corner vanity with sink and shower rose, separated by sealed floor with drain. The 'bathroom' also includes a towel rail, 12V fan hatch and solid entry door with vinyl flaps along the top sections to help keep the water in. There’ are also a couple of windows to prevent steaming up.

It’s all pretty tight in the ensuite area, but parents with young children will appreciate not having to go outside at night when nature calls, as well as the privacy and convenience of an indoor shower.

The MDC camper also comes equipped with a Kenwood stereo with internal and external speakers, although the location of the radio along with some switches near the floor as you enter makes them vulnerable to damage.

Otherwise, we were mostly impressed by the overall design as well as fit and finish, with a couple of notable exceptions: the in-built blinds on the ATRV caravan windows were a bit sticky to operate, and one of the front drawers clashed with the entry door when it was opened.

Summing up

Although we were camping solo, the MDC Forbes 12+ proved a very comfortable camping option during our wintry week-end in the Blue Mountains region. Most issues were minor and it should work well as a rugged family camper, with the option to spend a few days off the grid.

It’s a tad heavy for its size, and setting up requires some muscle, but the value-for-money equation will be hard to resist, especially for those moving up from canvas to hard walls.

2019 MDC Forbes 12+

Travel length: 6270mm
Body length: 3600mm
External body width: 2150mm
Travel height: 2350mm
Interior height: 1950mm
Tare weight: 2080kg (approx.).
ATM: 3000kg
Ball weight: (Tare): 190kg
Body: Alloy/steel frame and aluminium composite panels
Chassis: 150mm x 50mm x 3mm hot-dip gal
Suspension: Independent trailing arms, coil springs, twin shocks
Brakes: 12in electric drums
Stability Control: n/a
Wheels: 16-inch alloys with LT 265/75R16 Goodride Radial MT tyres
Water: 2 x 80L fresh, 1 x 80L grey
Battery: 3 x 100Ah AGM with 35A 7 stage full auto 240V charger, Projecta 25A bootster charger and 2000W Sine wave invertor
Solar: 3 x 100W
Air-conditioner: Dometic Freshjet roof-mounted
Gas: 2 x 9kg
Hot water: Truma UltraRapid gas
Cooking: 4 x gas cooktop and sink (external)
Fridge/freezer: Provision for 89L fridge/freezer 12v/240v
Microwave: n/a
Toilet: Thetford cassette
Shower: Combination shower/toilet
Lighting: 12v LED
TV: 24in LED HD
Price: From $39,990 (as tested $42,490)
Options fitted: Dometic Freshject FJ2200 air conditioner ($2500)
Supplied by: MDC Sydney, Lansvale NSW
More info: Market Direct Campers, Brisbane, Queensland