Million dollar Tatra 8x8 motorhome breaks cover

With 800Ah of Victron battery power at 24 volts, fed by 3.1kilowatts of rooftop solar power, twin 6000-watt inverters to power any domestic appliance you might imagine and more than 800 litres of water capacity, there’s not much stopping this all-electric Tatra Phoenix 8x8 off-road motorhome that has just been completed by Caloundra, Queensland-based Offroad RVs for a demanding customer.

Designed to travel around the world for up to 10 years and insured for north of $900,000, the Tatra is one of the most comprehensively equipped global motorhomes ever built in Australia – and there's another one on the way!

Offroad RVs' boss Brian Ward, best known for his range of hardcore off-road camper trailers, has already started building another Tatra for his personal global odyssey that originally was intended to take him along the world’s longest road from South Africa to Siberia before the Taliban resumed control of Afghanistan.

Many of the features of his super motorhome have already been included in the Tatra, which has just completed its first shakedown trip and is back at Ward’s Caloundra factory having its final check-over.

Its specs are, to say the least, impressive.

Powered by a Paccar diesel engine developing 540hp, mated to an Allison AT545 automatic transmission, the Czech Republic built Tatra truck with its eight driven wheels and air suspension can cruise at 100km/h over most terrain, with relative comfort.

Should the worst happen, twin 1400kg winches with a combined pulling capacity of around 100 tonnes should get you get you free, while its BMW 1800GS off-road motorcycle can always be used to seek help.

While travelling, there's little that the Tatra motorhome travellers will do without. The equipment begins with an Australian-record 800-litres plus of water storage, with the ability to replenish it from a creek, while full reverse-cycle air conditioning, a huge oven, dishwasher, washing machine and more than 300 litres of fridge and freezer capacity keep everything chilled.

Storage room is not a problem, with two external storage rooms available, while the bathroom boasts a monster 1300mm x 2400mm shower alcove with a rainwater head.

Ward intends to add a drop-down height adjustable 3.6 x 2.0 metre side patio to his Tatra to allow outdoor living even when crossing water-logged or snow-covered fields.

And its big tyres can be deflated on the move if you encounter bridges lower than its 3.6 metre overall height.

“The question is where to stop,” he explained. “As it weighs 16 tonnes with a GCM of 44 tonnes you will never overload it, but not all remote area bridges are designed to handle these loads.”