Hi All
We are a family of 3 living in Central Queensland, me and the girl and a 12yo very spoilt, little bit tubby, little bit smelly but very special staffy planning our first trip around the block, and I'm going mental on finding a van. We have purchased a new Mitsubishi Challenger T/D Auto and so far its been great ( hasn't quite done 8,000km's yet ). But what to put behind it? Queen bed & ensuite is a must or I'm going by myself, so I've been told.
Any advise on these vans would be GREAT = NewAge - Big Red, Colorado - Summit, Opalite - 610, Kingdom - Kensington, Franklin - Xfactor, Avan - Eurostar, or Jurgens - Lunagazer ?
Any actual owner feed-back would be awesome ( good or bad ), as you can see, trying to narrow it down isn't helping, the more we look the more we find. Did I mention Coromal? See, I'm loosing it, can someone just turn the light on so I can find our way out...
Thanks
Dom.

Calm down Dom, firstly I agree with your wife reguarding the ensuit, to me it's a must. When my husband and I stuck our heads into the door of our present van, we knew instantly it was the one for us. Perhaps this will happen to you, so stop stressing and enjoy the experience...Daphne .... Just noticed this is your first post....welcome.......

Thanks Daphne,
Enjoying the experience would be nice, we have just spent 3 days looking at vans in Toowoomba, Gold Coast & Brisbane - only one day in each, and nearly a 2000km round trip for us. We can't wait to throw the jobs in and go, I think this might be half the problem, we know that we are going to have this time off to do it, we just need some pieces to fall into place, then time won't really matter ( bloody work )
I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, I just hope its not a freight train coming my way.
We are leaning towards the Colorado or Avan, but wouldn't it be nice to park them side by side and have a good look.
Thanks for the G-up, were not stressed ( yet ) just more confused, we seem to have looked at every mag and web site over the last 12+ months but really need some time to get in some.
Thanks again
Dom
Soon to be living the dream...not just dreaming.

Hey Baroma you certainly don't rush into things do you. The whole industry will have changed 3 or 4 times in that time.
Seriously though as Baroma states one of the best ways to work out what you require is the ask owners of vans and what they think of the build quality and importantly. would the purchase another one from the same builder.
To start with you have a rectangle in which to style your living space. Front rear or even centre ensuite it's up to your requirements. We like rear ensuite because my partner doesn't like a toilet close the the bedroom. Others don't like a bathroom near the kitchen. We also have a preference for cafe' dining.

I know that there are many many choices out there but most of us have a budget so have to work within that as well.

Regards Chris

Thanks Boroma & Chris
We have our basic design set out, Full size queen bed, centre kitchen & cafe seating with rear ensuite/shower-toilet, the best thing we have ( just ) done is list what we want from what we've seen and now see if we can put this package into a van that we like or find one that will need minimal spend to make it happen.
Thanks again.

P.S. TO ALL NEW COMERS = If your looking for a new van, take a camera, make a note of the things you like in a particular van and when all is done make a list, then at least you can tick & flick your options.

JUST MAKE THE LIST it will help.

Hi Dom well the first mistake you are making is not taking your friend with you while you are looking at your vans .Let him or her have first look as you will know your little lovable staffy will be first in the door.Take it from there where your pal is comfortable you will be as well. He will need a double bed to sleep and a shower cubicle to have a bath and kitchen to get his meals ready. We love our staffy and we put him first .You cant put a price on unconditional love.Good luck .Cheers Neil,Nerida and Brock

HI Dom,
Plenty to choose from mate, Just keep an eye on the towing capabilities of the wagon and you will be right. I wouldn't buy over 2 ton gvm and that should have no more than 200 kg ball weight.That gives you an amount of safety and tow ability.Even with that weight you will absolutely require a WDH (weight dist hitch). Have fun choosing.