The Caravan and RV Magazine – June/July 2012 Issue
THE VAN
The Toyota HiAce Campervan, in its current guise, has been around since 2005, and there’s a good reason it stands alongside the VW T5 Transporter as the most popular small van for camper conversions. The petrol version, a 2.7-litre four-cylinder, produces 111kW, which surprised me on our short test drive. It typically feels Toyota – incredibly reliable if a bit boring – but the seating position and dash layout are not what you’d expect from a van; it doesn’t feel like you’re driving a bus. There is only forward, backward and backrest adjustment on the seats, but they are comfortable, although a little flat. With the centres over the engine and wheels, the HiAce does miss out on a walkthrough, but the ample rear living space more than supplements this. It’s considerably cheaper than the VW, too. On the safety side, driver and front passenger airbags are standard.
LIVING SPACE
As a $1500 option, the Pioneer layout offers excellent value and would be my pick, even if I didn’t have two kids to consider. Having the extra two seats with seatbelts (child restraint anchors can be fitted) turns the HiAce into a daily driver and your holiday escape vehicle. The dinette quickly turns into a queen-width bed, and the two passenger front seats fold flat, which helps accommodate taller folk. Sure, this isn’t A-class motorhome comfort, but it’s not bad, either. There is storage under every seat, too, so no space is wasted. Behind the seats is the compact kitchenette. Frontline includes a two-burner spirit stove, a stainless steel sink and running water from the 48l water tank. Cleverly, the sink tap pulls out and doubles as a shower, although 48 litres won’t last long if you make too regular use of that. Bench space is limited, but with the dinette table up, the small rear shelf folded out and the stove’s cover down, it is more than adequate. The cupboards under the kitchen are ample, although the sliding doors were slightly stiff if we have to be picky. For warmer nights, the stove can be moved outside which, with no gas hoses or bottles needed, is a great touch. The 80-litre Engel fridge-freezer fitment is more significant than the industry standard, especially considering Frontline has also made room for a microwave. There is hanging space for clothes and a large cupboard, too. Electrically, there are two fluoro lights on the pop-top roof and a pair of LED reading lights above the rear-facing lounge. The auxiliary battery is stored under the same lounge and charges while driving or plugged into 240V. This conversion has also been made TV-ready.
OUTDOOR LIVING
With the tailgate up and the Fiamma F45s awning out, there is plenty of shade around the HiAce. Although there is a more basic (read: cheaper) canvas awning option, the self-supporting Fiamma is the pick, especially with the camping freedom offered by a campervan. Our tester was optioned with a canvas room to suit the awning and tailgate, offering a more enclosed living space.
The Caravan and RV Magazine – Dec/Jan 2014 Issue
The first resort
Frontline’s T5 camper is a climate-controlled oasis in a blazing landscape of passenger van conversions.
It’s flat on the Hay Plain, and we’d be able to see for miles if it wasn’t for the heat blurring the distance into a watery haze, an ever-distant mirage that cloaks perspective and hides the horizon. It’s like an oasis in the climate-controlled comfort of Frontline’s VW conversion as we cruise up the Cobb Highway looking for an excellent place to camp.
The Volkswagen T5 Transporter is arguably the best passenger van on the market and easily suitable for campervan conversions. This one is fitted with VW’s 2.0L, 132kW turbo diesel, a seven-speed DSG auto-transmission and drives all-four wheels. On the road, it is a quiet and comfortable car. The suspension is well-balanced, so there’s a good spread between handling and ride. Volkswagen’s optional 4Motion all-wheel drive system is an excellent addition to this camper. Rather than featuring a locking centre diff, the vehicle’s computer chooses how to distribute the power, and although we didn’t get to test it on this trip thoroughly, we’ve used the same system crossing the Simpson Desert in Volkswagen Amaroks (check out page 91) and found the system surprisingly good.
The T5 has an electronic front diff-lock, which is excellent for off-road traction. The 300mm wading depth was the van performed excellently. Frontline has fitted some beautiful alloy wheels and all-terrain tyres to this camper, which makes it even more suitable for some rougher driving. The cabin and driver ergonomics are ideal for a van. Despite the good front end and short nose, it feels like you are driving a car rather than a converted commercial vehicle. The steering wheel is full of buttons, and the cruise control is easy to use. It’s got a great stereo and that climate-controlled air conditioning.
As a credit to Frontline, the second row of seats, which fits as part of the Adventure Pack conversion, are comfortable and good-looking. The seat belts have even been pull-tested to ensure occupant safety is maintained. We did notice a little wind noise through one of the Kingsley Van Conversion windows while driving, but we’re very impressed that there was very little of the cabinet rattling and squeaking we’ve come to expect in all campervans and motorhomes.
The camper itself is easy to set up. Notably, the full-popping roof isn’t fitted with external latches; internal cam-buckles lock down straps and hold the top shut. This is great in bad weather, as you can set up the whole camper without leaving its cozy comfort. The roof is nice and light, with a durable canvas skirt that self-gathers when it’s time to pull it down. Three fly-screened windows are sewn into the fabric. Fitted with Frontline’s optional Adventure Pack, the VW’s front passenger seat swivels around into the living area in daytime mode while the second row of seats stays put and becomes a lounge (as soon as you take your seatbelts off). A small table fits into the floor, although it’s tough to move around inside with it in and the stove out. That stove is a great little feature, though. Not just because it’s a stove but because it slides out from under the bench. Many campers use a lifting lid to maximise bench space, although it’s only maximised when you don’t need the stove.
Many will like the two-burner metho stove for its ease of use and clean burning. Plenty will be able to reminisce about old, similar camping stoves that have cooked some great meals. Others might need to read the instruction manual the first time they use it. The kitchen is otherwise well-equipped. The 80-litre, upright, compressor-driven fridge is the perfect fit, and 55 litres of water is plenty for such a small camper. A small microwave is cleverly tucked away. A slide-out pantry is a great feature; we never needed to use the smoke detector or fire extinguisher. When day becomes night, the camper is easy to convert. It’s a two-handed operation to unlatch the lounge and transform it into a bed, although it’s a very light process – there’s no heavy lifting.
The same is true in the opposite direction. The cushions are soft to sit on but firm to lie on, and they lie very flat, making a good bed. A second bed can be fitted up the top, made from three unfolding slats and a mattress. We found that if it wasn’t packed away in the right spot, it prevented the roof from closing correctly (it fouled on the smoke detector). There is adequate lighting throughout the van. Alongside the T5’s inbuilt cabin lights, there are two LED reading lights and another two fluoro roof lights. We’d love to see these replaced with LEDs as a standard feature. There’s an auxiliary battery to keep everything running, and our tester was fitted with the optional 60W slimline solar panel on the roof.
We spent a week in this camper, predominantly using it as a camera car and scout vehicle. It proved that the T5 is an excellent base for camper conversions because it is so easy to drive, manoeuvre and live with. When we needed someone to head down a tight track to find the campsite, we sent the Frontline. When we needed someone to head into town, they took the camper. It did everything, was always the first set up and first packed up, and always with ease. Frontline makes a very professional product. It’s Brookvale, New South Wales.
The factory is fitted with computer-aided cutting machines and high-tech wizardry to ensure everything is manufactured to the highest standard. It isn’t the most luxurious camper conversion around – others have higher-specced fitment, more excellent fabrics, more windows and so on – but it is excellent value. If you like the freedom of a small campervan or can’t afford two cars, this is a very versatile package.
VERDICT
Volkswagen Transporter base; great floorplan; off-road ready
A very versatile, very well-priced campervan conversion.
‘It did everything, was always the first set up and packed up, and always with ease’
‘The full-popping roof is great in bad weather, as you can set it up without leaving cozy comfort’
The Wanderer Magazine – Feb 2014 Frontline VW T5
Frontline VW T5
On the line Frontline’s VW T5 Adventurer camper is born of experience. When those humble visionaries, Don and Erica Whitworth, started the Campervan and Motorhome Club of Australia, the campervan component of the club’s membership was much Greater than it is today. Not coincidentally, there were considerably more specialist manufacturers around. Since then, the percentage of campervan manufacturers has decreased markedly in favour of motorhomes.
Still, some manufacturers do a good job for those who love lightweight travel and work and therefore need around-town transport and are on a budget. One is Sydney-based Frontline Campers which builds several camper conversions based on a Volkswagen T5 or a Toyota Hiace. Several layouts are available; our review van was the Adventurer model with a folding seat/bed in the rear. BASE VEHICLE A flexible design, the Adventurer conversion is available for a Toyota Hiace campervan or a VW T5 van. While the Hiace is cheaper, there are several reasons, principally the flat-floor design, that make the VW a better conversion prospect. There’s one additional feature in the case of the T5. It’s available as an all-wheel drive – VW calls it the 4Motion. This was the Adventurer that Frontline’s Peter Farrugia made public to us.
GOOD THINKING
• Road characteristics of the VW T5 • Large screened windows in the canvas roof • Kitchen layout • Rear storage which can be used in various ways • Slide-out Origo cooktop
COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER
• VW radio/CD player • Insect screens for the doors • LED ceiling lights instead of fluorescents There are many turbo-diesel engine variants available in the VW T5 range, and Frontline usually opts for the 103Kw/340Nm version with a six-speed manual gearbox. However, the more powerful 132kW/400Nm motor is an option, as is the seven-speed DSG automatic for either engine. 4Motion buyers, however, only get the 132kW engine and, in this case, the seven-speed DSG gearbox
PUTTING IT TOGETHER
One of the little things distinguishing a campervan from a motorhome is that the latter is usually coach built and constructed on the back of a cab chassis. In the case of a van conversion, while most of the body is retained, it has several holes cut in it. The largest is for the rising roof, but fridge vents and water fillers are also available. Because this camper has a methylated spirits-fired cooktop, there’s no need for a gas cylinder bin. Of course, there are a few bolt-on items, like the Fiamma awning. The pop-top roof is well integrated into the van profile and has been colour matched to the body and the top.
ON THE ROAD
With base vehicles, there’s no doubt that the VW T5 is the winner on the road compared to the Hiace. Whereas the former is pitched towards the passenger car market, the Hiace is more delivery van. The VW bucket seats are more comfortable for long distances, and the ride is better. It’s not all bad fits, Hiace – it is $8000 cheaper and is backed with legendary Toyota reliability; we also suspect that servicing costs are more affordable, and essential items like the radio/CD player are just so much better. Driving the VW is simply fun.
Press the right foot, the 132kW turbo diesel delivers in spades, and the seven-speed auto gearbox is smooth and sure. The vehicle handles the contours and curves of undulating roads without a problem. Although we didn’t test the AWdidn’tthis review, we recently tackled a 4WD training course in a T5. It’s undoubtedly notIt’sardcore 4WD vehicle, but its capabilities are assured. Once a few off-road driving tricks are learned – something we’d recommend is it will be interesting to see where the T5 4Motion will go and what it will do.
SETTING UP
Motorhomers might look down on their smaller neighbours but setting up the Adventurer for day use doesn’t take long. doesn’t the sliding door release the four pop-top roof straps and push up the roof – something made relatively easy by the gas struts? An advantage of the complete rising top is that air circulation is most effective in warmer weather. Unless the weather is freezing, the optional Fiamma awning does an excellent job protecting the side of the van from sun and rain.
Many people only think of it in terms of the sun, but a partially open awning is excellent for these vans and very effective in keeping the rain away from the opened sliding door. One of the options we’d select would be velcwe’d insect screens for sliding and rear doors. In hot weather, having both doors open is an asset. It’s also possible to get it sent for the rear doors and screens/walls for the awning, but that takes up valuable storage space.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
As we mentioned, the VW has a flat floor. This makes access to and from the driver’s cab relatively driver’s allows the swivelling passenger seat to be incorporated into the design. The layout is simple, with a kitchen/storage area cabinet along the offside and a day/night lounge taking up the midsection. The lounge can be used for passengers (with two optional seatbelts fitted) or just for sitting on when camped by day or folded down into a bed by night. The rear area has a platform and a large cushion for that purpose. A single, pole-mounted table, generally stored behind the driver’s seat, can be used by a driver with the rear seat.
CATERING
Fitting out the offside kitchen in a van conversion is challenging, but the Adventurer shows Frontline’s experience. AFrontline’snchtop, there’s a stainless-steel there’s-up bowl fed by a flick mixer tap. That still leaves room for some bench space under a slideout two-burner Origo spirit cooktop – a simple but effective set-up. An alternative to this arrangement, which removes a drawer and makes the fridge more challenging to reach when being used, is to have a swing-out cabinet behind the passenger seat.
This cabinet contains the Origo cooktop above and a cupboard below. The upside to this arrangement is that more storage space is available, but the downside is that the cabinet must be swung out of the passenger’s swivel seat. The passenger’s Engel fridge is fitted under the cooktop. Alongside the fridge is a small wire basket pantry with a shelf above. That leaves room in the adjacent space for the optional microwave oven with a drawer above and cupboard space below. The 12V fuse and switch panel are also located here, but that’s about to be supersthat’sy a new panel with 5V USB chargers. All of the above might sound like a cramped design, but old hands will recognise that it’s a workable arrangement.
SLEEPING HOURS Setting up the bed is simple – release the catches on either side of the rear seat and then lay it flat. The bed measures 1.88m x 1.29m (6ft 2in x 4ft 3in) and narrows to 1.17m (3ft 10in). Bed width can be expanded by not having the offside rear cabinet, but that substantially reduces the storage area. Making the bed can be quickly done by two people, one at the back door and one inside. LED reading lights are fitted on both sides at the rear. On the subject of lights, the leading roof lights are mini fluorescents that look a bit old hat, but Peter Farrugia reckons they give a better light in the confined space. Still, LED lights are an option.
FROM THE REAR
Filling the rest of the offside rear, there is a sliding-door cabinet, the front half has shelves, and the rear has a small hanging space. Right in the rear corner is a small shelf area holding the optional external shower hose on this van. Under the bed cushion base at the rear is a good storage area accessible from the end and a hatch inside – it’s ideal for large plastic boxes on rollers. The house battery and the charger take part of this area, but the rest can be used for assorted bits and pieces required for travel.
VERDICT
Mention the word campervan, which produces various images depending on the listener’s perspective. Slistener’s too small, but it is a very affordable budget motorhome and a great little weekend escape machine to others. They also see it as a rig that is easy to park and convenient around the city, not to mention being able to transport four people quite easily.
It’s not hard to see the It’saction that still exists, especially when looking over this Frontline conversion. The 4Motion VW is more expensive than the 2WD, and this conversion’s base price conversion $64,800, with plenty of options available. In the case of this VW-powered Adventurer, there’s another aspect, too, as Frontline proprietor Peter Farrugia points out with a smile. Some owned a VW Kombi in the 70s and want to re-live their youth … or something like that.
Manufacturer Frontline Campers
Model Bed Seat camper
Base Vehicle VW T5 4Motion
Tare weight 2100kg
GVM 3000kg
Licence Car
Passengers Four
Engine 2.0-litre turbo-diesel
Power 132kW@4000rpm
Torque 400Nm@1500-
Gearbox Seven-speed DSG
Brakes ABS disc
External length 5.29m (17ft 4in)
External width 1.9m (6ft 3in)
External height 2.48m (8ft 1in)
Internal height (roof raised) 2.04m
Rear bed size 1.88m x 1.29m
Fridge Engel ST90F, 80L,