Zone RV Expedition 2018 Review

Let’s get this clear;  Zone RV’s boxy new Expedition is a camper, not a hybrid. The latter may come later from this innovative Coolum Beach, Queensland RV builder.

This means it’s more focussed on tent trailer-style outdoor living, than the live-in comforts of a scaled-down caravan. There’s a philosophical difference. But apart from its standard wrap-around bat-wing awning, it doesn’t have any canvas. Go figure!

It makes perfect sense to Zone RV, who have been breaking the RV mould since they moved from building luxury boats to caravans back in 2014-15.

Starting as a flat-pack toy hauler manufacturer, they quickly applied their composite fibreglass and bonding expertise to full-size caravans and found a ready market. Many cashed-up travellers were waiting for someone to build a high tech and light weight caravan with automotive-like quality and innovation.

Cheapest Zone yet

Now, at the same time as they launched their new range-topping Summit series, which starts at $169,900, comes the Expedition Series camper trailer. Starting at $49,900, the Expedition starts low and aims high, with our option-loaded ‘Deluxe’ review version costing close to $75,000.

That’s a lot for a camper trailer you might think, when imported soft and hard-floor models can be purchased for less than $20,000, but the Expedition is not for people shopping in this market. Besides, as Zone RV director Dave Biggar explains it, all the Expedition’s main locally-built camper rivals cost much the same after you tick a few option boxes.

According to Biggar, the design brief for the Expedition was a lightweight, high quality, high strength and well insulated camper that could survive all the hard places, yet could be set up and packed down for overnight stops in just a few minutes.

This meant no wet or flapping canvas, but this is not an entirely new idea. Track Trailer’s ground-breaking Tvan, Vista’s RV, Pioneer’s Mitchell and Van Cruiser’s new Shotgun all offer similar versatility, but the Expedition has some unique qualities that should attract buyers to its concept of  fuss-free camping.

That ‘few minutes’ set-up time is totally feasible if you don’t deploy the Expedition’s large wrap-around awning, although with the new custom-made one that will be standard on production models that hit the market in February, it could be possible.

On the option-loaded review Expedition, you simply level it side to side via its optional air suspension, open the large top-hinged rear door that gives access to the fixed north-south king-size bed with its innerspring mattress – and climb in.

The latter was achieved on the review Expedition by a neat, slide-away chromed marine ladder. This is OK for getting in, but tricky if you’re backing down in the early hours. We’re told grab handles and a separate aluminium folding step will be standard on production versions.

Standing room -- just

Inside there’s only 1.5 metres of headroom, but this is enough in which to get dressed or access the many cupboards along both sides of the camper – all of which feature Velcro-sealed vinyl front panels instead of heavier hinged doors in the interest of weight saving. They work a treat, although the sound of ripping Velcro means ‘one up, all up’ in the campsite.

A front window, a large right hand opening side window and two 12v Sirocco fans provide plenty of ventilation, while on warm nights the entire rear door can be left open, with insects held at bay by an insect-proof screen with clever Velcro lower edge fastening and twin zips.

Hungry? The optional Dometic slide-out three-burner gas cooktop and preparation area slides out from the front left side of the Expedition. While it’s under the large, adjacent top-hinged panel that reveals the Expedition’s side-mounted pantry, where you are protected from the weather.

If you’d rather have the full protection for cooking, you simply unzip the awning’s bag, swing the arms out, tension the front arm to one of the front stone screen’s struts and another from a rear arm to a point to the right of the rear door, and it’s done.

For added stability if it’s breezy, it’s a good idea to drop down and expand the poles stored on every arm. Each has its own flat ‘foot’ and the poles are locked in position by a simple twist-grip action.

If it’s windy overnight, each can be pegged, but most people will wait until they have reached their destination before going this extra step.

Tricky roof bed access

Getting into the optional roof-top bed on the Expedition involves a few more steps that are currently being refined at Zone RV.

You start by unclipping four corner over-centre catches that hold the slim bed module in place.  I say ‘slim’ because the entire top section is about half the height of one of the popular hard-case rooftop tents as it contains a deflated air mattress, rather than a foam mattress.

Popping the roof is then achieved by inserting a purpose-designed pole through a hole in the Expedition’s roof and pushing upwards. The roof then rises on gas-filled struts and scissor lifts, tapering towards the front. It’s a simple idea, but it works.

Putting it down is not so easy, as trapped air has to escape first. Zone RV is working on a simple way to ‘dump’ this air and the pole can then do the rest.

Our Expedition had the optional height adjustable Cruisemaster ATX air suspension and its compressor could then be employed to inflate the mattress. Where customers don’t order air suspension – the default suspension is coil-spring Cruisemaster XT – Zone RV plans to supply a simple 12v air pump to do the inflation.

Getting into the rooftop bed is via a folding aluminium ladder that sits on the right hand side of the rear panel. While Zone RV is adding handles to production versions, getting in and out of the upper bed is still something best done sober and always exited backwards, facing the camper body!

As with most off-road campers and caravans, managing things like clips and zips for set-up and pack-up is easier done by relatively tall people and your 173cm tall writer needed vertical help. In my case, the folding rear step that aids access to the camper’s bedroom did the trick.

Cooking in the great outdoors

Once the kitchen is out and the pantry is open, you’re cooking, so to speak. Six large shelves with retaining bars stop items spilling out when travelling and should house most of your travelling food needs, while a large 12-volt 75-litre Isotherm cabinet fridge below handles the bits that need to keep cool.

Above the fridge is a panel of rocker switches that controls all the Expedition’s lights and its Fusion audio syste­­­­m, while alongside are 240V and 12V power power outlets.

A stainless steel sink on the left hand side of the pantry area is well-placed next to the slide-out kitchen. There's plenty of space to plate-up, but nowhere to store pots and pans.

On the other side of the Expedition, the right hand front locker gives you access to the airbag suspension’s height controls, allowing you to raise or lower either side to suit the terrain and create a level camp. A separate air outlet is provided for an air line that can be used to inflate tyres or the rooftop airbed.

To its right is a smaller through-body storage area that can be used to hold a range of long camping items.

The rear locker on the left side is either free for additional storage, or home to the camper’s optional gas hot water service, which feeds the clever collapsible shower tent that unfolds from its wall storage box, immediately above.

If it’s not windy, the tent will hang comfortably, weighted down by the rods in its lower skirt, but we’d recommend four corner pegs to be sure.

Up front, there’s a massive A-frame – the same one that Zone RV fits to its much heavier full-size off-road caravans – holding a storage box with slides to hold a 2KVA generator on one side, with provision to pack a Weber Baby Q on the other.

Behind this box, sandwiched between it and the body are two spare wheels, while a truck mesh screen up front protects the camper’s single 4.5kg gas bottle and its twin jerrycan holders.

A separate gas bayonet allows you to plug in a BBQ, but as the single small gas bottle has to service these, plus the kitchen and hot water service, I'd be more comfortable with two bottles for remote area camping.

Easy to drag around

Other than its rapid set-up, the other key feature of this camper is its light weight. The base Expedition tips the scales at 1300kg Tare – admittedly heavier than a smaller hardshell camper, like a Tvan, but not a lot more than a Vista RV, a Pioneer Mitchell or chunky ‘box’ campers like the Van Cruiser Shotgun.

Even optioned up, as reviewed, it was like a flea on the back of my Land-Rover Discovery and felt very capable of taking on some of the tougher off-road treks, like the Simpson, Fraser Island or Cape York’s Telegraph Track.

In fact, that’s where you can expect to see many Zone RV Expeditions in the future, going big distances to find hard places in more comfort and with greater set-up ease than the average up-market camper.

Summing up

Serial innovators Zone RV has again broken the mould – this time for campers. The Expedition offers a real, largely canvas-free alternative for seriously remote area travel with its fully-insulated, over-engineered and lightweight Expedition.

Price, which approaches that of many even-easier hybrids, is its only barrier.

Specs: Zone RV Expedition Z-10.6 Deluxe

Trailer length: 5520mm
Internal length: 3060mm
Internal width: 1930mm
Internal height: 1500mm
External travel height: 2435mm
Tare: 1300kg
ATM: 2200kg
Ball weight: 185kg
Body: Closed cell composite fibreglass sandwich wall, roof and floor construction
Chassis: RHS Duragal 150mm x 50mm with 50mm off-road lift and Raptor coating stone protection and DO-35 V3 coupling
Suspension: Cruisemaster ATX airbag independent with independent side height adjustment
Brakes: 10in AL-KO off-road spec electric drums
Wheels: 16in x 8in alloy with 265/75-16 A/T tyres
Water: 1 x 80l and 1 x 100l food-grade poly fresh water tanks
Battery: 1 x 1000AH Enerderive Lithium with 2000W ePro inverter
Solar: 1 x 220W flexible rooftop panel
Gas: 1 x 4.5kg bottles
Cooking: Dometic slide-out 3-burner Thetford external gas kitchen
Fridge: Cabinet-type 75-litre fridge
Lighting: LED throughout
Price: Base price $49,900; with options as reviewed: $75,000 approx.
Supplied by: Zone RV, Coolum Beach, Queensland