World-first car-like caravan arrives down under

Unlike the car industry, most caravans sold in Australia are still built using age-old body-on-chassis production methods, and largely hand assembled with timber or aluminium frames, clad with aluminium sheets or in some cases sandwich panels that sit atop a separate chassis.

But now there's a caravan available that's built just like a modern car; in a hi-tech automotive factory with robotic welders forming a one-piece structure for the chassis and body, and creating a unique all-steel monocoque caravan with a smooth, auto-like finish.

The first batch of 14ft 6in Harvok Playstation full monocoque hybrid caravans arrived in Australia in late-January, and will soon be followed by larger 19ft 6in side-door versions with similar family and couple layouts to the 'first generation' Chinese-built Harvok 48V vans.

In what is believed to be an RV industry first, the all-steel unitary structures for the new Australian-spec Harvok caravans are manufactured in a Chinese minibus factory, with the interior fit-out taking place also in China at Harvok's new 30,000 square metre RV production facility.

The final fit-out of ancillary appliances and components then occurs after shipping at Harvok's Dandenong South, Victoria facility, not far from the Jayco mega-factory.

"There are a few manufacturers out there that claim to build monocoque caravans, but they're still body on frame... to me a monocoque caravan is a single unit and one with no panel-to-panel joins," Harvok's Melbourne-based CEO Ben Liu explained.

"The body and chassis are all welded together before being dipped into anti-corrosion liquid baths... so rather than joins, screws and glues (as with traditional caravan construction), it's built complete as a whole unit.

"(The) one single piece structure by cold pressing and robotic welding is just like your car."

The fully welded unitary body on the Harvok Playstation combines 150mm x 50mm A-frame and chassis rails with cold pressed 1.2mm thick steel sheets for the floor, walls and roof, before a car-like electrophoresis anti-corrosion coating and tough chip-resistant paint are applied.

There's also a spray-on rubberised underbody coating and 40mm thick polyurethane expansion foam for the full-body insulation, with 5mm water and fire resistant, bamboo-based ply used for the interior walls.

Liu says the less labour intensive, car-like manufacturing will not only make the caravans cheaper to produce in the long run, due to fewer production costs, but will help eliminate common warranty-related issues like leaky body joins.

Another advantage of the unitary structure is its increased torsional rigidity and inherent strength, boding well for long-term durability.

"The way we're producing them will help reduce human error in building the van and reduce warranty claims," he said.

Playstation for outdoor adventurers

Pricing for the single axle Harvok Playstation campers will start around $40,000, which includes independent trailing arm coil suspension with twin shocks per wheel, 16in alloys and mud terrain tyres, a Cruisemaster DO-35 coupling and 12in electric brakes.

Entry is via a solid top-hinged rear entry door, with interior features extending to small hopper windows on both sides of the 1850mm x 1780mm coil spring mattress, a leather lounge with swivel table, 66 litre compressor fridge/freezer, twin fan air vent and a control panel for the 150Ah AGM battery and twin 70 litre fresh water tanks.

The Playstation camper also comes standard with a 12V water pump, portable toilet, audio system, electrical sockets and LED lighting, while externally there's a shower hose and a slide-out kitchen with four gas burner cooktop, sink and tap.

There's a big storage space in the full-height front 'garage', along with plenty of room on the integrated roof rack with 120kg load rating. There's probably enough room to carry a mountain bike in the back, and there's provision to fit an optional hot water unit and air-conditioner.

"We're trying to keep the price down (with the limited specification) so buyers can option it up or upgrade as they please," Harvok's Regional Director - Pacific, Adrian Cappola said.

There's also some 'fine tuning' to be done on future production versions, including the removal of some of the 'cosmetic' riveted strips used on the exterior.

"We're seeking feedback from dealers and potential customers at shows before we decide to make other changes," Cappola said.

While admitting the all-steel chassis and body combined are "slightly heavier" than on some similar-sized vans, Liu said the the rock-solid superstructure allows the use of lighter weight materials for interior furniture and other components to counteract that.

The Playstation's boxy body is 4.3m long by 2.1m wide. Travel height is 2.8m, and the Tare weight is around 1600kg, with a Tare ball weight of 180kg and ATM of 2500kg.

There are also plans to offer different layouts and more highly specced versions, including the possibility of more off-road features like airbag suspension and a lithium battery system.

Full metal jacket touring vans coming

The new full monocoque steel models are the latest evolution of the game-changing Harvok range that was launched in 2021 with Australia's first sub-$100,000 48-volt all-electric caravan. 

Battling rising shipping costs and delays, Harvok is hoping the first batch of 19ft 6in monocoque caravans will be delivered from the Chinese factory in time for display at the Victorian Caravan Supershow in early-April.

Other 'full metal jacket' versions are on the drawing board, with the plan to eventually sell as many as 800 Harvok caravans and hybrid campers annually in Australia.

Harvok is hoping to keep pricing for both family and couple 19ft 6in monocoque vans under $100,000 like the current body-on-chassis Powerbank 48V vans.

To help keep the Tare weight down and provide a decent payload for their 3500kg ATM, the all-steel touring vans will also boast weight-saving measures like a special aluminium entry door.

The painted, insulated 19ft 6in monocoque shells hit the scales at around 1400kg, before the suspension, wheels, coupling, furniture, appliances and other components are added.

"The current vans weigh in at around 2800kg (Tare), so we have to be around that weight to be competitive," said Cappola.

When they go on sale later this year the 19ft 6in monocoque vans will also feature Harvok's latest 48V off-grid power system, which features three 100Ah 48V lithium-ion batteries instead of the current six 50Ah battery set-up, for improved packaging and to reduce cabling.