All this talk of off-road vans vs hybrids seems to ring a bell... 🤔
Probably because that was us probably 9+ months ago! 😂 There's even a thread I started on here that had some awesome suggestions from a lot of members... Probably could find it if you did a search.
Anyway. Long story short we went with an Ultimate. You CAN pick one up second hand in the price range the OP is talking, but that'll be an older one. Despite the company's recent struggles (don't buy new... at least just yet - fingers crossed they get themselves out of the pickle they're in!) they are a quality Aussie made product. Just ask any Ulti owner and they'll sing it's praises just like we do.
Everyone has different priorities but it worked out to be the best option for us for these reasons:
- We didn't need an indoor shower/toilet. Plus, there's a toilet locker and a hot/cold outdoor shower outlet on the camper so we just throw up an ensuite tent and we're set wherever!
- We needed indoor space to protect us from the sun/flies/rain/whatever depending on the time/season/location. It has a good-sized U-shaped couch and indoor kitchen. Yes, I cook inside. But we also carry a table and our old camp stove so I can still cook outside should I so choose (and have the fire pit that I also cook on).
- We wanted a "normal" sized bed. We're both short, but even so we didn't want one of those tiny little caravan beds you often see. The Ulti has a massive king-size bed, and with a cheap topper it is damn comfortable, too.
- Initially we didn't want a lot of canvas... but we decided it was moreso that we didn't want a difficult or time-consuming set-up, and canvas was OK as long as it kept out the weather (which it does). We can be completely set up with a cold drink in hand in under 15 minutes.
- Most important? IT HAD TO BE LIGHT AND TRULY OFF-ROAD. We weren't done with remote travel and rough or sandy tracks. We didn't want some heavy boat-anchor dragging behind us stopping us getting to certain spots. No issues there with the Ulti. And at a little over a tonne fully loaded the Jimny could nearly tow it. 🤣 Jokes aside, it is a safe and sensible option for a lot of lighter vehicles that don't have the huge towing capacity that is often required for spec'd out off-road vans that are notoriously heavy. Even with the Patrol we don't use as much fuel, don't need to worry about it overheating, etc. - all of which could have been an issue with a full-sized off-road van.
The moral of my not-so-little story? Figure out your priorities. Go and look at a LOT of options. Discuss your priorities some more... then look at everything again. The first time we looked at an Ultimate we both laughed and said "never". Heck, we called it an ugly upside-down boat! But we LOVE our camper and it suits us perfectly. We're so glad we didn't go down the path of getting a huge, heavy caravan or cross-over thing. What we have suits us perfectly. But there are different options out there because we are all different. Find what works for you.
