Should I buy an off-road motorhome?

It's a question many people are asking  themselves these days when overseas travel still presents problems: Should I buy a purpose-built off-road motorhome or expedition vehicle, or opt for an off-road caravan as a base station to access idyllic remote areas?

Alternatively, there's the option of a slide-on camper body for your 4x4 ute...

There’s no black or white answer, and your choice depends on a number of things including your travel aspirations; your bravery when venturing into remote country; the level of comfort required and, of course, your financial circumstances, .

Let’s look at the options for off-road motorhomes first...

What's an off-road motorhome?

An off-road motorhome by definition is an all-in-one, self-driven vehicle that has specifically been built, or specced, for sustained travel on unsealed road surfaces.

You need to assume that you will be in less travelled areas where help from passing vehicles cannot always be counted on.

An expedition truck converted to a motorhome is an even-tougher vehicle built on sturdier underpinnings that is designed for all-in-one travel once the tracks peter out, or if the unsealed surface is too rough for a van-based vehicle or a converted bus that was designed initially for on-road use.

As most off-road motorhomes are based on on-road vehicles, parts are relatively available, while expedition vehicles sometimes employ custom-made components.

Moving up to an expedition truck

As a general rule, expedition vehicles with their large ground clearance and huge tyres can make their own roads and therefore need to be equipped to allow their occupants to survive a period of days or weeks until outside help arrives if broken down, stuck or lost.

Unless you're the type of person who is mechanically competent and is comfortable with isolation, an off-road motorhome is a better option, at least in Australia.

Many off-road motorhomes, such as Jayco’s All-Terrain campervan based on the long wheelbase Mercedes-Benz 4x4 Sprinter van, are all most Australian travellers aspire to, as the current $158,900 asking price is the entry point for most serious off-road motorhomes.

For around the same price or a bit more is the option of a 4x4 ute-based campervan with fixed motorhome body from the likes of Sunliner or Suncamper. You can also get a rugged 70 Series LandCruiser converted to a mobile camper, but you'll pay even more...

Size matters

Expedition trucks that weigh 4.5 tonnes or less laden can be driven on a car licence, but you will need a truck licence and some experience to pilot anything heavier.

For this reason we can regard 4500kg motorhomes as the upper size limit for vehicles that most recreational buyers will consider.

However size in a motorhome is both a benefit and a liability. Its main benefit is that you can have all the comforts of home with you, like a north-south queen bed, a nice lounge to watch satellite TV, full internal cooking and dining, a built-in bathroom and an internal kitchen.

All you need to do for the night is park on level ground, fix a drink and turn on the TV.

Not urban friendly

But stopping in small towns for supplies or lunch is a hassle in most truck-based expedition vehicles, and small off-road tracks with low overhanging branches are usually out of bounds.

Other 'negatives' include you won’t fit into many caravan parks; U-turns when you have miscued are a real hassle, and a large motorhome will cost around twice as much or more than a van-based motorhome to run.

The other issue is that you’ll probably need to tow or carry alternative transport if you want to go out at night for a pub counter meal, or explore the road ahead or around you, which is why you see often see large motorhomes towing small Suzuki or Daihatsu 4WDs, or with electric scooters, push-bikes or even motorbikes on drawbar racks. This means extra cost and extra weight.

‘Large’ also limits how far you can get off the beaten track and where you can park it in between trips without upsetting the neighbors.

Van-based off-road motorhomes

The alternative is a large van-based off-road motorhome, but how large? I’d personally rate the Jayco Sprinter van-based All-Terrain campervan, or something like a HiLux or Ranger-based Explorer motorhome, as the upper limit for most inbound Australian travel.

OK, the Jayco won't do the creek-jumping Telegraph Track road, but it will be perfectly at home on the well-formed but corrugated Cape York Development Road and all the major unsealed Outback highways, such as the Gibb River Road, the Tanami, Oodnadatta and Strzelecki tracks, and the Great Central Road than runs from Laverton, Western Australia to Yulara in the Northern Territory.

Cost is another major factor for those who want an off-road capable motorhome. While the price of a smaller off-road campervan should top out at around $200,000 depending on how it's equipped, larger 4x4 motorhomes usually start well north of that, while all-terrain capable 6x6 or 8x8 expedition motorhomes can stretch into the millions if you're really fussy.

The key question here is whether you can afford to have this much money tied up in a vehicle that will not get into an underground car park or a normal parking space, let alone a garage.

Bearing this in mind, you will need to have a lifestyle that affords another vehicle for your tedious domestic tasks when not travelling, and a business that allows you to spend enough weeks exploring away from home or work.

Of course with the sort of satellite communications that you would expect in an expedition vehicle, you should be able to work from anywhere, but your occupation needs to allow this.

Which brings us to off-road caravans...

The advantage with an off-road caravan is that with a capable 4WD you can tow it into areas that would break, or beach, conventional caravans.

Once there, your 4WD becomes your adventure vehicle to go further afield. As a bonus, it can do the shopping or school run at home while your off-road caravan is stored.

Many serious off-road caravans like those made by Bushtracker, Spinifex, Kedron and Sunland in Queensland and Van Halen and Evernew in Victoria, are very well equipped for sustained off-grid travel, with their bush armoury often including air suspension, lithium battery systems, a lot of rooftop solar power, large compressor-type fridges, extensive water storage and a composing toilet.

Expect to pay from $150,000 to nearly $300,000 for a large and very well-specced true off-road van.

Cheaper off-road caravans priced from $55,000 upwards are often just beefed-up on-road caravans that will probably do the job (once), but are not really built for a lifetime of off-road travel and living.  Buy one for a specific trip, but they're probably not your ‘forever’ caravans.

A much cheaper option for weekend or shorter-term off-road travel is a slide-on camper, but you need to have a bare-back ute to take full advantage of this budget option. You also need to have a good tolerance of outside living, as this is where you’ll be spending most of your non-travelling time, as well as having fairly low expectations of comfort.

But remember: whatever mode of off-road travel fits you and your budget, there’s a smug satisfaction and a pioneering pleasure about accessing areas that other travellers can’t...

Related: Top-10 off-road motorhomes