Olympic Champion X Pak

WE LIKED
>> Dinette with both foot rests and drawers
>> Well-designed electrical system including all 12V fuses within the van
>> Shelf under front window

NOT SO MUCH
>> No powerpoints near the dinette
>> Microwave set too high
>> No hatch in bathroom

Not far west of Brisbane, 30-minutes away to be precise, is the Queensland town of Ipswich, home of the Ipswich Lifestyle Centre. This dealer isn’t hard to spot, especially given its main sales centre is a former church that’s been radically changed on the inside, yet remains easily identifiable from the outside.

I mention all this because the Ipswich Lifestyle Centre, under the direction of Chris Rojek, also happens to be the Queensland dealer for Olympic caravans. But these guys don’t just sell the vans; they also do their own designs.

In that capacity, the Ipswich Lifestyle team has taken one of the Olympic range, the Champion, and added a few features, including rough-road capability, and come up with the X Pak model.  
X FACTOR

At 6.6m (21ft 8in), the Champion X Pak is not a particularly small van, which has given the designers a bit of latitude with the interior design. Not that there’s anything unfamiliar with the general layout, a front bedroom/full-width rear bathroom setup with offside kitchen and nearside dinette in the middle.

There’s a certain amount of elegance about the Champion’s interior, which has been achieved, at least in part, by the colour scheme – a mix of Cherrywood timber staining, glossy siltstone bench and table tops, and lighter colours for the walls and ceiling.

Four Seasons hatches at either end of the van add to the natural light and provide plenty of ventilation.

With its wall cushions and hinged foot rests, the dinette is an ideal place to sit back and take in the rest of the van – the tri-fold table can be moved back when not needed so you can really put your feet up.

There are three lockers above the dinette, and the drawers for the under-seat storage on either side open inwards. LED reading lights and a strip under the lockers give plenty of illumination, but it loses points for having neither a 240V or 12V socket close to the table.

Opposite the dinette, the kitchen is equipped with a Dometic 186 litre fridge, Swift four-burner cooktop/grill/oven, stainless steel sink and a microwave above the fridge. Bench space is moderate, but improved somewhat by the flush-fitting lid for the cooktop.

A mixture of overhead lockers, drawers and cupboard space provides all the necessary storage, with either end of the lockers also providing mounting positions for the electrical/hot water controls,and  radio/DVD player.

The mounting point for the flatscreen TV is at the front end, which means it can be seen from either the dinette or the bed.

At the front of the van, overhead lockers, side wardrobes and cabinets surround the 1.88 x 1.5m (6ft 2in x 4ft 11in) innerspring bed. Lifting the posture slat bed gives access to the unimpeded storage underneath.

In a departure from the norm, the nearside bedside cabinet has neither a drawer nor a cupboard because the space is taken by the generator’s external storage.

Smallish diagonal cupboards in each corner at the base of the bed don’t impede into the walkway space too much. The offside cabinet is where the 12V fuses are located, instead of in the more usual position of the front boot.

It seems a washing machine is now almost a standard feature in larger vans, and the Champion is no exception, with a Lemair top-loader tucked into the bathroom cabinetry.

The ensuite also has all the other bathroom essentials, including a nearside shower cubicle, offside cassette toilet and a wash basin. There’s plenty of storage but, surprisingly, only one ventilation fan – above the shower cubicle.

ALL TERRAIN RIDER

For handling the rough and the smooth, the Champion X Pak is built on a 6in SupaGal railed chassis with 2in risers and rides on Simplicity independent suspension.

At the business end, a Hyland 3500 hitch keeps things hooked together when travelling over undulating terrain and jerry can holders on either side of the two 9kg gas cylinders allow for extra fuel and water.

In terms of structure, the insulated body has a timber frame and is clad with conventional aluminium, while the lower part of the body is covered with alloy checkerplate for stone damage protection when on the rough tracks.

Large tinted acrylic hopper windows are fitted all-round; the door is a Camec triple locker; and a Dometic awning provides shade for the nearside.

In addition to the front boot, there’s the aforementioned front nearside generator compartment, with vented door, and a small external bin at the offside rear.
The electrics are quite extensive in the X Pak so independent bush camping shouldn’t be a problem. In addition to the normal mains charger and 2kVA generator, two 100Ah deep-cycle batteries can be charged by two roof-mounted 135kW solar panels.

With an ATM of nearly 2500kg and a ball weight of 165kg, the Champion X Pak is squarely in the territory of something like a Mitsubishi Pajero (my tow vehicle on test) or a Toyota Prado.

VERDICT

Olympic Caravans and the Ipswich Lifestyle Centre have come together to produce a van that’s a cut above the average, with a number of very welcome additional features. The Champion X Pak is not really a full offroad van, but that was never the intention.

The van has all the essentials for getting away and living independently for a while in the Australian bush, all without the need for an oversized tow vehicle.

OLYMPIC CARAVANS CHAMPION X PAK

Overall length: 8.47m (27ft 9in)
External length: 6.6m (21ft 8in)
External width:2.4m (7ft 10in)
Interior height : 1.95m (6ft 4in)
Travel height: 2.89m (9ft 6in)
Tare: 2085kg
ATM: 2485kg
Ball weight (advised): 165kg
Frame: Timber
Chassis: SupaGal
Suspension: Simplicity tandem load sharing
Cooktop: Swift four-burner/grill/oven
Fridge: Dometic 186 litre
Microwave: Sharp carousel
Shower: Separate cubicle
Toilet: Thetford cassette
Lighting: 12V LED
Gas: 2 x 9kg
Fresh water: 2 x 95 litre
Price: $74,900 (on road, Qld) 
Supplied by:
Ipswich Lifestyle Centre, Bundamba, Qld
More info:
Olympic Caravans