Why are there so many caravan makers?

How come there are less than half the number of car brands in Australia than caravan builders?

One of the most confounding things about the caravan industry is the sheer number of brands to choose from.

At last count (and that count could change any minute, given the comings and goings of caravan manufacturers recently) there are 109 Aussie-built caravan brands and six imported brands. This in an industry that sells around 20,000 caravans a year.

Even the one million-plus sales-per-year car industry has only 56 brands.

This might be because the certification testing required before a car manufacturer can start shoving cars out on dealer forecourts is much more stringent and expensive than that required of caravan manufacturers.

In fact, you and I could start a caravan-building business. That's because the only obstacle between us cobbling together the Frankenstein Caravans Mark II (Mark II because that implies we've been around a while) is Vehicle Standards Bulletin 1 (VSB1).

VSB1 is a bunch of national trailer standards based on the ADRs but are simpler and more practical. They by-pass much of the testing evidence required for the ADRs.

VSB1 says in its preamble that, "The standards reflect the common requirements of the States and Territories for trailers to be registered for road use. The standards set out concrete guidance and clearly defined processes that are more suitable for individuals and small firms."

So there you go – it's official. Nothing stopping us being a caravan manufacturer as 'individuals' and even as we transform into a 'small firm'.

We'll get stuck into building full-size luxury vans, because that's where the money is. So we hit up the usual suppliers: Prestons or G&S Chassis for the underpinnings (but I've tried out my new welder, and I reckon I could give it a red-hot go) and the likes of Dometic, Thetford and so on for the internal hardware.

Bunnings could supply us with the components to make the frame, body and much of the internals. Plus the set of plastic storage boxes, caps with integral head torches and whatever other useless stuff we end up buying because they're such bargains.

I'm sure between us we could knock together a timber frame and have the carpentry skills to build the interior. We need to talk about what you're qualified to do, but let's just say my framed 1981 Year 10 Woodwork Certificate of Endeavour will hang in a prominent place on the reception wall.

So after slapping together the van – surprising ourselves with how much silicon we've had to use – we get a plumber to sort out the gas fitting and an electrician to wire up the 240v stuff, and we're good to sign off on our very first Frankenstein. Forget about trying to find dealers; we'll go get a dealer's licence and sell them out of our little rented workshop.

I'm not against simplification – strewth, VSB1 is so unlike Bureaucracy Australia Inc. I dare not criticise it. It's a good thing – up to a point.

That point is when a shonky caravan outfit like ours ends up selling poorly built vans to unsuspecting buyers. We've already covered dodgy builds that resulted in a poorly sealed van and the coupling that sheared apart at the coupling here. These are extremes, but shoddy work seems to be growing in the caravan industry with the growing numbers of manufacturers.

So maybe the answer is to buy a van that's been given the blessing of the Caravan Industry Association of Australia. Under the CIAA's 'Recreational Vehicle Manufacturing Accreditation Program', accredited caravan manufacturers (there are 64 of them) get to slap on a RVMAP Manufacturer badge on their vans.

But what does this accreditation mean? The CIAA says that these vans are, "Manufactured to comply with Australian Design Rules, applicable Australian Standards & Safety Regulations includes Gas and Electrical systems... towing and Undercarriage equipment, Suspension and Braking systems [and] permissible masses and ratings".

Yet the CIAA doesn't give a lot of confidence in its members, given that it also says "RVMAP is a voluntary industry program. The RVMAP badge is not intended to be, or should be taken as, a guarantee or warranty to: Product compliance. Independent audits are conducted on a random and sample basis of products manufactured by participating manufacturers; or the financial strength of a particular manufacturer. Independent audits do not cover financial issues."

So if the van is not compliant and the manufacturer goes broke so you can't chase up warranty repairs, don't go crying to the CIAA.

In fact, in July last year, RVMAP audits showed that members still had issues with the height and visibility of lighting and reflectors, insufficient load carrying capacities, and trailer plates (VIN plates) missing regulatory information and missing/incorrect gas labelling.

It's a good thing that the CIAA is trying to keep a tight leash on compliance, but manufacturers should be all over this as a given. You can’t really blame the CIAA for not keeping an eye on quality assurance; it's not in the Association's brief and hardly could it be.

Not all vans are dodgy, of course. There are some remarkably high-quality caravans out there, built by manufacturers who love what they do, and do it well. And no, I'm not naming names. That's a sell-out right there.

Ask around caravan forums or owners themselves. There can be extreme opinions though; very grumpy owners who fuss over every little thing or masochists that will put up with their purchase because they're too proud to admit they've bought a dud. So it's not perfect, but it's something.

It's a shame then we've given up on the Frankenstein Caravans Mark II. I reckon, before we went bankrupt, that we could've made a killing…

Why are there so many caravan makers?

Tags