The Motorhome - - 2wander-yonder

Our new home and the story of how it came to be.

Having spent plenty of time eyeing off many of the iconic outback roads and other tracks where it was wise not to take AJ, we began researching the type of vehicle that would open up more of the country to us.

Had we not been living on the road full time we would probably have settled for a 4x4 and slide on camper for the odd outback holiday, but limited space in them and us needing full time living facilities in whatever we chose meant that we had to look to something else.

In addition to going to the places we can't currently go, we have found that we also have a desire to be able to leave the house in camp and to take the vehicle by itself for travel to work (when we do), shopping, water collection, touristy things and especially exploring an area for photography. So with that in mind we really only had three options:

Option 1 - an off road vehicle like an Iveco 4x4 Daily or Mitsubishi Canter with a slide on/off on the back;
Option 2 - an off road caravan, or
Option 3 - an off road 5th wheeler.

Having inspected a few slide on/off's, caravans and 5th wheelers we very soon realised that we wanted to retain the same sort of space and comfort that our motorhome offers but not the bulk size that comes with many of these rigs, and of course we needed to have that all important off road capability. We discounted the slide on/off idea because they are just not big enough to live in full time; we discounted a caravan because of the towing arrangements; and we discounted a large 5th wheeler because of the size and lack of off road capability, so that left just one option, the smaller but more capable off road 5th wheeler.

At this stage of the deliberations a Caravan and Camping Show that would fit in with our plans for working the Sorghum Harvest would have helped the decision making process quite dramatically, but in the absence of this we spent some time recounting different rigs we have seen on the road before and some online research helped narrow the choices a little further. In the end with only one genuine maker of off road 5th wheelers left (Southern Cross had just gone out of business) being in Queensland in particular near Winjanna in Toowoomba made the decision easier.

With some time off from the Sorghum Harvest due to weather we paid a visit Andrew Brennan at Winjanna, and what great timing it was. With a number of "Demo" models available we found a 10 month old Ormiston 630 Off Road (Show Model) not quite complete, available and sort of to our liking. We discussed changes we would want with Andrew and after he agreed to make them a reality at the right price, we made the decision to go ahead with the purchase, saving a good deal of money off the price of a new one as well.

So with the house sorted out we then we had to find a vehicle to tow it. Part of our discussions with Andrew from Winjanna covered just that, and it turns out that there really are only three vehicles to choose from, The Ford Ranger, Mazda BT50 or the Isuzu D-Max. But why just these three I hear you ask? Well, it seems that they are the only three vehicles currently on the market that offer a genuine 3.5 tonne towing capacity with an engine that is a small truck engine rather than a totally turbo upped one.

The Ranger was our first choice but it priced itself out of our market. We did find a nice 2013 model that had all the bells and whistles for $43,000 but...it didn't drive like it should and so that was the end of that. We drove a second hand 2012 BT50 with very low km's but it was not what we wanted either (the drive however was nice) and then we drove the Isuzu D-Max. It was nice but not as refined and as comfortable as the other two, and, it was a 4 cylinder 2.4litre with a turbo whereas the other two were 3.2 litre 5 cylinder motors. In the end we settled on a 2016 Mazda BT50 XTR Freestyle cab with Manual Transmission from Wippells Mazda, obtaining another great deal and a good discount by the time we shhok hands on the deal.

And that was when all of the fun started. To buy and register a vehicle in Qld you have to have a Qld drivers license and address (or get a permit to take it home), so while we were getting that sorted (which is story in itself) we were informed that the ship that our car was on, and due to dock on the 17th March, was delayed until the 4th of April. Well, that was not what we needed and would have left us with only 4 or 5 days to change it all over and to get to Melbourne for a family event. And that is where the second deal came in.

We told the salesman at Wippells of our problem and after checking a few things he rang back to offer us a vehicle they had in stock, same year and model but with an automatic transmission (with the manual shift on the side) for the same price, and with the same accessories. All in all, adding another 2,000 discount to our deal.

So, after picking up our new vehicle, spending Easter trying to sort out (read de-clutter) our accumulated stuff and cleaning AJ up a bit, we went over to Winjanna where we spent the next couple of days camped in their yard transferring our belongings from our old home to the new, conducting our pre delivery checks on everything, getting the hitch put in the back of the BT50, registering the 5th Wheeler and getting an on road driving lesson from Andrew at Winjanna. We also sadly took AJ off to Fraser RV to be sold before hitting the road in our new rig.

OUR NEW HOME

5er

Our new home

Front

Front View

Rear

Rear View

LHS

Left Hand Side View

RHS

Right Hand Side View

Bedroom

Bedroom

Bathroom

Bathroom

Lounge-Dining

Lounge/Dining

Kitchen

Kitchen

Floorplan

Technical Specifications

Length:
Exterior - 6.95m
Interior - 6.22m

Width:2.430m

Height:
Exterior- 3.0m
Interior - 1.960m

Weight:
Tare-2150kg,
ATM 3000kg,
CVM 6000kg

Chassis

Powder Coated RHS 6” x 2” Chassis Rails
Tandem axle
Electric brakes (4 wheel) off road
16” steel wheels with off road tyre's
ALKO independent suspension/shock absorbers
Breakaway Switch
50mm towing pin
Drop/wind down landing gear
4” x 4” heavy duty bumper with internal storage & spare wheel and carrier
2 stage drop step

Construction

1” X 1½” Kiln dried Canadian Spruce wall frame
¾” marine grade ply floor
1½” x 1½” stud grade Canadian Spruce roof beams
3/8” structural plywood roof cover
Single piece aluminum roof skin
25mm thick polyester insulation in roof and walls
Aluminum external cladding

Exterior

Roll-out awning
External Hot & Cold shower
External power point & light
External gas outlet
2 x Cargo storage area with external hatches on both sides

Electrical:

12/240 volt power points
Double 12v USB Point
Safety Switch/circuit breakers
12 volt LED lighting
External power point/light
External 12 volt socket
Electronic monitoring of batteries and tank level indicator
Smoke Alarm
Pre wired cable TV points
Ctek XS25000 battery charger/power supply
2 x 150 watt Solar Panels
Wineguard TV Antenna
Internal battery isolation switch2 x 150w Solar panels,
200 aHr Deep Cycle Batteries,

Plumbing:

12 volt water pressure pump
High pressure 1½” ABS pipe and fittings on all drainage
Truma Gas/Electric Hot water system
External Hot/Cold Shower
Lockable water fill with mains pressure
Pressure reduction valve
Water level indicators
Fresh water tank 160 litre capacity
Grey water tank 102 ltr capacity
Ceramic bowl cassette toilet (19 ltr black water)
External gas point
2 x 9kg Gas bottles
Chrome tap ware

Appliances

Stainless steel range hood
CD / MP3 / Radio Player
175 Ltr 12/240 Volt fridge
Roof-top air conditioner
Gas/electric stove/grill

Interior

Quality heavy duty vinyl floor covering
Overhead and under bench cupboards
Cupboard doors, drawer fronts joinery made from solid North American Oak
Stainless steel single bowl sink
Hopper-style windows with built-in shades and screens
LED euro-style lighting throughout/reading lights over bed head
Fully upholstered fitted cushions/dinette/sofa
Towel rails
Vanity cupboard / Mirrored Cabinet
Dressing Mirror
Hanging Wardrobe
Multiple storage areas

Things we added/changed:

Added an Overhead Cupboard in bedroom
Added an Overhead Cupboard across rear window
Changed to a Double vanity Cupboard in Bathroom
Removed microwave and turned cupboard into 3 shelf cupboard
Added a 2nd Spare Tyre/Rim & Bracket
Added 2 x Jerry Can Holders
Added a 140 Litre Fresh Water Tank (300 Litres total)
Added TV Bracket
Satellite TV Cable from TV to rear

OUR TOW VEHICLE

Our Tow Vehicle is a 2016 Mazda BT50 XTR. It comes in Cool White and we got them to add these items before they gave us a great discount.

Matt black bonnet protector
Headlight Protectors
Tow bar inc all components e-brakes
Electronic Brake Controller
Floor Mats - set of 2 carpet
Slimline Weathershields
Nitro Tint for Sedan and Wagon

Later on we intend to add the following items:

Soft Tonneau Cover with hitch hatch
Bullbar
Winch
Snorkel

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Mark Twain once said "...years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do that by the things you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." - and so we will.