On The Move Caravans Grenade 6.3 Black Edition reviewed at Caravan of the Year 2025 presented by MSA 4X4 Accessories

Dark-coloured vans are becoming increasingly cool, so On The Move Caravans met the challenge with the all-black edition of its popular Grenade 6.3 model.

On The Move Caravans is a company that’s on the move, pardon the pun. Since the current owners moved much of the manufacturing process offshore to China and introduced several new production techniques, there have been a number of developments, including the Grenade 6.3 Black Edition.

ALLISON WATT — CARAVAN WORLD DEPUTY EDITOR

Build quality

The On The Move Caravans Grenade 6.3 Black Edition is an imported Chinese van, however its construction method differed significantly to other imported offerings at this year’s COTY.

It’s a completely frameless van. The walls and roof are all one piece (no joins) constructed of composite panels with a foam core sandwiched by aluminium panels. There’s no timber anywhere, except the chopping board that comes with the external kitchen. Judges were shown a model of the unique lock and block method of joining the panels which is patented. All cables are all neatly tucked away in corner panels in the roof so there’s no cabling through any of the walls.

The Grenade 6.3 Black Edition has a striking aesthetic

The chassis is a high tensile steel Desert Master with 170mm (7in) main bearers and 200mm (8in) A-frame, zinc coated, sand blasted and then powder coated. It is rated to 4T. The chassis is huck riveted, so there’s no welding in any of the structural components. There are circular dimple pressed holes throughout the chassis which save weight and increase strength. Suspension is Esy-Tow wishbone system with adjustable dual airbags and dual shock absorbers.

Circular dimple pressed holes in the chassis to reduce weight

There’s no checkerplate on the exterior — also a weight saver — instead On The Move Caravans has opted for raptor coating in its place.

The CMS plug-and-play electrical system is made here, sent to China for installation and then quality tested and signed off in Australia.

Suitability for intended touring

The Grenade 6.3 Black Edition is an offroad van. As the name suggests, it is completely black, and while this is a distinctive look I wondered about its suitability in the harsh Australian sun at the height of summer. However, On The Move Caravans assured us that its insulation properties mean that it does not get hot inside under such conditions nor will the panels delaminate because of high tech foam and glue used that have a heat resistance up to 160°C.

It has a toolbox up front with a slide-out for barbecue on one side and gas bottles on the other. Behind the toolbox are the two spares with nifty ramps to hold them in place and make getting them off the van easy. There’s also good external lighting, a slide-out kitchen and external shower to avoid tracking sand and dirt inside.

Some features many will like are the great storage, locker tall enough for a couple of bikes with the handlebars turned or even surfboards and the two innovative extra storage drawers built into the back bumper, each of which can hold 20kg.

A front storage locker big enough for surfboards and other toys

It is a couples van with a terrific internal layout borrowed from motorhomes where you have a massive rear club lounge during the day and a bed which electrically lowers from the ceiling at night. This lifting bed is great use of the available space. A full ensuite and a well-appointed kitchen give you all the conveniences you need while travelling.

Towability

The Grenade 6.3 Black Edition has a tare of 2866kg and an ATM of 3500kg which means it would be okay to tow behind most dual cab 4x4 utes.

However, it can be rated to 4000kg in which case it would need a bigger tow tug, like the RAM 1500 we used during the COTY tow test. It was a pretty easy task for the big US truck over our Warrnambool, Vic, testing course comprising of highway, sealed country roads and some gravel, and the Grenade 6.3 passed with flying colours.

The Grenade 6.3 Black Edition can be rated to 4T in which case it would need a bigger tow vehicle

MALCOLM STREET — CARAVAN WORLD FIELD EDITOR

Self-sufficiency

The Grenade 6.3 Black Edition is well equipped for staying off-grid. The 460L freshwater capacity is a cut above the average (usually around 190L), although when full, that detracts from the 634kg payload. The grey water tank is a handy 100L. The Dometic cassette toilet is the usual limitation in any self-sufficiency capability. On The Move Caravans has recently started to use electricals from US-based Renogy. There’s a pair of 200Ah Renogy Pro lithium LiFePO4 batteries, four 200W solar panels and a 3000W inverter charger with a 150A battery charger. Those numbers mean the 12V system is well capable of running the 240V air-conditioner and the microwave oven through the inverter. The hob and grill are an LP gas system, as is the instantaneous water heater.

800W of solar on the roofRenogy electrical system

Liveability

The Grenade 6.3 Black Edition layout is a little different from the standard arrangement. As mentioned earlier, instead of a fixed bed it has a drop-down bed that’s more often seen in motorhomes. But unlike motorhomes, the bed is in the north–south orientation more popular for caravanners, which means that the lounge below is larger than usual — no complaints here. The rest of the layout consists of a mid-area kitchen and a spacious full-width front bathroom.

The bed drops down over the huge rear club lounge, maximising the spaceThe bed in nighttime mode

While not everyone appreciates a drop-down bed, it does have space-saving advantages and, in this case, the bonus of the north-south bed. Additionally, there are overhead lockers around the top edges, a feature not always available with a drop-down bed. Some drop-down bed setups have no lights above the bed, but this ticks all the boxes with strip lights above the overhead lockers, ceiling lights and reading lights!

One other benefit of the bed’s design is that none of the lounge’s side cushions have to be moved — only the table has to be lowered. The bed lowering straps are obtrusive but that’s a small price to pay for the convenience of both occupants being able to get in and out of bed easily. I’m always a fan of a club lounge; this one has more than enough room for sitting back and relaxing. The corner shelves with the charger points are a nice touch and the only caution for taller persons is the ceiling height might be a bit low under the raised bed.

The full-width bathroom has a good feeling of space even as the roof slopes as it follows the front roofline of the van. Slightly unconventionally, the front-loading washing machine is under the vanity basin, resulting in a multi-shelf cupboard in the space where the washing machine usually is.

Spacious bathroom up front

The kitchen is a fairly standard setup with a four-burner hob and grill, a 188L compressor fridge and a microwave oven. The only change from the usual setup is the microwave located under the grill, rather than the more conventional overhead locker position. An On The Move Caravans feature is the removable screen attached to the fridge cabinet that links to the four-position rearview camera.

The kitchen layout is good with the microwave underneath the grillFour-position rearview camera

Outside the Grenade 6.3 Black Edition, there are several features of note. The external slide-out kitchen is fully equipped with a three-burner hob and stainless-steel sink. There’s the front storage box and spare wheel carrier with its fold-out wheel ramp that makes getting the wheels in and out easy. Then there’s the extra storage built into the front wall which is much taller than conventional tunnel storage, and here you can store anything from your bike to snow skis. It’s a touch that fits neatly into the Grenade 6.3 Black Edition’s body profile.

The slide-out kitchen

Value for money

Considering the value for money criteria on the Grenade 6.3 Black Edition required some consideration. Not because the van isn’t well equipped, just the opposite. Some of the van features are almost unique, like the I-beam chassis that’s dimple pressed and huck rivetted for strength and weight saving. Or the dovetail panel joints used in the bodywork, which give a very accurate fit and high strength. The van might be Chinese built but there’s a considerable amount of Australian design time and engineering. Features like the rear club lounge and drop-down bed, which give flexibility to layout use, are often found in more expensive caravans, as are external and internal kitchens.

Bench and drawer storage opposite the kitchen

The Grenade 6.3 Black Edition comes with a considerable number of options automatically included, all of which are accounted for in the $124,990 price tag. It's good value for some inclusions that are very nice to have, including the black wall colouring that gives this van its distinctive look.

JOHN FORD — CARAVAN WORLD EDITOR

Ease of use

Making things easier for owners starts with an electric step at the entrance and continues with thoughtful features for a carefree life on the road. The main feature of the Grenade 6.3 is the drop-down bed that adds much more usable space. It has a handy switch for the electric motors that requires a double touch to minimise accidental activation. Not needing to remove the lounge cushions to lower the bed is a nice design feature to keep life simple.

Sitting at 6.3m (20ft 7in) long, the Grenade 6.3 Black Edition is a reasonably large van that offers a generous amount of usable space while achieving a 3500kg ATM for easier towing with a wide range of vehicles. I like the four-way camera for its comprehensive view of the surroundings, which aids in driving through traffic, manoeuvring down narrow paths or parking in tight spots.

Outside features that contribute to the van’s ease of use include a slide-out kitchen, excellent storage options at the rear bar and the ramps to roll out the spare tyres if you need to change one out on the road.

The nifty ramp to get the spare tyres out is a nice touch

Controls for the airbag suspension are now located in a more accessible spot on the chassis near the step, and while some owners may baulk at having to adjust for variations on payload, the wishbone suspension delivers a smooth ride over a wide mix of road surfaces.

Innovation

The On The Move Caravans team brought their combined years of experience in building vans in Australia to the construction of the body and the advanced engineering of the Desert Master chassis. The modular design of the chassis and the drop-in suspension cradles allow for optimum weight distribution across various van lengths and designs. Much of the build now employs computer control and robotic construction for fine tolerances and consistent strength. The specially designed composite wall construction is lightweight, robust and weather-resistant.

While this isn’t the first drop-down bed in a caravan, the design is new in bringing a sizeable north–south bed and slotting it between high storage cupboards to make use of this usually vacant space. And you have to love the storage drawer on the rear bar that uses the gap between the chassis rails — that’s clever.

Another innovative design choice was that On The Move Caravans used special composite technology to allow the use of the signature black panels without delamination under hot conditions.

Customer care

On The Move Caravans’ warranty covers five years on the chassis and suspension and three years on the construction, which includes the body, furniture and ancillary equipment. This is in line with customer expectations and is a realistic cover for owners. Circumstances where a warranty doesn’t apply include overloading, driving on inappropriate roads, driving too fast for the conditions and driving on non-gazetted roads. Owners are expected to adhere to service intervals at 1000km and then every 5000km. The warranty is not transferrable to a new owner.

Like many manufacturers, the relevant supplier covers appliances like refrigerators, stoves, air-conditioners and so on. The warranty document is comprehensive and partly complies with the statutory wording required by Australian Consumer Law.

Towing the Grenade 6.3 Black Edition was easy for the RAM

X-Factor

Customer demand for dark-coloured vans is driven by the public’s slavish following of influencers who have determined that black is cool. On The Move Caravans met the challenge by engineering composite cladding that is durable under the Australian sun. So, the Black Edition meets the fashion challenge head-on and stands out as the renegade black sheep among the flock of light-coloured vans on the road.

Matching the macho livery are oversized toolboxes, prominent brush bars, purposeful-looking punched chassis rails and the bright yellow oversized tubes of the suspension. Rounding out the list are the front spotlights powerful enough for a nighttime game of footy on a remote salt pan.

Inside is the drop-down bed that will amaze the unknowing and a sizable ensuite that is worth bragging rights.

ON THE MOVE CARAVANS GRENADE 6.3 BLACK EDITION SPECS

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

EXTERNAL

INTERNAL

On The Move Caravans Grenade 6.3 Black Edition price from $124,990

OPTIONS FITTED

• 2 x 12V fans
• 12V dust reduction system
• Diesel heater
• External slide-out kitchen
• Extra 100L freshwater tank
• Inbuilt air compressor with tank
• External TV box
• Front bar spot lights
• Double electric step
• Upgrade to 3000W inverter (150A built-in charger)
• Upgrade to 800W solar panels
• Extra 200Ah lithium battery and battery box
• Solar awning
• Four-way camera and screen

On The Move Caravans Grenade 6.3 Black Edition price as shown $124,990

MORE INFORMATION

On The Move Caravans

38 Telford Circuit

Yatala Qld 4207

P: 1800 668 436

E: marketing@onthemovecaravans.com.au

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