Hey people. I am a new member to this site only after stumbling across this post in a google search regarding Aussie Spec US Caravans. I am currently in the process of purchasing a new 2013 Forest River Evo Caravan - paid the deposit today.
Clear a number of people make comment without knowing all the facts which is misleading.
These caravans, or at least the one I am buying, arrive in Brisbane in this case, fully Australian complied, door on the correct side, import/gst/shipping paid and all for the advertised price! All I need to do is apply for the import approval.
Michael Morris is a gun communicator and his feedback rating and comments on Ebay are all 100% positive.
There is nothing in Australia that even comes close for the type of inclusions and price they are offering/asking.
Given you generally have to wait some weeks/months to get a van even if purchased in Australia, to wait the five weeks for it to be delivered from the US is no big deal.
Only minor concern is the weight, they are a bit on the heavy side, but a small price to pay in my opinion.
Will post an update once it arrives.
pricey43 said
01:03 AM Dec 20, 2012
We passed an Airstream van the other day. The vehicle towing it had advertising for the vans so they are obviously importing them. Sorry didn't take more notice, was too surprised at coming across this parked at the side of the road.
enzed said
01:14 AM Dec 20, 2012
Webby52 wrote:
Hey people. I am a new member to this site only after stumbling across this post in a google search regarding Aussie Spec US Caravans. I am currently in the process of purchasing a new 2013 Forest River Evo Caravan - paid the deposit today.
Clear a number of people make comment without knowing all the facts which is misleading.
These caravans, or at least the one I am buying, arrive in Brisbane in this case, fully Australian complied, door on the correct side, import/gst/shipping paid and all for the advertised price! All I need to do is apply for the import approval.
Michael Morris is a gun communicator and his feedback rating and comments on Ebay are all 100% positive.
There is nothing in Australia that even comes close for the type of inclusions and price they are offering/asking.
Given you generally have to wait some weeks/months to get a van even if purchased in Australia, to wait the five weeks for it to be delivered from the US is no big deal.
Only minor concern is the weight, they are a bit on the heavy side, but a small price to pay in my opinion.
Will post an update once it arrives.
Good for you, we are very happy with our used Aussie Spec caravan. We found our tow vehicle was not powerful enough, and rather than put in another radiator we bought an old Toyota Lancruiser, series 80, really old, and did it up mechanically as we could not afford a flash newer tug. It's a bit slow on the hills, but tows fine. We also bought a Hayman Reece Weight Distribution tow pack and an electric brake controller, and our van never sways behind the tug. Our US van is a bit wider than the Aussie ones we looked at, that means more room inside, which is great. We too found Mike great to deal with. I think the extra weight is to do with having less plastic fittings and more timber fittings, but that's a good thing. For example, timber kitchen doors. Please let us know how you like your new van when it arrives!
ewaegeman said
09:06 AM Feb 28, 2013
Reagrding the import of old airstreams in Australia ..... Have a look at www.airstream.net.au
-- Edited by ewaegeman on Thursday 28th of February 2013 09:11:00 AM
herbie said
10:55 PM Feb 28, 2013
Regarding buying Australian made caravan's most of the big brand c/ vans supposidley made in Australia ..well they kind of are put together here that is true, but only after most of the body parts of the van are shipped into Oz flat packed from China or some other country.Until i went looking at different c/v factories around Oz i just presumed that they were built from the ground up from here. ..In the end we had our latest van made to our spec's , but still a lot of ironing out after we took posestion of it . If and when we purchase another van , i would not hesitate looking at importing one from o/s.
neilnruth said
11:39 PM Feb 28, 2013
Welcome Webby52 and ewaegeman to the forum. Hope you enjoy the forum and your vans.
oldtrack123 said
09:55 PM Aug 6, 2013
Hi All
Well I hope All those happy owners of Ausiespec imports are stil happy when they get caught with NON COMPLYING [to Aus Stan,dards ] 240/110V electrics
Non of the 110Vapplianceswill have Aus Approval
The Transformer conversion does not comply to Aus Standard
PeterQ
enzed said
03:12 AM Aug 7, 2013
oldtrack123 wrote:
Hi All
Well I hope All those happy owners of Ausiespec imports are stil happy when they get caught with NON COMPLYING [to Aus Stan,dards ] 240/110V electrics
Non of the 110Vapplianceswill have Aus Approval
The Transformer conversion does not comply to Aus Standard
PeterQ
I don't understand why some people believe vans like ours - US imported vans - don't comply - ours passed gas and electrical checks here after arrival in Australia, plus there is a huge list of imported appliances already pre-approved for use in Australia. (The exact same brands we can buy in Aussie at 240v). The transformer conversion also passed. We had 2 separate electrical checks carried out, just to be sure so I don't understand what the problem is perceived to be. It all works just fine.
The only issue would be if an appliance needed replacing but there are only 3 electrical appliances in it - the rest are all gas. But the same issue happens with Aussie made vans anyway - appliances wear out and need to be replaced. It's easy enough to import a 110 replacement appliance should we need to do that. But ours is wired for 240 wall connections as well, (as part of the original conversion cost) so it's also easy enough to replace an appliance with 240v (fridge or microwave) and just plug in.
At around half the cost of Aussie vans we could afford to import replacement appliances plus a new convertor and still have saved many thousands of dollars in the process.
So yes, we're still happy with our imported van, it works great and is very well built too.
Big Dave said
04:56 AM Aug 7, 2013
I have had quite a few of these vans checked over by some of the most pedantic electricians I have ever dealt with. They have never once called into question the appliance not complying or had any issues with having a transformer.
A lot of the vans being manufactured in the USA now are having Aussie compliant multi strand wire installed to comply with AS3000.
So basically they have Aussie wiring, Aussie RCDs & Aussie double pole power points.
I am very happy with our current van after selling our imported motorhome from Aussie Spec. & with what we have saved I don't care if I have to import a new appliance, EBAY !!
Big Dave said
05:03 AM Aug 7, 2013
Good for you webby by on your new van. We have been happy with ours too. They have so many more extras, often as "standard" inclusions too.
For all those with something to say about an Aussie built van, are you towing it with an Aussie built vehicle or an imported one?
Tim thetruckie said
08:30 AM Aug 7, 2013
Sufil , I would advise anyone to stay well away from these vans , there have been some posts here that they use a step down transformer to get around the different voltage these are ILLEGAL under Australian standards (AS).
I have seen 1 of these vans . Yes it has a useable door on the left hand side complete with steps legal . Yes it has a stepdown transformer ILLEGAL . Yes it has a flexible gas line between the regulator and the fixed line to the van ILLEGAL .
That is 2 out of 3 from a quick walk around , what else is wrong ?
Is the 240v power wiring single strand or multie strand as required by AS ?
Is the gas lines steel or copper as required by AS ?
Has the gas lines been fitted with gas valve before each appliance as required be AS ?
Has the appliance's been certified to AS by the relevant authorities ?
Something I noticed in the van I have seen is that there were no drawers in the van .
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:31:32 AM
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:32:23 AM
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:32:43 AM
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:34:55 AM
enzed said
12:17 PM Aug 8, 2013
Tim thetruckie wrote:
Sufil , I would advise anyone to stay well away from these vans , there have been some posts here that they use a step down transformer to get around the different voltage these are ILLEGAL under Australian standards (AS).
I have seen 1 of these vans . Yes it has a useable door on the left hand side complete with steps legal . Yes it has a stepdown transformer ILLEGAL . Yes it has a flexible gas line between the regulator and the fixed line to the van ILLEGAL .
That is 2 out of 3 from a quick walk around , what else is wrong ?
Is the 240v power wiring single strand or multie strand as required by AS ?
Is the gas lines steel or copper as required by AS ?
Has the gas lines been fitted with gas valve before each appliance as required be AS ?
Has the appliance's been certified to AS by the relevant authorities ?
Something I noticed in the van I have seen is that there were no drawers in the van .
Hi Tim,
Our imported van has multi strands wiring, all copper lines, all gas valves certified by a local gas fitter - something that's required before it can be registered here. When we took it for the rego check 3 officials crawled all over it for over an hour and measured everything 3 times, and seemed quite disappointed when they found everything complied with all Aussie regulations. Obviously, an import must comply with Aussie regulations before it can be registered and whether or not the work is done before importing, or after arrival, and certified, makes no difference. The buyer still has that conversion cost regardless. It cost us about $3000 in total for the conversion jobs. Still worth it financially that's for sure.
Even though we didn't need an electrical certificate for registration we got one anyway after taking the precaution of having 2 different electricians check over all the electrics. All voltages operating correctly and certified. There are no checks left to do apart from normal maintenance.
Had the mechanic check the brakes and grease them recently as our van is 7 years old so we thought it may need grease or wheel bearings. He checked all the wheels and they didn't need bearings - he just repacked them. He said it's in great condition underneath. So I don't think our van had traveled very far before we got it. Maybe stored under cover and only used for holidays. It was made by a reputable company with a great reputation and it's as good as we expected it to be.
-- Edited by enzed on Thursday 8th of August 2013 12:18:41 PM
Ontos45 said
06:31 PM Aug 8, 2013
I'm sure "Caravan and Motorhome" magazine had a full artical on the Air Stream caravan last year.
Peter
aussietraveller said
12:38 AM Aug 9, 2013
I suspect some of the people bagging the imported USA vans may have an ulterior motive as these vans are as stated by enzed are actually easy to make compliant with all ADR's and all Australian standards, all the ones I have seen are considerably better appointed and more realistically priced with companies in the USA happy to modify to personal requirements, I think we will be seeing a lot more on Australian roads, I dont own one yet but have been doing considerable research.
enzed said
01:08 AM Aug 9, 2013
We haven't bothered to change the awning over to the left side (some people do and it's not difficult) but it's no problem in camping grounds - they are always happy to give us a site that meets our needs. (Well, stands to reason, they need our money). Having 2 entry doors is great for air flow. And like 'aussietraveller' said, the imported vans are very well appointed. I LOVE the big bathroom and the clever layout.
Mike Morris at Aussie Spec is great to deal with and because he's been importing vehicles for many years, knows exactly what he's doing. Anyone buying from Aussie Spec won't go wrong.
Tim thetruckie said
03:44 AM Aug 11, 2013
aussietraveller wrote:
I suspect some of the people bagging the imported USA vans may have an ulterior motive as these vans are as stated by enzed are actually easy to make compliant with all ADR's and all Australian standards, all the ones I have seen are considerably better appointed and more realistically priced with companies in the USA happy to modify to personal requirements, I think we will be seeing a lot more on Australian roads, I dont own one yet but have been doing considerable research.
If you are referring to my posts aussietraveller . I am not bagging the vans themselves but the shonks that are importing them or the shonks that are advertising them as being fully complaint with ADR's .
If you do your homework and are prepared to do the work of modifying and changing to conform with AS good luck to you .
There are to many on the road that have bodgy weights and certificates that when they come to be sold will either cost the owner money to be rectified or some poor innocent buyer will get caught out .
Big Dave said
02:07 PM Aug 11, 2013
Tim,
Not sure about other importers but as far as Aussie Spec is concerned I can vouch for the following facts you mentioned,
Step down transformer is not illegal
All gas lines are replaced with copper & tucked up above the chassis rails, As required by AS 5601. (American vans are plumbed with steel pipe)
Isolating valves ARE installed before each appliance
Multi strand wire is used during the construstion of the new vans, secondhand ones are retro-fitted.
A flexible connection between the regulator & the van is actually recommended in AS5601. This helps with vibration & possible metal fatigue
All vans are individually certified by an Australian Gasfitter
All vans are indiivdual with their fit-outs as far as drawers etc are concerned.
In regards to bodgey weight stickers, I dont know how you would do that, you need a weighbridge ticket before you get rego.
I have been over to Aussie Specs operation & spoke to Mike Morris, I have seen the work they do on the vans. They meet all the requirements here , how else would they be getting registered all over the counrtyside ? They are shipped to every state in Australia.
Mike & his team has spent considerable effort to ensure that the work meets Australian Standards. The end product beats anything here hands down.
enzed said
04:05 PM Aug 11, 2013
Big Dave wrote:
Tim,
Not sure about other importers but as far as Aussie Spec is concerned I can vouch for the following facts you mentioned,
Step down transformer is not illegal
All gas lines are replaced with copper & tucked up above the chassis rails, As required by AS 5601. (American vans are plumbed with steel pipe)
Isolating valves ARE installed before each appliance
Multi strand wire is used during the construstion of the new vans, secondhand ones are retro-fitted.
A flexible connection between the regulator & the van is actually recommended in AS5601. This helps with vibration & possible metal fatigue
All vans are individually certified by an Australian Gasfitter
All vans are indiivdual with their fit-outs as far as drawers etc are concerned.
In regards to bodgey weight stickers, I dont know how you would do that, you need a weighbridge ticket before you get rego.
I have been over to Aussie Specs operation & spoke to Mike Morris, I have seen the work they do on the vans. They meet all the requirements here , how else would they be getting registered all over the counrtyside ? They are shipped to every state in Australia.
Mike & his team has spent considerable effort to ensure that the work meets Australian Standards. The end product beats anything here hands down.
That's also our experience of Aussie Spec. Plus the weights and vin number are on the manufacturers plate attached to the vehicles. Those details are required for the import licence application too. We included a photocopy of that plate with our application plus photos of the van - because you do need proof of those details to get the licence to import. Aussie Spec also give a quote for the complete conversion and shipping for a particular van or rv, and will give you that cost before you commit to buy. So we knew the total landed cost before we bought. The vans Mike had for sale were all too big for us, but he located the one we have and acted as our agent to secure it at an auction. Aussie Spec preselect suitable vehicles for Aussie and of course do all the measuring first to ensure they don't offer any that don't meet the height and width requirements for Aussie roads. There's also a requirement to stay inside a certain length from the rear wheels to the rear of the van - the distance between the 2, so that must comply too for whatever reason.
Big Dave said
04:54 PM Aug 11, 2013
I also agree with what Aussie Traveller said, some people have a hidden agenda as to why they are bagging out the imported vans.
Clear a number of people make comment without knowing all the facts which is misleading.
These caravans, or at least the one I am buying, arrive in Brisbane in this case, fully Australian complied, door on the correct side, import/gst/shipping paid and all for the advertised price! All I need to do is apply for the import approval.
Michael Morris is a gun communicator and his feedback rating and comments on Ebay are all 100% positive.
There is nothing in Australia that even comes close for the type of inclusions and price they are offering/asking.
Given you generally have to wait some weeks/months to get a van even if purchased in Australia, to wait the five weeks for it to be delivered from the US is no big deal.
Only minor concern is the weight, they are a bit on the heavy side, but a small price to pay in my opinion.
Will post an update once it arrives.
We passed an Airstream van the other day. The vehicle towing it had advertising for the vans so they are obviously importing them. Sorry didn't take more notice, was too surprised at coming across this parked at the side of the road.
Good for you, we are very happy with our used Aussie Spec caravan. We found our tow vehicle was not powerful enough, and rather than put in another radiator we bought an old Toyota Lancruiser, series 80, really old, and did it up mechanically as we could not afford a flash newer tug. It's a bit slow on the hills, but tows fine. We also bought a Hayman Reece Weight Distribution tow pack and an electric brake controller, and our van never sways behind the tug. Our US van is a bit wider than the Aussie ones we looked at, that means more room inside, which is great. We too found Mike great to deal with. I think the extra weight is to do with having less plastic fittings and more timber fittings, but that's a good thing. For example, timber kitchen doors. Please let us know how you like your new van when it arrives!
Reagrding the import of old airstreams in Australia ..... Have a look at www.airstream.net.au
-- Edited by ewaegeman on Thursday 28th of February 2013 09:11:00 AM
Regarding buying Australian made caravan's most of the big brand c/ vans supposidley made in Australia ..well they kind of are put together here that is true, but only after most of the body parts of the van are shipped into Oz flat packed from China or some other country.Until i went looking at different c/v factories around Oz i just presumed that they were built from the ground up from here. ..In the end we had our latest van made to our spec's , but still a lot of ironing out after we took posestion of it . If and when we purchase another van , i would not hesitate looking at importing one from o/s.
Hi All
Well I hope All those happy owners of Ausiespec imports are stil happy when they get caught with NON COMPLYING [to Aus Stan,dards ] 240/110V electrics
Non of the 110Vapplianceswill have Aus Approval
The Transformer conversion does not comply to Aus Standard
PeterQ
I don't understand why some people believe vans like ours - US imported vans - don't comply - ours passed gas and electrical checks here after arrival in Australia, plus there is a huge list of imported appliances already pre-approved for use in Australia. (The exact same brands we can buy in Aussie at 240v). The transformer conversion also passed. We had 2 separate electrical checks carried out, just to be sure so I don't understand what the problem is perceived to be. It all works just fine.
The only issue would be if an appliance needed replacing but there are only 3 electrical appliances in it - the rest are all gas. But the same issue happens with Aussie made vans anyway - appliances wear out and need to be replaced. It's easy enough to import a 110 replacement appliance should we need to do that. But ours is wired for 240 wall connections as well, (as part of the original conversion cost) so it's also easy enough to replace an appliance with 240v (fridge or microwave) and just plug in.
At around half the cost of Aussie vans we could afford to import replacement appliances plus a new convertor and still have saved many thousands of dollars in the process.
So yes, we're still happy with our imported van, it works great and is very well built too.
I have had quite a few of these vans checked over by some of the most pedantic electricians I have ever dealt with. They have never once called into question the appliance not complying or had any issues with having a transformer.
A lot of the vans being manufactured in the USA now are having Aussie compliant multi strand wire installed to comply with AS3000.
So basically they have Aussie wiring, Aussie RCDs & Aussie double pole power points.
I am very happy with our current van after selling our imported motorhome from Aussie Spec. & with what we have saved I don't care if I have to import a new appliance, EBAY !!
Good for you webby by on your new van. We have been happy with ours too. They have so many more extras, often as "standard" inclusions too.
For all those with something to say about an Aussie built van, are you towing it with an Aussie built vehicle or an imported one?
Sufil , I would advise anyone to stay well away from these vans , there have been some posts here that they use a step down transformer to get around the different voltage these are ILLEGAL under Australian standards (AS).
I have seen 1 of these vans . Yes it has a useable door on the left hand side complete with steps legal . Yes it has a stepdown transformer ILLEGAL . Yes it has a flexible gas line between the regulator and the fixed line to the van ILLEGAL .
That is 2 out of 3 from a quick walk around , what else is wrong ?
Is the 240v power wiring single strand or multie strand as required by AS ?
Is the gas lines steel or copper as required by AS ?
Has the gas lines been fitted with gas valve before each appliance as required be AS ?
Has the appliance's been certified to AS by the relevant authorities ?
Something I noticed in the van I have seen is that there were no drawers in the van .
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:31:32 AM
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:32:23 AM
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:32:43 AM
-- Edited by Tim thetruckie on Wednesday 7th of August 2013 08:34:55 AM
-- Edited by enzed on Thursday 8th of August 2013 12:18:41 PM
Peter
Mike Morris at Aussie Spec is great to deal with and because he's been importing vehicles for many years, knows exactly what he's doing. Anyone buying from Aussie Spec won't go wrong.
If you are referring to my posts aussietraveller . I am not bagging the vans themselves but the shonks that are importing them or the shonks that are advertising them as being fully complaint with ADR's .
If you do your homework and are prepared to do the work of modifying and changing to conform with AS good luck to you .
There are to many on the road that have bodgy weights and certificates that when they come to be sold will either cost the owner money to be rectified or some poor innocent buyer will get caught out .
Tim,
Not sure about other importers but as far as Aussie Spec is concerned I can vouch for the following facts you mentioned,
I have been over to Aussie Specs operation & spoke to Mike Morris, I have seen the work they do on the vans. They meet all the requirements here , how else would they be getting registered all over the counrtyside ? They are shipped to every state in Australia.
Mike & his team has spent considerable effort to ensure that the work meets Australian Standards. The end product beats anything here hands down.
That's also our experience of Aussie Spec. Plus the weights and vin number are on the manufacturers plate attached to the vehicles. Those details are required for the import licence application too. We included a photocopy of that plate with our application plus photos of the van - because you do need proof of those details to get the licence to import. Aussie Spec also give a quote for the complete conversion and shipping for a particular van or rv, and will give you that cost before you commit to buy. So we knew the total landed cost before we bought. The vans Mike had for sale were all too big for us, but he located the one we have and acted as our agent to secure it at an auction. Aussie Spec preselect suitable vehicles for Aussie and of course do all the measuring first to ensure they don't offer any that don't meet the height and width requirements for Aussie roads. There's also a requirement to stay inside a certain length from the rear wheels to the rear of the van - the distance between the 2, so that must comply too for whatever reason.