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NEWS
Riptide expands teardrop market
One of Australia’s biggest and most expensive teardrop campers has hit the marketBridging the gap between the smallest caravan and a tiny teardrop camper, the new Riptide Breeze Tourer is being promoted as the largest Oz-built production teardrop camper, offering up to 30 per cent more interior space and more usable storage than many of its rivals.
Measuring 3.0m x 1.5m wide, Riptide Camper boss David Ede said the new camper's body is 500mm longer than the Little Guy, and offers 300mm more headroom than the slide-out Gidget camper.
Overall, the Riptide Breeze measures 4450mm long, 2020mm wide and 1840mm high and with a Tare weight of 860kg, unloaded ball weight of 35kg and up to 500kg payload, it’s towable by many small cars.
Ede, who has worked in the boat and trailer manufacturing industries, saw a gap in the market for a slightly bigger, premium teardrop camper that offers more storage and interior room.
While still pretty cramped inside, the RipTide’s 2000mm long queen size bed and 1250mm internal height does make it a bit more airy than a traditional teardrop camper.
“You can sit up in ours, but more so it doesn’t feel claustrophobic,” he said. “Most teardrop campers are really small but we thought there was a market for something that was a bit bigger and more practical. We wanted to make it both functional and easy to use.”
The curved plywood body sits on a powdercoated steel chassis, with a standard 50mm coupling, leaf spring suspension, 15in alloy wheels and 10in electric brakes.
There’s a big storage box on the drawbar along with a 4.5kg gas bottle, with some cupboards, a small slide-out desk and two underfloor storage bins accessible from inside.
The rear galley includes an Engel 57 litre upright fridge, pull-out bench extension and drawers, two burner gas cooker, stainless steel sink with cold water tap, and storage for wine bottles.
Ede said the Riptide's steep $29,990 starting price, which is about on par with the entry-level Gidget camper, is partly due to use of premium materials like high-quality birch marine plywood sourced from Finland.
“It’s frightfully expensive (to buy), but it’s the best quality in the world,” he said.
Aluminium-skinned 13 ply is used for the one-piece walls and roof, together with ceiling insulation and underbody coating, while the tailgate will be made from fibreglass.
Built in Arundel, Queensland by road plant trailer specialist Global Traffic Equipment, Ede says Riptide is one of only two Australian camper trailer manufacturers with ISO 9001 certification.
The interior is also finished in Finnish birch but with a UV resistant lacquer, and comes standard with a 125mm thick foam mattress, Transcool evaporative cooler, roof fan/vent, USB charge points, LED lighting, 19in HD TV/DVD and Fusion media player with four speakers.
Other features include flyscreened windows, an 82 litre water tank and 12V water pump and 12V/240V system with 105Ah AGM battery,
Options include an innerspring mattress,external shower and tap, bike rack, and metallic exterior paint or other colours to match your tow vehicle.
While yet to sell one, Ede sees main interest from single travellers and ‘empty nesters’, those upgrading from canvas camping, and older travellers wanting to down-size from a caravan.
Riptide is planning to release an off-road Tsunami model later this year, which will have more road clearance and add features like Cruisemaster independent trailing arm suspension and DO35 hitch, a hot water system, and a larger slide-out fridge.
It’s expected to have a Tare of around 1100kg and price tag of up to $40,000, or $10,000 more than the on-road model.
The Riptide Breeze will be on display at the Lismore Camping, Fishing and Outdoor Leisure Expo from July 8-10.
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Written byChris Fincham
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Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
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