The collapse of yet another major caravan manufacturer will once again raise questions about the health of the industry in this country … and the level of protection afforded to those buying RVs.
After more than 25 years of designing and manufacturing Australian-made off-road campers and caravans, Sunshine Coast-based Australian Off Road (AOR) has gone into administration.
At its peak, the company employed around 100 people and, just ast year, reported building approximately 250 caravans.
On its website, AOR said it had experienced significant price pressure from increasingly sophisticated Chinese imports, which it said had made it increasingly difficult for a premium Australian manufacturer to compete on price at the same time as maintaining Australian manufacturing, employment and quality standards.
Another caravan manufacturer has gone into administration. PIC: RDNE Stock
The company said it had also faced growing competition from manufacturers operating in lower-cost parts of Australia, particularly southern states where lower wage and property rental costs can provide a significant structural cost advantage over manufacturing on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.
Founder Steve Budden said the company was immensely proud of what it had achieved.
“Unfortunately, the manufacturing environment has changed dramatically,” he said. “Competing against imported products on price, while also facing competitors with substantially lower manufacturing overheads, has made it increasingly difficult to sustain the business in its existing form.”
AOR said it acknowledged the disappointment and uncertainty facing employees, customers, suppliers, and dealers.
“The administration process will determine the future of the company’s assets, outstanding obligations and any potential continuation or sale of the business,” it said.
Sadly, several other Australian caravan firms have run into trouble in recent years.
Back in June, Network RV – which owns Vancraft, Nextgen, and Victory brands, as well as three Fair Dinkum Caravan dealerships – went into administration.
Last year, Queensland-based Zone RV went into administration, with many customers losing significant amounts of money. However, the brand – which specialises in luxury off-road caravans – was eventually bought by Essential Caravans and is still in production.
Other recent examples of RV firms going to the wall include:
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Anyone who buys a Chinese made caravan is a fool who deserves everything which the get.
And yet the majority of Australian manufactured vans all have various Chinese components! All electrical stuff is Chinese. Many panels are manufactured and shipped here from China. . Many manufacturers also imported their trailer frames. I,ll guarantee your household and car is full of Chinese made equipment. I,ll guarantee you didn’t post on here using an Australian made computer or mobile phone….
Exactly
Ian they all have imported components it’s the construction method and some of the cheaper materials used that’s the problem , the Chinese can build to any price point and are capable of making very good items .
But the quality of the product made depends on the $$$$ the customer wants to pay a so called tier system , from memory tier 1 meant quality components and build plus individual quality assurance inspection.
Out to tier 4 which was the same end product but built at a massively reduced price / quality with no quality control , I’ve yet to see the former in a van build but the latter can be viewed at any caravan show these days .
Well said
Really, just like the EV market the Chinese made vans will decimate the local market. People purchase on price, quality and finish. Chinese vans are improving every year and unfortunately Australian wages and costs are uncompetitive.
I find it amusing when so many people cast aspersions about Chinese quality when poor quality vans are also a widespread problem with Australian manufacturers. I would rather “get what I paid for” with a Chinese van than pay over the top prices for an Australian van. The article also mentioned the increasing sophistication od Chinese vans.
When you are forced to cut corners…it’s what you do. President Xi is laughing up his sleeve.
250 vans with 100 employees. Let’s say an average of 20 vans per month. That seems pretty low productivity to me? Maybe that’s part of the problem.
They – AOR – are a high quality genuine off road caravan built as heavy duty and “off road” does not mean a gravel road.
You get what you pay for.
Yep. And now those employees are probably going to have clean their swimming pool themselves.
This has to do with Net Zero. “Little” Australia is forced into it…”big” China is not…because they are classed as a developing economy. and we are. Until China sees to it that their workers get a commensurate wage/etc package…they remain that way…but they won’t do that. Why? They open more than one new coal fired plant a month…and we are forced to shut them down. They buy in high-sulphur coal because other nations are precluded from using it. Their wage scales are a joke. Say what you will about Donald Trump…he’s right: huge tariffs unless they start paying their slaves. This would make over 750M chinese workers rather friendly to the idea..but the CCP will never do it because they converted “the peoples wealth” long ago. It would spell the end of the CCP.
Exactly.
The amount of new bad caravans I’ve had since 1975 is ridiculous out of the 9 vans only 3 didn’t leak or have cracking internal/outside walls (fibreglass)
Just trade them in and hope the next one is better
After the last so-called high quality brand I decided never again and converted a Bus 10 years ago still hasn’t leaked, imagine a car manufacturer that built leaking cars they would be in real trouble yet the caravan/RV industry just shrug there shoulders and attempt to fix it in the end they can’t, then let you live with it and hope you go away
Australians are tight assed when it comes to spending cash, they will always go for the cheaper one. Ever wondered why we don’t really have manufacturing in Australia …… say no more
Considering they have set up a factory in China and are importing chassis and bodies from their factory its poor form to then blame their demise on “cheap Chinese imports” we contracted with them for an Australian made caravan – double whammy.
It’s interesting, isn’t it? You can build something in China (steel probably made from Aussie iron ore), ship it to Australia on diesel-powered ships, and it’s still cheaper than building it here! Quality aside, and they may be good, it’s hard to argue with the business owner here in Australia. Labour and energy costs are driving many manufacturers to outsource to the PRC. Once again, Australia needs to rethink its energy policy and how much of our valuable resources we ship to countries seeking to flood the world with their products, while we get poorer by the minute.
From experience buying the cheaper imports only ended in trouble for me , the quality of the build was shocking so now when I see anything imported at a caravan show I look closely at the welds and finish .
All brands can have an imperfection here or there but the imports that I’ve seen and owned the bad welds and insufficient welds are a standout .
You can lay the blame at the feet of the government and the ridiculous ‘net zero’ policy, which has pushed energy costs so high that we can no longer afford to manufacture anything in this country. All the while supplying cheap raw materials and Gas to China, who don’t give a flying fox about net zero. Wake up, Australia and vote the idiots out before it’s too late.
It’s just about too late already. Sadly but true
Makers seem to make similar caravans, heavy mild steel chassis, so called “off road” and way overweight but not everyone can afford monster trucks to tow them, make vans that will fit the lightweight easy to tow vans that a car can tow, like British and European and there is a good market, produce what the Chinese don’t, diversify
Your talking about the “CHINESE JUNKS “ that what I call them .
The same applies to most manufactured items such as cars, TV’s, fridges, electrical appliances, hot water systems, raw materials, you name it, some of which I am sure all Australian caravan manufacturers use in their products.
Let’s face it, Australia is not a manufacturing country. We cannot even make a car let alone an aeroplane (we did once). OK, in the big demand boom we did (and still are) making some very good recreational products but even the Japanese car industry is finding it hard to compete with China whose development is staggering – and it is not just cheap labour.
The only solution to improve the lot of Australian manufacturers would be to introduce tariffs but I cannot see any Labor government doing that under the present Chinese/Australia free trade agreement. I do not think it would be a popular move anyway. So as they say, lie back and enjoy it OR design and manufacturer something that can compete in value for quality.