Caravan review: Tekton Expedition SVX-4 offroad hybrid

Tekton specialises in building bespoke caravans and hybrid pop-tops to meet customers’ every need and to be more than expedition ready.

Key specs at a glance:

• Compact 13ft couples expedition hybrid with shower and toilet
• Under 1600kg tare with highly capable running gear
• Gasless off-grid power system

I come across many small-volume builders who produce about a hundred units a year. Established in 2017 and based in Boronia, Victoria, Tekton Expedition Vehicles is much more niche, building one or two units a month with an emphasis on one-of-a-kind vehicles tailored to customers’ exact requirements.

Who the SVX-4 is built for

The team at Tekton tells me its customers are generally highly experienced travellers who have owned multiple caravans and have a very clear idea of what they want from a van. The SVX-4 is pitched at couples who want to get well off the beaten track and value travelling light. They embrace the design philosophy of a compact footprint with an optimised interior.

Even though Tekton is a bespoke builder, it works off a handful of platforms as its starting point. The SVX-4 sits in the middle of the Tekton hierarchy, being a 13ft (4m) single axle hybrid-style van with side access external kitchen and a pop-top roof. The XT-3 compact pod-style camper is the baby of the range. It has a very low-profile fixed roof and rear external kitchen. It’s the kind of set-up very much focused on external living where the interior is purely for sleeping or sitting in bed to read a book or watch a movie. The big brother of the range is the SVX-5, a full-height, twin-axle expedition-style caravan with an internal kitchen and bathroom. Tekton also plans to add a new platform by early 2026 that will sit between its SVX-4 and SVX-5.

The compact size and offroad-ready inclusions make this hybrid pop-top ideal for off-grid adventures

Inside Tekton’s unique build process

Cookie cutter is a term that is thrown around in the RV industry to describe building methods. This certainly does not apply to Tekton. Most caravan manufacturers construct their bodies on the chassis by adding a floor, then walls and finally a roof. Tekton uses composite panels (30mm thick with a foam core and fibreglass skin) like many other premium builders, but it builds its body standalone and then, once completed, secures it to the chassis.

The panels are used for the entire body including the floor, walls and roof. They are joined with fibreglassing techniques often used in the boating industry where watertightness is paramount. The surfaces are finished off with a urethane protective layer in a colour of the customer’s choice and aluminium corner trim.

Securing the body to the chassis is a carefully managed process predominantly relying on high-strength adhesives used in the automotive and marine industries. The key to optimum bond strength is controlling the bead height of the adhesive. Tekton achieves this by placing rubber spacers at exactly the right height on top of the chassis at various points. It then runs adhesive on top of the chassis in between the rubber spacers. This means when the body is placed on top of the chassis more adhesive stays in place, rather than being forced out by the weight of the body. Locating bolts help position the body correctly on the chassis and secure the components while the adhesive reaches bond strength.

Tekton does its chassis’ differently too. The A-frame beams continue right into the chassis, directly welded to the main beams and cross members. The A-frame has a third beam running right through the middle of it that continues into the chassis. This enables Tekton to use 100mm x 50mm sections of steel compared to the 150mm x 50mm beams you see on just about every other offroad van. (Tekton does use 150mm x 50mm A-frames on its larger SVX-5.) The upside of the shallower beam is it improves approach angle ground clearance. The downside is the middle beam running under the floor encroaches into space that could be otherwise used for an additional water tank.

The furniture is constructed from rot-free lightweight ABS composite material used in the marine industry and following the bespoke approach a yacht upholsterer is used for the finishing touches.

Suspension, wheels and offroad capability

The SVX-4 rides on TEKO TuffRide independent airbag suspension, featuring trailing arms and four robust shock absorbers. The system allows a substantial 250mm of travel and is capable of remote control and auto-level ride height adjustment. Disc brakes have been used for this build and Tekton offers a choice of wheel stud pattern. Premium quality and readily available 265/70R17 BF Goodrich all-terrain tyres and 17in ROH Assault rims keep the van rolling.

To learn more about the different kinds of suspension and what they mean, check out our guide.

TEKO TuffRide independent airbag suspension adds to the offroad capability

TEKO TuffRide suspension controls inside

Compact interior with all the essentials

We go caravanning for the outdoor experience but when the weather goes bad, or the bugs are eating us alive it is great to be able to retreat inside. This is my personal minimalist checklist for the interior functionality of a van. Is there somewhere to sleep? Can I stand up inside the van? Is there somewhere to sit at a table to eat a meal or use a laptop? Can I do some basic meal prep? Are there bathroom facilities when I really need them? The Tekton SVX-4 does all of this efficiently and without extravagance because that is the only way to do it in a 13ft van.

The extras on top of my minimalist checklist are an internal fridge. In this style of van, I am not fussed whether the fridge is inside or outside. The upside of the Bushman internal 130L compressor fridge is it is upright which makes it easy to see and access your food compared to the chest-style fridges usually included in external setups. The other upside is freeing up the external space for a pretty impressive kitchen/storage setup. The internal kitchen space works nicely too. There’s reasonable bench space across the rear wall with a handy sink. If you were forced inside to cook it would be simple to move the portable induction cooker to get the job done. Below the benchtop is a good array of shallow and deep drawers and above the bench is a handy storage nook.

Basic interior kitchen with Bushman 130L fridge

The customer has gone for a Trelino composting toilet which resides in the combination shower/toilet ensuite at the rear of the van. Two waterproof hatches in the cubicle allow you to store toiletries and the alike.

The Trelino composting toilet adds to self-sufficiency when off-grid

The roof is hinged at the front end with hydraulic struts at the rear end which makes for a lightweight easy-to-operate set-up. It also means that full internal height is only achieved at the rear of the van. It’s not a problem in such a compact van as there is nowhere to stand at the front of the van as the bed and adjacent storage take up all the space. It’s also a narrow van meaning there would be limited space to walk along the sides of the north–south bed. Instead, the space is used with a row of storage hatches running down each side of the bed. The two underbed drawers offer more storage as does the compartment underneath one of the seats.

Plenty of storage around the north–south bed

The balance of the under-bed space is dedicated to the Truma Saphir underbunk air-conditioning. Keeping the air-conditioner off the roof positions the centre of mass lower, frees up real estate for the large bank of solar panels and reduces potential leak points. Diesel heaters are a popular choice for staying warm while camping off-grid as it minimises the demand on your electrical supply. It’s even better when the same Eberspacher combination unit also delivers the hot water for the van on demand.

Clever outdoor kitchen and storage

The outdoor kitchen is one of the focal points of this van. Tekton has gone for materials that feel more like an interior kitchen rather than all metal surfaces that often characterise hybrids and campers. I like the look, and the team tells me the ABS composite materials are highly weather-resistant if they get hit with a bit of rain. They have gone for a wide slide-out kitchen rather than a long slide-out kitchen. The result is the drawers and under-sink space feel very organised and easy to access. Another advantage of the kitchen not sticking out too far is it is well sheltered by the awning. A downside is the bench space is relatively limited, but it is well complemented by the fold-down table that is located right beside it.

Slide-out external kitchenThe wide slide-out kitchen design means the drawers and under-sink space are very easy to access

A Thule wind-out awning rather than a roll-out awning has been selected as it is easy to use and less vulnerable to damage if it scrapes against some branches on a tricky track. In fact, the owners of the van like the awning so much that they have had one fitted on both sides. This makes it very easy for them to create shade or shelter from the rain across more weather conditions.

A large offside external hatch provides a decent amount of space for tools, chairs and the like along with some of the space being dedicated to an onboard air compressor, water pump and diesel heater. Innovative corner hatches provide more utilitarian storage space. If you were pressed for clothes storage, you could always stow some of it here in a dry bag. A generous front toolbox augments storage including a useful top-mounted firewood tray.

Storage up front and a hinged roof

Off-grid power and water setup

Off-grid capability abounds with the Victron system which allows Tekton to do away with gas completely. It has plenty of capacity to capture, store and deliver power. Power input is taken care of with 880W monocrystalline twin-cell solar panels working with a 50A solar controller and 50A DC to DC charger. An additional 30A controller feeds into the system so you can use a solar blanket too. The system is smart enough to take on power from multiple sources simultaneously when required. A 700Ah lithium battery system holds a lot of juice and a 3000W inverter is capable of delivering substantial 240V power to run this van with relatively modest power requirements.

To learn more about the power you need to head off-grid, check out our guide here.

Plenty of power for off-grid camping

Tekton is an early adopter of Garmin tech in the RV industry collaborating on integrated control systems. Functionality includes controlling the air-con, hot water/heater, airbag system water pump and lights plus monitoring the power system status.

Some 220L of freshwater storage is as much as you get on many vans twice the size. Expanding that water capacity is challenging on a 13ft van because there is very limited real estate to fit more tanks underneath. For the same reason, grey water capacity is limited to 50L. Water capacity can be supplemented with jerry cans in the front toolbox and some customers have opted to fit slimline jerry cans on the rear bar underneath the spare wheel. This keeps weight low but does compromise the departure angle somewhat.

Pop-top roof and spare wheel on the rear of the van

Lightweight and agile to tow

This is a light van (1595kg tare) for a robustly built offroader with a few extra goodies — a base build can be as light as 1480kg. An ATM of 2800kg delivers a payload of 1205kg. However, I doubt that would rarely be fully used simply because there isn’t enough room to store that much stuff. To accommodate a lower-rated tow vehicle, the Tekton could be re-rated with a 2500kg ATM, for example, and still have adequate payload. It’s also narrow, short and low which are all highly desirable attributes for getting vans in and out of tight spots.

The Land Rover Defender tow vehicle and Tekton both had airbags which meant it was possible to raise the rig body ride heights to make it easier to negotiate more challenging terrain. It is nice to be able to keep your centre of mass as low as possible and only raise it when you need to for slow-going stuff.

Tow testing the SVX-4 with a Land Rover Defender

Final thoughts on the Tekton SVX-4

Tekton is a niche custom builder which stakes its reputation on delivering exactly what the customer wants. The SVX-4 hybrid van reviewed is an example of an extremely well-executed compact, lightweight expedition vehicle for a customer who wants a high-performance off-grid setup focusing on a minimalist approach.

Measuring up

Pros

• Light and nimble
• Expedition ready
• Highly customisable to suit buyers’ personal style and requirements

Cons

• Some expedition-type travellers will be looking for more water tank capacity

TEKTON EXPEDITION SVX-4 RATINGS

VALUE FOR MONEY

This is a high-end van that lives up to its premium price tag

TOWABILITY

The SVX-4 does everything right to tow well in rugged conditions. It’s lightweight, short and narrow

SUITABILITY FOR INTENDED TOURING

It ticks the boxes for those seeking minimalist expedition touring to remote campsites

BUILD QUALITY

Tekton takes a meticulous approach to build quality, and it shows

LIVEABILITY

If you see the van interior as a place to do the essentials and the exterior to do the living then this van will work for you

SELF-SUFFICIENCY

Packs plenty of electrical punch and carries a decent load of water for a little van

CUSTOMER CARE

Five-year warranty on chassis, suspension and body

INNOVATION

Tekton stands out from the crowd with a very different monocoque body manufacturing technique

X-FACTOR

You can make a Tekton into just about anything you want if you have the budget

TEKTON EXPEDITION SVX-4 SPECS

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

EXTERNAL 

INTERNAL 

Tekton Expedition SVX-4 price from  142,500

 OPTIONAL EXTRAS FITTED 

• Electric/hydraulic disc brakes
• Additional 3.5m awning
• STEDI STX-50 light bar — roof-mounted
• Truma Saphir underbunk air-conditioning reverse cycle
• 700Ah lithium battery upgrade
• 880W twin cell monocrystalline solar panels upgrade
• Reverse camera
• Additional body-mounted picnic table with LED light

Tekton Expedition SVX-4 price as shown $162,350

MORE INFORMATION

Tekton Expedition Vehicles

P: 0468 899 103

THE NEXT STEP

If you want to learn the latest caravan news, find the most innovative new caravans, tow vehicles and camping gear or get inspired to plan your next road trip into the Aussie great outdoors, subscribe to our weekly newsletter. We promise to send you only the best content.

Related articles: 

A guide to choosing a dual cab ute for towing

Behind the scenes at Australia's Best Hybrids 2024

Prepare to go off-grid: A guide to power management