Trakmaster Gibson Platinum

Before

Australian Off-Road’s Matrix and the rash of similar gritty pop-top hybrid campers that now compete for serious off-road cred, there was the Trakmaster Gibson.

When it was introduced eight years ago during the GFC, it represented a change in direction for Bayswater, Melbourne-based Trakmaster, which has specialised in custom-building serious off-road caravans since it opened its doors nearly 20 years ago in 1995.

Although about the same size as the Perentie, which it replaced, it was offered only as a 13ft (1392mm) long by 6ft 6in (1980mm) wide pop-top with limited options, so it could be built on spec and be sold through distributors to generate cash-flow for Trakmaster at a time when many people kept their hands in their pockets.

It was priced at $46,000 when it broke cover in 2007, but with its sturdy lightweight Meranti timber-frame, clad with stucco-finished ribbed aluminium sheeting and offering huge ground clearance via its extreme rear cutaway body and independent coil-spring suspension, it was a roomier alternative to the top crop of hard-lid camper trailers like

Track Trailer’s Tvan.

Now in better economic times, the Gibson has slipped from the spotlight in the current Trakmaster range and the new kid on the block is the

Pilbara.

However, while offering the same extreme off-road rear cutaway bodywork and capability as the Gibson, the Pilbara is available custom-built in a bewildering 27 different versions from a 13ft 6in x 6ft 6in pop-top all the way to a 20ft x 7ft 6in full height caravan.

But the Gibson is still there in the range, trickling out at the rate of around one a month, and to improve its visibility, Trakmaster has just released it in a new Platinum Edition, incorporating a number of popular options packaged in a new, silver-liveried iteration.

‘What’s the point’, you might wonder, when you can buy a single axle Pilbara in nearly the same size? ‘Price’, is the answer.

Like other Trakmasters, all Pilbaras are custom built. That means you sit down with your wish list, layout and preferences and over a series of meetings arrive at the caravan that they will build to suit your specific needs.

But custom building takes extra time and hence it costs more, while with the Gibson its size and to a large extent its specs, are fixed. So it’s cheaper to build and purchase.

‘How cheap?’ Well the base price for a Gibson Platinum 13ft x 6ft 6in pop-top is just $54,925. To put that in context, that’s about the same price as a mid to top-end Tvan and a whopping $25,000 or more less than a number of the leading hybrid pop-tops now on the market.

But before you get too excited, you need to appreciate that a basic Gibson is indeed ‘basic’.

Want an external shower? Add $2225. A solar panel? Add $525. Engel 80 litre 12v compressor fridge? Another $495. External awning? Another $1185.

So by the time the Gibson Platinum with its bold red Alucobond lower wall panels reviewed here had rolled out of Trakmaster’s Bayswater, Melbourne factory, it owed $67,861.

However that still put it at least $10,000 in front of its cheapest, equivalently-specced rival, with arguably equal or better quality and similar off-road capability.

There’s something refreshing and honest about the Gibson. While most other Trakmasters these days (and all Pilbaras) are available with moulded fibreglass sandwich sidewall construction, the Gibson is still built the traditional ‘stick and tin’ way and for many buyers, that’s good.

This means a timber wall frame, with styrene foam insulation in between the Meranti batons and marine ply on both sides, making it a very strong, but light sandwich panel.

Then Trakmaster fits ribbed aluminium on top of the ply outer walls and further strengthens it against scrub and hail damage with a tough stucco finish.

It’s light, strong, easy to repair and cheaper to build than a composite wall and in the case of the Gibson Platinum looked very smart, with its ‘Platinum spec’ dark silver walls contrasting with the red Alucobond used on the van’s lower side panels, contrasting with its black fibreglass mudguard flares.

Red and black Trakmaster body graphics and matching rear red jerry cans made this a real eye-catcher, but more subtle Alucobond colours and graphics are available for those visually challenged by this combination.

Black Tebbstuff heavy-duty vinyl padding on the front of the van is fitted to catch the stones that escape the black truck-mesh stone-shield and under-drawbar wire mesh.

Meanwhile, underneath there’s a structure that would do the Sydney Harbour Bridge proud, with a continuous 150mm x 50mm steel A-frame and main chassis.

This kicks up sharply at the rear, allowing the spare 16-inch ROH steel wheel to be mounted out of sight. It winds down like a car spare wheel and leaves the A-frame free to house twin 9kg gas bottles, while the rear bar has holders for two jerry cans.

The chassis on the test Gibson was hot dip galvanised – an extra $1075 over painted steel – and this is an option most buyers will want, particularly if the van is going to spend a lot of time by the coast.

Up until now, Trakmaster has fitted its own design Sugar-Glider independent trailing arm coil spring and shock absorber suspension, but the test Gibson was the first in the company’s 20 year history to be fitted with Vehicle Components’ similar Cruisemaster suspension.

It raised the body height about 60mm on the test Gibson, but drop axles to bring it down to ‘Sugarglider’ level are available if customers choose, depending on their test vehicle.

In our case, our new Jeep Cherokee Diesel’s hitch, even when inverted, fell a bit short of the ideal height to tow the Gibson level, but its nose-down, tail up stance made no different to the confident way it pulled the Gibson, or how it handled a range of road conditions, from freeways to badly corrugated tracks.

Although it’s rated to tow 2400kg, the

new Cherokee is probably not the obvious tow vehicle for the Gibson, as its appointments in the top-luxury
Limited edition we employed seems more suited to weekend warrior than remote area pioneer.

Yet while it’s fair to say that the 1631kg tare weight Gibson, with its strength and massive ground clearance was the more capable off-road member of the rig, the Jeep did a very credible hauling it considering the relatively modest 350Nm of torque developed by its 2.0-litre four cylinder turbodiesel engine.

I’ll go out on a limb here to say that I have never towed a caravan of its size and weight that tracked any better.

The Cherokee’s unique (in its class) combination of a nine-speed automatic transmission and a low range setting for its on-demand four wheel drive system, also worked impressively well in the bush, with the only issue being the transmission’s default position of front wheel drive, which sets the front wheels spinning on steep inclines before it automatically engages full all wheel drive mode.

The bonus of the Cherokee of course is its fuel consumption and although it can sip distillate at just 5.8 litres/100km in highway mode without a trailer, its overall consumption of 13.5l/100km while towing the Gibson over 550km of a range of terrain was quite impressive.

Off-road is of course where the Gibson really earns its stripes and it would be hard to find a small caravan that could go more places than this little van. Its only limitations are its 6ft 6in (1980mm) width – around 50mm wider than the skinniest of the other hybrids – and its pop-top height of nearly 8ft (2435mm), something that goes with the pop-top territory.

As with the Pilbara, the Gibson’s extreme rear cutaway at first looks like a styling gimmick, but cross a river or dry river bed on anything but a formed track and you’ll see how easily the Gibson makes such tasks. In fact few tow vehicles, unless after-market equipped with jacked-up suspension and a cutaway bull bar, would be more capable than the Gibson in such terrain.

But it’s inside, once you’ve conquered the bush, where you really appreciate the Gibson and the extra space its wider girth gives.

Given its stubby length, you wouldn’t expect to find a combined shower/toilet inside – and you won’t. The interior is a set piece with a transverse rear double bed, a central galley and a front café-style dinette, whose table can span the seats to form an additional single bed.

But there’s a storage hatch under the bed for a portable toilet and an exterior hot and cold water shower with a large and fairly simple to erect privacy tent that attached to the body as an ensuite substitute.

The three burner gas stove and adjacent stainless steel sink with its mixer tap are both covered by glass tops than can serve as extra plating-up surfaces, while the 80-litre Engel 12Vcompressor fridge and large pantry opposite should cover off most internal food storage needs, depending on length of trip.

Most people with a Gibson will probably have a portable fridge/freezer in the back of their 4WD anyway.

One option that we really liked inside was the Ultraglaze gloss acrylic finished flat panel cabinetry (a $980 option) instead of the timber cabinetry previously used on Gibsons.

Finished in Pearl White and Silver Metallic, with mid-grey upholstery and curtains around the bed area, the test Gibson’s interior looked far larger than its actual dimensions.

However owning this sort of extreme off-road caravan is all about the Great Outdoors and the Gibson Platinum was fitted with the optional Swift slide-out hooded BBQ, while other thoughtful external features included a socket for a portable solar panel to supplement the optional 120-Watt slimline solar panel.

Add twin 82-litre fresh water tanks, twin 120Ah AGM batteries and a decent-sized front boot for the dirty stuff and the Gibson Platinum was truly ‘fit for purpose’ when it came to extended off-road travel.

WE LIKED:
>>Tough, simple design and architecture
>> Relatively generous living space
>> Value for money

NOT SO MUCH:
>> No A-frame tap
>> Options can make it pricey
>> Wider than hybrid rivals

VERDICT

Eight years on, the Trakmaster Gibson is back in focus as a serious alternative to the growing number of premium hybrid campers.

It doesn’t have the pizzazz of some of its newer rivals, but as a quality, true off-road compact, pop-top caravan it’s hard to beat at the price.

TRAKMASTER GIBSON PLATINUM

Travel length: 6100mm (20ft)                             
External body length: 3962mm (13ft)                
External body width: 1980 (6ft 6in)                   
Travel height: 2435mm (7ft 11in)                 
Interior height: 2040mm (6ft 8in)                              
Tare weight: 1631kg                                   
ATM: 1990kg                   
Ball weight: 139kg                 
Body: Aluminium clad, timber-framed and insulated walls
Chassis: Hot-dipped steel
Suspension: Cruisemaster independent trailing arm with coil springs and telescopic shock absorbers
Brakes: 12-inch electric drum
Stability Control: Al-Ko ESC and Dexter DSC both available optionally
Wheels: 16 x 8in off-road alloy with LKT265/75-16 off-road tyres
Fresh water: 2 x 82L
Battery: 2 x 120Ah deep cycle AGM
Solar: Optional Slimline 150 Watt roof panel
Air-conditioner: Optional
Gas: 2 x 9kg
Hot water: 23L gas/240 volt Suburban
Cooking: Three-burner stainless steel Swift cooktop and optional Swift slide-out barbecue
Fridge:  Engel 80L compressor
Microwave: Optional
Toilet: Portable toilet optional
Shower: Exterior shower
Lighting: LED
TV: Optional
Price: $54,925. As tested, delivered in Vic: $67,861
Options fitted: Premium Kitchen, front storage box, sliding glass windows
Supplied by:

Trakmaster, Bayswater, Vic