New top-spec Concept turns heads

The Ascot was the foundation model and has remained the flagship model of the Concept caravan range since the company hung up its shingle in Melbourne more than 4000 caravans ago in 2004.

But in its latest 2013 iteration, the Ascot has become the SX and has gone further upmarket.

New layouts with bigger bedrooms, thicker mattresses, new European-style décor, with curved cupboards and stylish, modern solid panel CNC-cut furniture made from lightweight, yet strong European poplar plywood with the latest timbergrain finishes, have transformed the Ascot’s interior.

Meanwhile outside, the latest Ascots can be optioned to stand out from the crowd if you specify the Camec Diamond Silver aluminium cladding, a striking bright silver currently supplied exclusive to Concept.

Throw in additional steel reinforcing that gives the wedge-style roof extra strength, 150mm (6in) main chassis members, standard dual 135 watt solar panels, a dual deep cycle battery pack with a Smartcharger, two water tanks with a total capacity of 140 litres, dual 15-inch alloy spare wheels and twin 9kg gas bottles and you get the picture: the Ascot SX is built for long-term travel and comfort!

Additional steel reinforcing gives the Ascot’s distinctive wedge-style roof extra strength, 150mm (6in) main chassis members with extra strength built into the A-frame aid towing stability, while standard dual 135 Watt solar panels, a dual deep cycle battery pack with a Smartcharger, two water tanks with a total capacity of 140 litres, dual 15-inch alloy spare wheels and twin 9kg gas bottles top up a very impressive package that retails for $81,990 delivered in Victoria.

However, these enhancements haven’t been made lightly and involve a significant investment by Concept.

The company recently sunk $500,000 in cutting edge Italian CNC and dust extraction equipment and made an even greater commitment to take a minimum of $500,000 worth of premium German BauschLinnemann paper coatings for each of two exclusive timbergrain plywood finishes – Victoria (chocolate) and Kirsch (lighter, Scandinavian-look) timbergrain – initially offered exclusively on the Ascot and now trickling down to other models in the Ascot range.

The advantage of the solid panel furniture versus conventional ‘stick’ furniture for Concept, as for the small but growing group of other Australian RV manufacturers making the investment, is a substantial reduction in assembly time.

Being pre-cut, the furniture goes together quickly like a pre-cut domestic kitchen, but there are also significant advantages for customer too.
One is fit. With tighter tolerances, the interior looks more professional. It’s also stronger, yet with a minimal increase in weight.

But not all ‘flat-pack’ furniture is the same. Concept uses 15mm thick poplar-core plywood sourced predominantly from Spain and Russia, which is both lighter and stronger than the 12mm HMR (or chipboard) used in some other flat pack caravan furniture. 

Because it’s thicker, it will hold a screw better and longer, particularly under continual flex over the life of the van. And because it’s lighter with similar strength, it works better than traditional stick in areas where it additionally serves as body bracing.

The downside of its tighter gaps is that these top of the range vans are designed primarily for bitumen touring as there’s little tolerance for the flat-pack furniture to move if you tackle badly corrugated roads.

Not that this will worry the majority of Ascot SX buyers. At its price, this 22ft 6in internal length van weighing around 2800kg isn’t a bush-basher. Instead it commands respect on any tow ball and certainly is a scene-stealer when you set up for the night.

The Ascot currently represents about 15 per cent of total Concept production, but Ascot and Vision models with the new interior fit-out are expected to account for about 30 per cent of all Concept production by the end of this year.