Caravan review: Fantasy Caravan Mystic 12 small couples van

Fantasy Caravan is a well-established player in hybrid caravans and more recently full-sized offroad caravans. Its latest offering is the Mystic series, designed to fill a gap in the market for a small lightweight on-road van at an affordable price point.

Aussies love the appeal of big tough vans with jacked-up suspension, mud tyres and copious checkerplate. They have the go-anywhere credentials for outback travel with hundreds of litres of water storage capacity, infinite electrical power systems, more storage than you can poke a stick at and sometimes payload capacities exceeding one tonne. Three and a half tonne ATMs are your starting point for these big vans and 4.5T ATMs are becoming more common. And of course, tow rigs are getting bigger to match up to these large vans. You can’t argue with the demand, despite car and van combinations easily exceeding $200k these days, this is what sells.

Then there’s another small group who are attracted to a completely different kind of van. They say “I am never going to the outback; I just want to get to some nice caravan parks. I don’t want a big tow vehicle, and I really can’t drop $100k or more on a van”. This is where the likes of Fantasy Caravan come in with its cute little Mystic series on-road vans.

The Mystic series starts with a tiny 10ft couples van and a 12ft available as a couples or family van with bunk beds. We are checking out the 12ft couples van here — it has a 1.5T ATM and a $41k driveaway price tag. You will see there’s a lot of stuff you don’t get in this van compared to the offroad warriors, but you might be surprised how well-appointed it is and just how much potential it has for exploring Australia for the right kind of person.

Built for on-road touring

Hardy from Fantasy Caravan met up with me with the Mystic 12 hooked up to a small tow vehicle — a Tesla electric vehicle in fact. While the main focus was to become acquainted with the van, we were both curious to learn a little about how the Tesla coped with towing a tiny van.

The build

The Fantasy Mystic 12 looks very much like it has been built in a European factory because it follows the cues of many European vans that have come and gone in Australia over the decades. However, the small van is made in a Chinese factory with appliances and components available in the Australian market. Some components such as the myCOOLMAN air-conditioner and Truma hot water system are fitted in Australia. This means the suite of products in the van meet our regulations and tastes plus you have access to local companies for backup and spare parts while on the road.

The chassis and A-frame have 100mm main beams instead of the typical 150mm main beams seen on Aussie-style vans and the cross rails look lighter than most locally built products. Anything more would be overengineering due to the diminutive nature of this van. Carrying through European style design, an independent rubber suspension axle is paired to the chassis. It has a reputation for being robust and saving weight. Fourteen-inch wheels with a road-going tread pattern reflect the on-road intent of the Mystic 12. But this wouldn’t stop you from venturing down some well-maintained dirt roads. The tyres are rated ‘light truck’, and the ground clearance is similar to your average passenger car.

Underslung spare wheel

The Mystic 12 is full of body manufacturing techniques pioneered in Europe for strength and light weight. The floor is made of a one-piece honeycomb panel. The walls are one-piece fibreglass-skinned foam core composite sheets. The roof and front/rear are also fibreglass bonded panels.

Inside

Stepping inside this van put a smile on my face. It has a cosy, inviting vibe and is a reminder that you can do a lot with little. It’s not far to the other end of the van and the first thing I see is an east–west bed. Not all couples like it as the person closest to the window is going to disturb their partner to get out of bed. There is no practical way to make a north–south bed work in this amount of space so that’s the way it is. Hardy mentioned it is often not an issue as this van is a popular choice for singles.

A well laid out in the tiny space with an east–west bed

The dinette is perfectly adequate for two people and the kitchen set-up is pretty basic. There’s a one-plate induction cooker and a stainless-steel sink hiding under a hinged glass top. When the sink isn’t in use folding the glass top down will be handy as bench space is quite limited. You don’t get a traditional oven but there is a trusty MOBO 20L microwave on hand. The van I reviewed had an 85L Frost compressor fridge which I feel is on the small side. Fortunately, Hardy told me future stock will come with a 102L fridge. I am impressed with the overhead storage running pretty much the full length of the van — it’s stylish and plentiful. The myCOOLMAN reverse cycle air-conditioner should maintain temperature very comfortably with the room having such a small volume of air.

The interior comprises east–west bed, dinette and basic kitchen

Plenty of overhead storage

Over the years we have reviewed some big vans where you think “Wow this is better than my bathroom at home”. You won’t have that luxury here with a modest combination internal shower and toilet. It will do everything you need it to do but storage is limited.

A modest combination bathroom

Limited off-grid capability

We’ve made it clear that long haul outback touring is not what this van is about. You will need to be at a powered site to be able to use either the induction cooker or microwave. A little portable butane or propane gas cooker could be a good thing to throw in if you want to prepare some simple meals without relying on 240V. The modest 100Ah AGM battery and 100W solar panel will keep the 12V lights and compressor fridge running for a bit. The 70L of fresh water is modest but can keep you going for a few days. The Mystic 12 is also equipped with a 70L grey water tank, and I think this is the first van I have come across capable of catching all of its fresh water. It’s by no means the flashiest set-up but it is more than capable of handling one or two-night roadside free camps in between caravan park stays.

Front storage box

Towability

A tare weight of 1150kg and ATM of 1500kg opens this van up to all kinds of tow vehicles with many small cars being rated to tow either 1500 or 1600kg — including the Tesla Model Y* electric vehicle Hardy had borrowed for the day. For both Hardy and I it was our first experience towing with an electric vehicle. The standout first impression was that the Tesla had buckets of torque. It pulled the van without hesitation with no sense of the motor having to rev up to deliver power as you can experience with a small traditional internal combustion engine. Sure, we weren’t asking much of the Tesla as the Mystic 12 was more or less empty and has a small wind drag profile, but to the uninitiated, it still felt impressive.

Driving range is the big question. Hardy had done his homework and reported this 2022 Tesla Model Y rear wheel drive variant with a 60kWh battery, not towing, typically has a range of around 400km. We are opening up a can of worms because our tow time was limited, and our methodology was unscientific. However, the numbers coming up while towing indicated our range dropped to around 170km. This range reduction would immediately kill the idea for many as the logistics of recharging is clearly more challenging than refuelling an internal combustion engine vehicle.

Tow test with a Tesla Model Y

However, if you are committed to the EV concept it is possible to make it work. Remember this little van is oriented towards staying on sealed roads and getting to caravan parks. Carefully planning stops in country towns with charging stations can allow you to get from point A to B. Recharging batteries back up to 80 per cent capacity at a quick charge station can save time as it takes about 15 minutes as opposed to 100 per cent which takes around half an hour. Caravan parks are now adopting dedicated chargers and where they are not, slow charging is possible overnight through a regular 15A power point.

Let’s not forget this is a review of the van and not the car. Vans such as the Mystic 12 are about as good as it gets in terms of not being intimidating to tow, fuel/energy efficiency and minimising the demand on the tow vehicle.

*Tesla vary the tow rating depending on the tyre size and number of passengers. It is critical to check that your set up will be suitable for towing your desired load.

Front hatch adds to the external storage capacity

The bottom line

I like little vans. They are affordable, are easy to tow and you often don’t need to buy a specialised tow vehicle to make it happen. The Mystic 12 delivers on all these parameters, looks the part and comes from a company with plenty of experience bringing in products made in China suitable for the Australian market.

Measuring up

Pros

• Great value
• European styling
• A surprising amount of storage

Cons

• The front external storage bin would benefit from struts to hold the lid up
• An 85L fridge may be too small for some (future stock will have larger fridges)

FANTASY CARVAN MYSTIC 12 RATINGS

VALUE FOR MONEY

A drive-away cost of $40,990 is very hard to beat for an affordable getaway van

TOWABILITY

Not needing a big tow vehicle is a huge advantage for some buyers

SUITABILITY FOR INTENDED TOURING

It doesn’t pretend to be an outback tourer and will get the job done on the bitumen and some nice dirt roads

BUILD QUALITY

Everything was straight and well put together

LIVEABILITY

Minimalists and single travellers are going to embrace the Mystic 12

SELF-SUFFICIENCY

Don’t stray too far away from a powered caravan park site and this van will do everything you need

CUSTOMER CARE

A five-year warranty on the drawbar and chassis is great for peace of mind. A one-year warranty on the balance of the van is below industry standard

INNOVATION

European approach to design, built in China with locally sourced equipment makes for a compelling entry-level package

X-FACTOR

The Mystic 12 is unashamedly minimalist and there is a lot to like about it

FANTASY CARVAN MYSTIC 12 SPECS

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

EXTERNAL

INTERNAL

Fantasy Caravan Mystic 12 price from $40,990

OPTIONS FITTED

N/A

Fantasy Caravan Mystic 12 price as shown $40,990

MORE INFORMATION

Fantasy Caravan

95 National Avenue

Pakenham Vic 3810

P: 1300 096 615

E: sales@fantasycaravan.com.au

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