Malcolm Street visits the Nova Caravans factory in Melbourne to see its new Emu RV motorhomes come off the assembly line.
Melbourne's Nova Caravans is a well-known Australian caravan manufacturer, producing a range of blacktop touring and offroad vans. Less well known is that Nova moved into the motorhome market a few years ago, producing a range of Fiat Ducato van conversions. Although Nova produces the motorhomes, they are sold under the Emu RV name. Owned by Marty Doherty, Emu RV is located in western Sydney and has the exclusive rights to the Nova motorhomes.
I recently visited the Nova factory in Melbourne to inspect the Emu RV production line. While there, a number of Nova caravans were coming off the line. Apart from anything else, it was interesting to see how the frameless wall construction was put together.
Of course, there are some differences between the production of a Nova caravan and an Emu RV motorhome. The most obvious is that the caravans are built from the ground up, whereas the motorhomes, in this case, have the full van body as a starting point. I was also interested to learn that there are some differences between a Fiat commercial van and those built specifically for the motorhome market. The most obvious is that there are two cab seats, not a triple across the cab and the seats are designed to swivel around for motorhome seating.
A recent development for Emu RV is full wall mouldings, which give the interior a more seamless look. I saw the first of these being installed. The shower cubicle, too, is fully moulded, which eases installation and reduces the risk of leaks.
Proprietor Doherty offers a small range of motorhomes, his philosophy being a constant improvement, like the wall mouldings, on the existing range rather than multiple new models. That doesn’t mean new models don’t appear. Not so long ago, I had the opportunity to drive the new Z4S model. Like the rest of the Emu RV range, it’s based on a Fiat Ducato van, the XLWB. A little different to the rest of the range, it’s a four-berth unit. That’s been achieved by adopting the European trend of fitting a rooftop tent, one hinged at the rear.
There’s a double bed across the rear of the motorhome and a second bed in the rooftop tent. That’s really for junior family members, but the access hole is large enough if you are reasonably agile. As noted previously, the cab seats swivel around and a double seat and table are located behind the driver, meaning four people can sit down for a meal. The kitchen is quite compact, but the fridge is not. With a capacity of 175L, it’s one of the largest in this sized motorhome. Also, the water tank is larger than usual, at 155L. Add to that a 125Ah lithium LiFePO4 battery and 200W of solar panels and the Z4S is ready for off-grid travel, in style.
For more information about the power you need for off-grid travel, check out this feature by John Hughes.
Designed for a small family, the Z4S would equally be at home with the grandchildren or a couple who prefer separate bed areas in a motorhome this size. Speaking of size, at 6.35m (20ft 10in) long, it’s not a big motorhome but very good as a weekend escape machine or for longer-term travellers who are happy travelling in a fairly lightweight manner. Despite its size, there’s a fair bit of internal storage, including overhead lockers in all the right places. Like the cupboards, the lockers have some of the best hinge mechanisms I have encountered, but their maker is hidden in the Emu RV design files.
What happens when a caravan manufacturer does a sideline into motorhomes? In the case of Emu RV, a very successful series of boutique models!
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