Trailcraft Panorama 540 Dirt Road

Trailcraft Caravans is a relatively new player in the caravan manufacturing business but is well-known in the marine industry, having been a builder of aluminium boats for the last 20 years.

Not only has it been building boats but also the trailers for them as well, and the company is one of the largest trailer manufacturers in Australia.

It was its experience in the latter area of manufacture that prompted WA-based Trailcraft to move into the caravan market, recognising it as an industry that is continually growing.

Camden Caravans, south-west of Sydney, has been around a while longer than Trailcraft - about 32 years - but recent new owners, the father and son team of Rod and Michael Payten, have now added the Trailcraft range to their existing line-up.

It was therefore over to Camden, sometime pastoral outer suburb of Sydney, that CW headed when we wanted to have a look at the Panorama 540 Dirt Road.

'Dirt road' is an interesting description for a van but quite an apt one in this case. It is a caravan designed for exploring the majority of Australia, which includes some dirt road travel, but not the hardcore 4WD tracks.

Trailcraft is proud of its galvanised chassis construction, with its extra crossbeams. Indeed, there was a bare chassis available for our inspection at Camden Caravans, negating the need for the usual crawl underneath the van.

The chassis rides on tandem axle leaf spring suspension fitted with shock absorbers. With 15in mag wheels giving a ground clearance of about 13in (330mm), this van has corner stabilisers that are the much appreciated quick release variety.

Apart from the jockey wheel, the only items on the drawbar are the two 9kg gas cylinders. Recessed into the drawbar arms, they are neatly hidden away under their own fibreglass cover.

Moulded fibreglass is the material of choice for the front, rear and roof, with the walls being a composite hybrid foam construction. All are covered by a UV-protected marine gelcoat.

This method gives the van a smooth look with both the front boot lid and the front window stone cover being flush fitted. From certain angles, the van has a very solid appearance.

One of the distinguishing features between road-going and dirt road vans is the aluminium checkerplate protection along the sides.

Worth a mention are the external fasteners and hinges that are made from marine grade stainless steel and the running lights which are all LEDs, meaning low battery use and minimal globe changing.

Windows are all tinted hoppers and the door, the usual Camec triple locker. There are two external camping lights, a grab handle lamp beside the door and a mid-wall unit underneath the awning.

Apart from the substantial front boot, there is no other external storage but the twin deep cycle batteries have their own slide-out compartment just behind the boot on the nearside.

All aboard
Stepping inside the 540 reveals a rear kitchen/front bedroom layout with nearside dinette and offside rear corner shower. Something that hits the eye straight away is the internal decor - it's stylish and different.

The laminate furniture construction has anodised aluminium corners on all edges (for both strength and light weight). It's certainly unusual but a probe around the cupboard and locker doors reveals a structure that is sturdy, very neat and well constructed.

Of course, if you don't like the laminate and aluminium look then you might have a problem. Our review van had a darker hue of laminate but lighter shades are available.

Adding to the internal look are pelmets, curtains (except for the kitchen window) and slimline blinds. White walls and ceiling, plus large windows and two roof hatches give a remarkably light interior.

A feature of this 540 layout (of which there are several) is that the large amount of general storage space results in quite a small kitchen area. Occupying the space between the bathroom cubicle and the door, the kitchen bench has a Smev three-burner cooktop with oven/grill underneath plus a stainless steel sink avec drainer.

Benchtop area is quite small but storage is quite generous with two overhead lockers, cupboard, slide-out pantry, four standard sized drawers plus a large pots and pans area.

All the runner-fitted drawers open very smoothly.

The rest of the kitchen fittings, ie, the 150L fridge and microwave, are located on the other side of the bathroom.

Around the table, the contoured foam seats will provide comfortable seating for two people.

The exotically patterned fabric catches your attention, and a small partition allows for a little separation between the dining and sleeping areas.

Halogen reading lights are fitted at either end of the dinette seats as are two overhead lockers above.

There's the usual under-seat storage including a drawer at one end but instead of the usual cushion and ply timber lid setup, which can be fiddly, the cushion and seat base have been joined, making the process of getting objects in and out so much easier.

Opposite the dinette and beside the fridge are two large cupboards, with two doors each and multiple shelves, for storage.

On top of the cupboard nearest the bed is a smaller storage area containing the electrical control panel. Centrally located, it's better positioned than quite a few CW has seen.

Up front, the main innerspring mattress bed occupies most of the space.

Windows all around give both good light and ventilation. There are the usual bedside wardrobes and decent bedside shelves plus a couple of drawers.

Above the bedhead, a shelf takes the space usually taken by overhead lockers. Under the bed is a substantial storage area, accessed by lifting the aluminium framed/timber slatted bed base. The battery charger is found here, mounted on the front wall.

In the bathroom, there's a variable height flexible hose shower in one corner with a bench-style Thetford cassette toilet on the opposite wall and fold-down vanity sink above. Additional features include a mirrored shaving cabinet, fan hatch and fluorescent light.

The door opens backwards onto the oven, so use of the bathroom during cooking times should be done with care.

For those who do not want a bathroom in their van, an alternative layout is available with an extra kitchen bench and storage area.

The bottom line
In everything from the chassis to the interior look, Trailcraft has done something different from most other caravan builders. From the outside, the van is smooth looking and streamlined.

It is quite a weighty van, with a Tare of 2000kg, but behind CW's Toyota LandCruiser, it behaved well on the road.

Inside, the van has a very contemporary look about it which will have wide appeal, and which is well put together with an excellent fit and finish.

Trailcraft has stepped outside the box with its van design and it will continue to create a great deal of interest.

For more information contact Camden Caravans, 66 Camden Valley Way, Camden, NSW 2570, (02) 4658 1929, email: info@camdencaravans.com.au, website: www.camdencaravans.com.au or visit www.trailcraft.com.au/caravans/caravans.aspx

We liked: