Camper Trailer of the Year

[broncos11]

Hi Guys

Is it just me or did I miss something with the camper trailer of the year awards just published in a major magazine. I was really waiting in anticipation as we are still researching on what CT to purchase. While it was a great read, I was shocked to say the least that the cheapest CT reviewed came in at 20K plus and it was said to be very well made but low on options??. That is a huge outlay for a family like us, as I would think for most families with kids to allow for. Having been on this site for a while now, and also browsing other sites, I would think a very large majority of CT's purchased are in the 10-20K range. They seem to be able to do it in car mags and cover all categories. Maybe something for publications to think of next year. Possibly they could draw feedback from sites like My Swag??

Dave

[WogsRus]

whilst i have not seen teh reviews, if you are in for a budget camper, give Xtrail a call, great pricing great camper.

I know, shalmes self promotion cos i have one. LOL

[xmasbaby67]

There was a thread about the winning CT as it was worth $52K!!!!
http://myswag.org/forum/index.php?topic=9599.0

I agree with you Broncos as when we were looking for our CT we bought the mag for the reviews and now we buy it for the destinations.  I think they did have a lower price range in last years awards and not sure why they started at $20K this year as that is quite a high starting point for most first time buyers.

We ended up buying a Customline with extras and it was $13K.  Very pleased with it and we have had a lot of people come up to us when we are camping in parks asking for a look..

Choosing a CT is a very personal thing and I think its horses for courses.  We all love what we have no matter what the budget. 

[broncos11]

Guys,

I enjoyed the magazine. I just thought they could have had some CT's in there that were more reflective of what most people would possibly be buying, hence my reference to how car mags do it. Reading that other thread about the awards, I feel vindicated in my thoughts.

Dave

[Tracey family]

We are regular readers of the magazine but were very dissappointed that the bottom category started at $20 000       - seems to be the general opinion here. I think that a big part of their target audience buys the magazine for research purposes - we started buyimg the magazine when we were trying to decide which CT to buy for our first.

Our budget didn't stretch to $20000 so we looked at manufacturers that produced good quality, well featured campers for around $12000 to $16000. It became a very difficult task because there are so many that fit this category.

Obviously the more money you spend, the more features you get so it didn't suprise me that the winner cost an arm and a leg but surely they could have covered the full spectrum of what's available.

[chunk]

I was also disappointed with the campertrailer of the year awards, while most people would like to be able to spend $20,000 plus on a campertrailer the reality is they can't afford to. The average Joe with two or three kids in my experience is looking to spend around $10,000 to $20,000 max, and for that sort of money you can get a bloody good camper. I always thought camping (tent/camper) was supposed to be an affordable way of seeing this fantastic country not something that you pay off for the rest of your life. 

[BigJules]

Didn't they do it in price bands?

[Diksta]

one of the categories was how good they were for the family, how the T Van won a category  i will never know. they are probably the most unfamily orientated camper out there.

[darren]

There are a heap of threads running at the moment around this same subject. As far as i can see this award was for what a magazine deemed to be the BEST camper of 2010. Not the most affordable. In the Olympics do we give a gold medal for someone that came 7th just because they couldn’t afford the best running shoes? Yes it may be dearer than a lot can afford, but it probably has good engineering ,quality manufacturing, and a lot of features. A swag and a wheel barrow will only set you back $300 and most could afford it but does that make it the best? Every thread someone puts up that asks what is the best camper everybody just puts the one they own. You don’t have to justify your decision to any one, that just what you bought. Brand loyalty is a strange thing..
 May be they could make categories for price ranges but there still is going to be an overall best, and its probably going to be one of the more expensive ones....

I bet if someone lined up all the campers made in Australia and said you can have what ever one you want you would head for the more expensive ones. Just look at the 'If money was no option thread'

[Blinky Bill]

As always some great and passionate comments on here.

I went and purchased Issue 35 based on this forum. From my point of view I have really enjoyed reading the magazine & watching the DVD (over & over & over). Sure I question why this or that CT won but I tend to do that at any competition, so no worries from me on that score.

I keep in mind that it's only someone's opinion anyway and we all know how flawed opinions can be. 

I have a well used 3rd hand hardfloor CT that does me just fine and I'm not about to change it anytime soon (even if I could afford it). However I was very impressed with the standard & quality of all CT's being assessed.

Just my opinion ....but the soft floor vacationer appeals to me. But they all looked top shelf.

[Tracey family]

I agree in part to what you said Darren but as you point out they didnt give the guy who came 7th in the Olympics a medal just because he didnt have the top of the range running shoes BUT at least he got to compete. I think what our punters are saying is they would like to see a category for the budget c/ts that are withing reach of the average families budget...thats just my 2c worth
      scott

[gronk]

Without having seen the magazine Scott, I would tend to agree with you.....

A budget soft floor category....( 5 to 20 K )
A deluxe soft floor category( 20 to 40 K )
A hard floor category

Then awards for best family camper......best offroad camper.....etc etc !!

Then award for best overall camper.........and as car awards show, this doesn't have to be the most expensive either.......depending on the criteria set by the judges , its the one that ticks the most boxes !!!

[Flemo]

Apparently there was an under 20k section but they didn't show up. So got called 20-35 as that was a nice split using what showed up. I have paid top dollar for a speccd up trackabout extenda that I think would have won this category and could not have stretched another 10k into the next bracket. I have paid for what my 18 months research tells me is the best soft floor camper my money could buy at the time. I could get the bare bones trailer for under 20k easily but with wife and 2 young girls paid for a few luxuries considering we plan an extended trip in it.

[BigJules]

There wasn't a bad camper there, just different campers for different budgets, needs, stages of life etc.

[Slipus]

I agree about CTs under 20 k.
This forum seems to be a good barometer of the market place.
Just look at our votes
There are bucket loads of CT's under 20k

regards

Slip


Owner Builder    - 108 (10%)
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Kimberley Kampers    - 28 (2.6%)
Trackabout    - 84 (7.8%)
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Campomatic    - 5 (0.5%)
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Modcon / Camper Factory    - 18 (1.7%)
Still looking for a Camper    - 176 (16.3%)
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Wandering Star    - 3 (0.3%)
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Heaslip    - 1 (0.1%)
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Gumnut    - 1 (0.1%)
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MarketDirectCampers    - 3 (0.3%)
Conqueror    - 1 (0.1%)