I recently dropped into Echo 4x4 Campers at Vineyard in Western Sydney to meet up with Daniel Karsten & to look over the range of the South African manufactured camper trailers now available in Australia. Our own great outdoors is very similar to that of South Africa & those manufactured there have proven themselves here in our environment in the past. Echo 4x4 have been building camper trailers for around 20 years.

There are four models available, all built to Australian specifications with full ADR compliance. They include Vehicle Components DO35 hitch, suspension & brakes, LED lighting, a stainless steel kitchen & Redarc electrics which are all fitted here in Australia.

The range starts with the Echo3 & Echo5 models which are high sided gear trailers with a rooftop style tent mounted on top. They both have powdercoated steel bodies, electroplated hot dipped galvanised chassis & leaf suspension with shocks. All doors have camlocks fitted & automotive door seals to keep out the bulldust. There is a roto moulded storage nose cone up front fitted with a wood rack. There is a mass of storage in the cargo area plus you have the roto moulded storage racks & slide out boxes.

The Echo 5 has 1309 litres of internal storage plus another 200 litres in the nose cone plus the eight drawer system. The fully equipped kitchen has all crockery & utensils, a basin & 12volt pump from the 120 litre watertank & a fridge slide.  There is 105amp hour battery with a 15amp battery charger, a 240volt power inlet & provision for two jerrys.

Then there are the Namib & Kavango models which are more of the hybrid types of campers, somewhere between a camper trailer & a caravan. These are of monoque construction with double fibreglass insulated bodies & pop-up roofs. Again all doors have cam locks, automotive seals & stainless steel hinges.

The Namib is perfect for two people. It has inside seating, a toilet & shower & a dropdown bed over the A frame.

The Kavango is the larger of the two & also has a dropdown bed over the A frame as well as a dinette that converts into a bed allowing bedspace for a couple of kids.

The Namib & Kavango have a 105 amp hour deep cycle battery with Redarc electrical components fitted here in Australia like a 15amp AC charger, a DC to DC smart charger with Anderson plug, a solar regulator, a 150watt pure sinewave inverter. The Namib has a 80 watt solar panel while the Kavango 90 watt solar panel. There is a 15amp power inlet fitted complete with an earth leakage unit.

Both kitchen units are well designed with everything you need for meal preparation within easy reach.  The Kavango comes with a Smev 8000 gas stove, BBQ grid & a Webasto diesel hot water system & heater.

For more details on the above range of camper please check the Echo 4x4 Campers website at  http://www.echo4x4.com.au