World-first bulletproof van coming

It’s shaping up as Australia’s most hardcore caravan, but the new Bruder Expedition could also be the first bulletproof van produced down under, if not the world.

According to Dan Bosschieter, who together with brother Toby is starting production of the military-style Bruder EXP-6 in June, an attack-resistant version is also on the cards.

“We’ve actually been talking to some guys about literally building a bulletproof one, using a different composite (construction) but the same dimensions so we don’t have to change any of our drawings,” Dan said. “But that will be a little bit down the track.”

Bruder has already outlined its international plans including offering a product suitable for various markets.

“The EXP-6 is designed and built for international compliance and can cater to fleet, military and commercial requirements. We ship to the USA, Canada, Europe, UAE, Russia and more,” the company says on its website.

While a number of European car manufacturers offer armoured vehicles, mainly for heads of state, it's rare for recreational-type vehicles to get the bulletproof treatment apart from the odd luxury motorhome with steel or Kevlar reinforced plating and polycarbonate windows.

Bulletproof or not, standard Bruder construction is claimed to be “ridiculously strong” with German-made 30mm GRP composite panels up to 50 per cent lighter than conventional materials.

“It’s effectively a polypropylene infused with honeycomb through the centre, welded rather than glued, which stops it from ever de-laminating and also gives it double skin penetration. So for anything to ever penetrate it has to go through both sides,” he said.

Manufactured in a new Brisbane factory, the $105,500-plus, 16ft 6in hybrid camper boasts bespoke features including multi-link independent air suspension with 300mm travel, super-strong rolled tube chassis and dual-compression rubber body mounts.

The ground-up design also includes hi-tech convenience features such as a ‘one touch’ set-up for the electric pop-top roof, rear tailgate and awning, and height-adjustable kitchen accessible from both inside or outside.

“We couldn’t do a lot of the stuff that we wanted to do if we had kept with traditional chassis and suspension systems (available on the market), and with the whole kitchen being inside and outside” Dan Bosschieter explained. “So we had to come up with something a bit different for the suspension and everything continued from there…”

A number of prototypes were built during 18 months research and development, with a Bruder van just returned from a shakedown trip through rugged northern Australia including West Australia’s Kimberley and the Tanami Desert in the Northern Territory,

Bruder is hoping to offer appointment-only tours of the new factory from around mid-June. The new manufacturer is set to make its show debut at the Gold Coast Mid Year Caravan Camping Expo at the Gold Coast Turf Club, Bundall from July 29-31.