By Joan Green
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Fashion is great for our consumer society – it keeps the wheels of industry and commerce turning and the market vibrant – but it’s not so good for individualists who yearn for something different.
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When they need to buy anything new, people who determinedly avoid fashion generally have to search far and wide to find something they really like, and be prepared to pay a little more to get it. 
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Luckily for these consumers, there are caravan manufacturers around who take a more individual approach. One of these, who seldom strays from his own unique style, is Larry Weepers of Roadmaster Caravans based in Adelaide.
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Larry is a small manufacturer. You’ll rarely find him working on more than one caravan (or motorhome, fifth wheeler or bus conversion) at a time. His products are exclusive and invariably they are a little expensive, but for good reason.
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Because each Roadmaster is designed especially for its owners, with their input, no two are exactly alike. However, while the exteriors are generally distinguished only by their substantial build, in almost every case the interior is immediately recognisable as a Larry Weepers creation, featuring his unique and timelessly elegant cabinetry.
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Take this 22ft 6in x 7ft 8in (6.8m x 2.3m) model Roadmaster built for Brian and Decima Marshall. A passer-by may not give it a second glance, thinking it was just another big caravan, but if they had a chance to look inside they would be amazed to see how different it is.
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If they were presented with a list of the van’s specifications they’d be even more astonished. This van has so much technology built into its body that it would put the average seagoing yacht to shame – no wonder it’s been named the ‘Ultimate Roadmaster’.

Land Yacht
Take a look around the outside first. The van’s sides are aluminium-clad, with checkerplate protection around the base, and the roof is fibreglass. Both walls and ceiling are fully insulated.
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Practical tinted acrylic double hopper wind-out windows, which let in twice as much fresh air as single hoppers, are fitted all-round and there’s a double slide-out step to cater for the impressive ground clearance. The roll-out awning is a Dometic 9000 series 16ft (4.9m) in length.
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The caravan has a squarish profile because it lacks a front boot, a deliberate choice by the owners who preferred to have four side-access lockers.
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The two 9kg LPG bottles are mounted on the A-frame inside a neat fibreglass box and at the rear there’s a solid bumper bar carrying a spare wheel inside a chrome-plated cover. The bumper also has a couple of jerry can holders complete with security fasteners.
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The running gear consists of four 16in x 7in six-stud trailer wheels and Larry’s favourite Symons Knee Action independent suspension with Reese Dual anti-sway cams. All four wheels are fitted with 12in electric brakes with heavy duty bearings.
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Underneath the van there are two 84L water tanks and, yes, an 84L sullage tank. The chassis has hydraulic pump-down stabilisers on all four corners, and Trail-A-Mate brackets welded onto outriggers in case a wheel change is necessary.
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So far, this list of accoutrements, while impressive, could apply to almost any good quality caravan – but there’s much more. The side lockers contain two HGL 125Ah deep cycle batteries, a 30A automatic battery charger, a Plasmatronics PL20 solar regulator and a 1000W Sinewave invertor and switch gear. 
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The deep cycle batteries are wired to three US64 Unisolar solar panels mounted on the roof. There’s also a Saturn Omni TV antenna up there and a Smartsat auto satellite dish, as well as a Dometic rooftop air-conditioner. 
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Another circuit of the van reveals more interesting details, including a drop-down table on the nearside, as well as two sound speakers and an external TV point.
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Those two curious looking circular protuberances below the back bumper are poly pipes, complete with caps, for storing fishing rods and annexe poles.
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A barely noticeable accessory fitted over the spare wheel is a reversing camera. And signage on the caravan’s rear wall announces that the owners are tuned into Channel 18, in letters that might even be large enough to satisfy Rod Hannifey. 
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Indoor technology
Possibly the most noticeable feature is the semicircular club lounge seat at the front.
It is upholstered in the softest Gosh leather in a lovely shade of plum, and is accompanied by a similarly shaped table that can fold out to twice its size for entertaining.
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The same colour is picked up in the window curtains and echoed by a whisper of pale pink in the carpets, ceiling lining and Corian benchtops.
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My overall impression, however, is not of colour but of light and space, because the Roadmaster signature interior is all white – not stark white, but a softer version perhaps better described as ivory. From floor to ceiling, all cupboards and pelmets are coated in immaculate two-pack enamel with a granite-hard gloss finish.
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This treatment gives an unbroken one-piece effect, often enhanced by curves – as seen here in an extension of the overhead cupboard assembly.
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The joinery itself is very sophisticated and well constructed. Instead of wooden frames filled in with plywood panels, the Roadmaster’s cabinets and drawers are solid wood, delicately routed and smoothly finished.
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Far from being clinical, the all-white effect is pleasantly soothing, especially in the evening when cleverly positioned downlights diffuse a creamy golden glow. The windows are fitted with ‘Day and Nite’ shades allowing variations in lighting to help create different effects.
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The inside of this caravan has almost as much technology as the exterior. The very latest in household appliances adapted for caravans, and every new invention delivering comfort and convenience, has been incorporated into its design.
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The list begins with Waeco’s big 220L 12V/240V two-door fridge, accompanied by a Waeco wine cooler neatly fitted into the cupboard to the right of the door.
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There’s an 800W convection microwave, a radio/CD player with four built-in speakers, an LCD flatscreen TV mounted on a slide in the ceiling, a DVD-VCR recorder, and a Dometic front loader washing machine fitted under the main wardrobe. Hot water is produced by a 
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Suburban gas/electric service with piezo ignition.
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When travelling, a 12V pressure fan fitted inside one of the overhead cupboards draws in filtered air through a roof vent and disperses it via a duct to pressurise the entire van. 
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A variety of roof hatches has been used to let in light and fresh air. The one over the bed is a ‘Fantastic’ – a clever piece of equipment with a 12V fan and a built-in sensor that closes the dome cover when rain starts to fall, then reopens when it stops. 
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Ultimate layout
Turning to domestic matters, in the centre kitchen the generous dimensions of the work bench houses a two-bowl sink and mixer tap, along with a Smev two-burner cooktop with an oven underneath.
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Storage under the bench consists of an extensive array of drawers of varying sizes to hold everything from pots to cutlery – even one that folds out to become an ironing board – while on the wall, the microwave is mounted above the cupboard containing the wine cooler.
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Next to it is the enormous fridge, followed by a pantry fitted with slide-out storage baskets. The pantry itself is low enough to provide a niche above for the flatscreen TV, while the lower section of the full height compartment behind it contains some of the power equipment mentioned earlier, and is only accessed from outside the van.
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The upper part of the compartment is a small cupboard opening into the bedroom.
An unobtrusive concertina screen separates the kitchen from the bedroom. 
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Fitting the bed from side to side is a great space-saving arrangement but limits its length, so some years ago an ingenious designer came up with an expanding bed for occupants who are taller than average.
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At night a slide-out section at the bottom is filled in with a separate mattress section. This bed has a single wardrobe on either side, one of them fitted with shelves, and there is drawer storage underneath. 
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In the left-hand rear corner is a fibreglass shower cubicle, complete with shower curtain and overhead hatch, which sits behind an angled hinged door.
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The opposite corner has a matching compartment containing a cassette toilet and built-in vanity, and in the centre there’s a half-height wardrobe above the large cupboard that is home to the front loader washing machine.
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The light paintwork and clever design of this entire section is unobtrusively elegant and adds to the impression of depth.
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The bottom line
With a Tare weight of 2740kg and ATM of 3500kg the Ultimate Roadmaster is a heavy unit, so even if the occupants don’t load it up fully they need a powerful towing vehicle. The Marshalls use a Toyota 100 Series Sahara to tow their Ultimate Roadmaster.
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Clearly there can be no bottom line drawn in this article, since the cost of any Roadmaster is known only to the builder and his clients, but discerning customers who prefer something exclusive and are prepared to pay for it should not hesitate to have a chat with Larry Weepers.
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He will give you a fair price, once you’ve worked out exactly what you want in one of his beautiful caravans.
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Roadmaster Caravans, Unit 4/10 Dorchester St, Lonsdale, SA 5160, (08) 8384 6011, fax (08) 8384 6187.
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I liked
• Luxurious club lounge
• Curvy design of the front overhead joinery
• Kitchen’s generous bench and easy access storage
• The feeling of light and space
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I would have liked
• A conventional boot at the front to balance the profile
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Roadmaster Ultimate

External length: 22ft 6in (6.8m)

External width: 7ft 8in (2.3m)

Tare weight: 2740kg

ATM: 3500kg

Frame: Meranti timber

Roof: Fibreglass

Suspension: Independent Knee Action with Reese Dual anti-sway cams

Brakes: HD electric

LPG cylinders: 2 x 9kg

Water tanks: 2 x 84L

Sullage: 1 x 84L

Stove: Smev two-burner

Fridge: Waeco 22L 12/240V

Lighting: 12V

Hot water system: Suburban gas/electric

Price: Not disclosed 
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Roadmaster Ultimate

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