Aussie Swag vs Kimberley

[UIZ733]

Thanks to all who have spiritedly supported their brand. It indicates proud ownership.
A question about the AS kitchen.
Can it be used when perpendicular (with relevant support etc.) to the camper rather than parallel?

[Clouty]

Thanks to all who have spiritedly supported their brand. It indicates proud ownership.
A question about the AS kitchen.
Can it be used when perpendicular (with relevant support etc.) to the camper rather than parallel?

When I went to the Brisbane camping show last year I was looking at the AS and the salesman showed me that it could be used both ways.. You could pull it straight out and have it 90 degrees to the camper or swing it around to be under the window.. That was on last years model.. Not sure if it has change.. I'm sure some owners could correct me

[Yoda42]

Yes, you can, but it may be a bit of a pain when pulling out the fridge.

We chose AS over KK mostly for the fact that the fridge does swing back against the camper, and to be honest, we have never had an issue with cooking smells going up into the bed area. The other reason was that we have a 60l Trailblaza fridge, and not only did it not fit it the KK, they did not recommend amending to be able to fit due to the drawbar weight. We didn't want to buy a smaller fridge, and AS amended our fridge box to suit. We think it is much better with a flat nose now as it is easier to sit things on top, eg when getting things out of the pantry and fridge.

Both campers are very well made and have great attention to detail, it will be the little things that sell either one for you in the end. We couldn't be happier with our decision, I'm sure you will be too when you work out all your personal pros and cons.

[oldmate]

For sure Ollie for sure...


Sent from Behind you...BOO

:D :p

[Jason B]

- Battery charger and water tank are NOT bigger: 40amp/60 amp and 120lt/130lt.
- I couldn't find any info whatsoever on the size of steel used on the KK chassis whereas the ASC states theirs on the website.
-ASC do offer a diesel hot water version as well as gas. In fact it was their diesel camper (Ultra D) that has won the Campertrailer of the Year for the past two years.
-Yes KK offer a 5 year warranty and yes their ensuite can be accesses from inside the camper.

Also, my list was a general list of comparisons made for the OP to consider, not one where the ASC came out on top in each category. It was the overall answers to the list that made us go with the ASC, but I have read on other topics that others have gone with KK or AORC, or CC because in their opinion the same list for them went in favour for that camper.

Just goes to show that these are both very good campers that have passionate owners.

I agree AS has won CT of the year as stated but in the comparisons I saw KK was not even involved and no KK product was supplied for comparison. Its a pretty hollow victory if the other main player in that category doesn't even feel the need to participate.

With the 2013 kitchens, power options (solar films now built into the canvas, lithium batt options etc) annex size, dealer network and the fact that there would be 10x the number of KK's travelling the country with very few issues still would lead me to spend my $$$ with KK.

[oldmate]

Both campers are very well made and have great attention to detail, it will be the little things that sell either one for you in the end. We couldn't be happier with our decision, I'm sure you will be too when you work out all your personal pros and cons.

Yeah that is right, when you are paying $40000 + for a camper, they all will usually fall into the fantastic build catorgry. It will all come down to personal choice, and preferences as it has with each and every owner that had posted here.  I can bet each of us looked at all the campers and decided on a particular one cause it suited our family better, and nothing to do with the quality. I know I would be happy with any of them, just the ulti suited us better ( no kids to worry about).

Good luck with your choice they all are great quality campers, with 2nd to none customer service.

[Rumpig]

Suspension failure...none I have heard of other than a couple of broken shocky mounts 2yrs ago caused by a faulty welder.

there's a thread been started on ExploreOz forum regarding this, relates to something about using 10 ply tyres and the suspension breaking. if the corrogations we encountered up the Gulf late in the dry season back in 2011 didn't break the suspension on our KK, then i reckon you'd be doing well to break it.

[Jason B]

there's a thread been started on ExploreOz forum regarding this, relates to something about using 10 ply tyres and the suspension breaking. if the corrogations we encountered up the Gulf late in the dry season back in 2011 didn't break the suspension on our KK, then i reckon you'd be doing well to break it.

The issue I believe was to do with the shocks failing from getting extremely hot. There was a short period where a number of KK's left the factory with a dodgy weld on one suspension arm because a welder was found to be faulty. To my memory they got on top of this quickly and repaired all of the issues, even freighting the trailers to and from the affected owners.

I believe there is heat paint now on the fox shocks to indicate if extreme temps have been encountered.

They are both good campers. Kids may be a consideration also, as both have very different kids room arrangements and one may suit better than the other. I have just decided to use an Oztent for the kids when they get a bit bigger, rather than get a kids room as this will give us another camping option also.

Jas

[Chris F]

The main reasons we chose a KK over other similar campers were:

Electric disk breaks (why do AS and AORC still persist with drums?)

Amount of useable bench space on the 2012 models onwards (the hatches on the bench could be a PITA for messy people like us)

Extra useable space inside because of the extended tent

Comprehensive Australia wide service and repair network
KK's are without a doubt the most popular hard floor camper in their price range. There must be a reason for this.

The Limited Edition has a more functional pantry than the Platinum. We upgraded our LE to Platinum without the solar panels (we bought our own), but others choose to have a Platinum with a LE pantry.

We hired a few campers before we bought one including a couple of KK's. The guy that hires them out used to hire out locally made soft floors too but they started to look tatty a lot faster. He only hires out KK’s now.
I saw a new Pioneer camper being trucked up the Hume last week. They look really good but I haven’t seen one up close yet. Like almost everyone has mentioned, you can’t go wrong quality wise with KK or AS, you need to have a close look and make up your own mind which one you like best. Have you considered AORC, Complete Campsite, Pioneer or the Modcon forward folding campers? They are all great high quality campers.

[Swannie]

I just can't believe you're not considering a jayco

Swannie

[xcvator]

I just can't believe you're not considering a jayco

Swannie

Your arms are getting a bit brown 

[GeoffA]

I just can't believe you're not considering a jayco

Swannie

 

[LC]

I liked the AORC ones as well, particularly the idea of two fridges. However as they don't have a tailgate and I therefore couldn't pack clothes etc into the draw under the bed, the rest of it was irrelevant - to me at least!

[Rumpig]

There was a short period where a number of KK's left the factory with a dodgy weld on one suspension arm because a welder was found to be faulty. To my memory they got on top of this quickly and repaired all of the issues, even freighting the trailers to and from the affected owners.

it was the mount that held the shockie in position at the top to the chassis and when it broke off the camper could still be towed behind the vehicle once you removed the shockie from dragging on the ground. it happened to mine and yes the camper was picked up from my house, repaired and delivered back to my house afterwards. my warranty on the camper started from scratch after that and the chassis was given an extended warranty also. since then my camper has travelled up through the Gulf on some horrendous corrogations without an issue, so it passed the repair test...lol

[Chris-Vi]

I do believe the AORC should be looked at as well. A friend who has a late model KK was very impressed with them. He bought the KK without knowing or seeing an AORC camper. Me, I would be looking for a late model Cape York because the layout and storage suited us.  As we now have a small van there is no way the better half will go back to a camper. Everyones tastes and choices are different. Have fun with your decision. 

[Wuzgonna]

Hi UIZ733,

Ball weight is very dependant on how you pack the trailer.

I am on my second Aussie Swag and I have found that ball weight can vary depending on how much water there is in the tank and also what you pack and where you pack it! If you load the rear with heavy gear it lightens the ball weight.

There are many great trailers out there and some larger differences are the reasons we chose the Aussie Swag twice and some of these are:

Build quality and simplicity of design and layout. I found the kitchen area very well designed allowing you to take no more than a few steps to get to everything without having to close or move anything in the process. There is no need to walk around the 90 degree kitchen as opposed to when it's folded back against the trailer. Numerous people can all work in the kitchen area at the same time.

We found that the overall design is simple and not over complicated. The model line up is also simple. Almost all the models are the same except for the 'extras'. The trailer is streamlined and well balanced from front to back.

My mate is selling his 2009 explorer model which is a Rover LX with extras if you are interested - he needs to sell quick.

There are a few good trailers on caravancampingsales website.

Good luck and enjoy making your decision. Either way you will love what you get!

Cheers

Dave.

[letsgo]

Aussie Swag all the way In saying that the KK was our second choice. I've written up a review of our AS here http://letsgotravelaustralia.com/aussie-swag/ with lots of pics showing the nice big 60amp battery charger (with you all the way JKone ) I believe we were also the first to get 3 batteries in their current sent up, pics of that as well. As well as the kitchen and other bits.

Also a bit of  blurp of why we choose the AS http://letsgotravelaustralia.com/aussie-swag/why-aussie-swag/ don't mention the names of the other campers that were in the final 3 choice but KK was our second choice.

I think you would be happy with either they are both good campers. For us one big plus was the factory for AS was just down the road. We could talk to the guys making them not just an agent. The guys at AS are happy to take on customer suggestions and the after sales service is second to none.

Good luck with it all Most of all just get out there and have fun

[MR MAC GU]

The guys at AS are happy to take on customer suggestions and the after sales service is second to none.

Really?

When were looking at AS campers. There were both myself and Rumpig interested in buying one.

I asked the sales staff if they could change a couple of things to suit us better. (We were looking at the AS ultra). We were told a flat out no...the person we were dealing with said you buy it how it is or don't buy it. The main things I wanted changed was a diesel hot water/heater instead of gas, and a different colour so it wasn't the same as all others out there.

In the end myself, Rumpig and my inlaws ended up buying one but AS missed out on 3 sales as KK were more than willing to accommodate our requests and in my opinion were much better to deal with. Not to mention the network of agents around the country if anything were to go wrong along with the 24/7 phone support system if you needed.




Sent from Behind you...BOO

[letsgo]

From our personal experience we have found them to be good, yours was obviously different. As I said someone could go with either choice and be happy with them. We have had to go back on a couple of things for after sales issues and found them very good. We did ask for a couple of mods and they were happy to accommodate. One being the batteries at the time they put two in the Ultra campers, we wanted 3, we worked with them and made suggestions as to how that could be done and they did it.

Like you we were interested in the diesel hot water/heater which they didn't do at the time but did say that they had had a lot of requests and were considering it. Just before they were about to start on our camper they rang us up to say they were going to do the diesel option and did we want to swap over to that. They had a prototype on display we could come in and have a look at. We did, but for different reasons we stuck to our original order. We thought it was very good of them to contact us to offer us that option since they knew we were interested in the Diesel.

I guess every manufacture has it's pro's and con's. Main thing is you are happy with your choice and got the mods you wanted

[JCOJ]

The guys at AS are happy to take on customer suggestions and the after sales service is second to none.

Really?

When were looking at AS campers. There were both myself and Rumpig interested in buying one.

I asked the sales staff if they could change a couple of things to suit us better. (We were looking at the AS ultra). We were told a flat out no...the person we were dealing with said you buy it how it is or don't buy it. The main things I wanted changed was a diesel hot water/heater instead of gas, and a different colour so it wasn't the same as all others out there.

Sent from Behind you...BOO

I find that very very hard to believe (not saying it didn't happen, just very hard to believe).

For my second camper I asked if they could totally change the hot water set up and re-configure the offside storage box so I could fit a second fridge, generator, and also the hot water controls in the one area.  They had never done this before and didn't know if it was even achievable.  After going and asking the builders and spending alot of time on it, they came back and said that it could be done.  They also added all the little extra things we asked for.  Couldn't be happier with them.

Furthermore, Yoda42 had the shape of his front box re-designed to fit his fridge.

If they didn't offer a diesel option at the time, then they couldn't sell you one could they.

As for service agents, anyone can do the brakes and bearings regardless of brands, and ASC suspension doesn't fail nor do they employ dodgy welders so no need for recalls.  As for colour - maybe because they are a classic like the Model T - you can have any colour you like as long as it is sliver (in ASC's case) 

[Jason B]

and ASC suspension doesn't fail nor do they employ dodgy welders so no need for recalls.

Maybe the abbreviation for AS should ASS! 

[fuji]

Ignore them JKohn, they don't have a clue hee hee

[Chris F]

If they didn't offer a diesel option at the time, then they couldn't sell you one could they.

Why not    I see people on this forum fitting them themselves.

As for colour - maybe because they are a classic like the Model T - you can have any colour you like as long as it is sliver (in ASC's case) 

How do you find it so hard to believe that AS wouldn't accommodate any changes when they wouldn't even use a different colour paint 

I find that very very hard to believe (not saying it didn't happen, just very hard to believe).

With all the excuses you're making for AS you're getting me confused now 

Both AS and KK are great campers. You can't go wrong with either of them, or any of the other high quality hard floors. Look around and choose the one you like best.

I still can't believe AS and AORC don't offer disk breaks for the price they ask 

[D4D]

[Chris F]

Ha Ha