Peterv

Thanks Chris, Wow, 23 pages of comments, that will keep me busy for a while. I’ve seen some of Danno’s video’s. After I’ve looked at the Caravaners’ Forum, I might post something on the Facebook site. cheers, Peter

Hi all, I’m thinking of buying my first drone. Leaning towards the DJI Mavic Air, it shoots photos in RAW and video in 4K. Primarily interested in the photography side of things but I suspect that, once I get the knack of it, I’ll also do a lot of video. I am interested in anybody’s experience with using drones and any thoughts you may have on what I should look out for when buying & using. many thanks, Peter

Thanks Tony n Irene. I’m sure we will. We were initially concerned about the lack of bench space, but after looking at the Compact, we came to the view that it would be fine. Overall, it’s amazing how much they pack into a small van.

Well we finally bit the bullet and bought the CP5, including the following options: Dual windows on offside bedroom Truma Aqua Plus hot water system Pocket spring mattress and bolster Diesel heater 3 x Sirocco fans Drawers & linen tray under bed Bike rack Euro annex & ESC Delivery due October 2019, well in time for summer holidays. Now looking at the car. Tossing up between increasing the tow ball rating of our Pajero to 300kgs (relatively cheap) to buying a new (or near new) LC200 (relatively expensive). Oh well, we have plenty of time to decide.

Wow, thanks Steve for all that insight. Agree wholeheartedly about your comments regarding Farina and Coward Springs. Have stayed at both in the past and they are both wonderful places to stop. I’m beginning to rethink my route. in relation to Alice Springs, any insights on those “not so we’ll known” places would be great.

Wow, that is a very comprehensive trip report. Many thanks Chris, will read with interest.

Many thanks Chris, I’ll call MacDonnell Ranges Park today. That was one of the places I was planning on staying at. Both Curtis Springs and Redbank George sound good. I was also thinking of Ormiston Gorge in the West MacDonnell. I like the idea of the Oodnadatta. We did it a few years ago as far as William Creek and stayed at both the Flinders and North Flinders. Absolutely love the place, esp. Arkaroola and keen to go back. I looked up the wildlife park. Looks great, I’ll add it the itinerary. We’re planning on selling our van shortly after the trip so my thinking was that this time we’d try to keep dirt roads to a minimum to reduce damage to the van. Perhaps I’m being too precious in regards to this... Anyway, we’re hoping to be back in the area with the new van in the following year in which case we would definitely do the Oodnadatta and the Flinders.

Hi all, I’m in the early stage of planning a trip from Sydney to Uluru next year (around July). Probably take about 5 weeks and thinking we’ll largely follow the Stuart Highway. Using Trip Planner in WikiCamps to map the route. i was wondering whether anyone had any favourite places they like to recommend, either as overnighters, or as places to stay for a couple of days. Many thanks....

Chris, very helpful information. We have wanted to go to Tasmania for a while now, but have not been able to find the time during the warmer months. We might now include Tasmania on our winter trip short list.

Many thanks Merv, Spoke to Paul at the factory and the 16' Compact version of the XC3 comes in with a tare weight of around 2 tonnes and an ATM of around 2.5 so it should be OK. But will still need to be careful of the weights. I'll need to look at the impact, for example, of dual batteries and solar panels, on the overall weight of the van. When you have a Pajero (or a Prado) weight is a constant challenge.

Thank you Karen. I'll spend some time, as you suggest, exploring the configuration of the vans in the for sale section to get some ideas. It's a good idea.

Hi, Just joined the group today. My wife & I are looking to buy an XC3 Compact early in the new year. We have gone from a Camp-O-Matic camper trailer, to a Goldstream camper van then to a Jayco Expanda Outback. Our experience with the Camp-O-Matic and Goldstream were great. The Jayco less so. In addition, the kids, having left school are less interested in camping with us, so it's time to look at something new. We enjoy the bush and the outback so we need something that will let us explore remote areas with the confidence that the van will not "let us down". We have a modified Pajero (suspension, lift, DP Chip, snorkel, bull bar, etc.) so we are limited to an ATM of 2500 kgs. The XC3 Compact seems right on the money. We're retired so we have lots of time to enjoy the van, but I have a few health issues and as a result, need a van that is reliable and where the manufacturer provides good backup and support. I'm hoping that Kedron will deliver this. The options we are looking at include diesel heater, full ensuite and ESC. I'd be interested in any thoughts people have in regards to how they have configured their van, what has worked and what has been less successful. As we have tended to sell our vans fairly regularly, I'd also be interested in observations about the strength of the second hand market for Kedron vans. I'm looking forward to learning a lot about the realities of owning a Kedron van through this group.