primus series 111 fridge verses engel portable fridge

[stiling]

Hi Guys,
I am thinking of getting a portable fridge for the back of my 4wd to supplement the small fridge that is in my Coromal Camper Trailer. As a result I have been checking out the pros & cons of the New Primus Series 111 fridge as against the Engel, there is a price difference of nearly $600, my question is have any of you had any experience with the New Primus Range, ? as they both have very similar specifications, & well $ 600 is a lot of money .

Your help & thoughts would be appreciated.  Stiling

[Bird]

Mate at O'Lock has a new but older Primus in his hairdresser Jeep that he picked me up in yesterday (yes I feel hideously dirty) to go to lunch in.. He was sprouting the battery consumption on the Primus over 4 days on a battery pack... Very impressive.

if its a second fridge you wont use often, I'd save the $600... if it was a fridge used every weekend, I'd still save the $600...

From memory the size was quite different on them... so make sure it is what you have in mind
http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=16824

[Matto]

I don't know if they've changed since, but in the last 4WDAction fridge comparison the Primus scored very poorly (if I remember correctly). The comments at the time were along the lines of "looked good, spec sheet looked good, but due to poor/thin insulation and sub-optimal programming, used a lot of battery power and didn't hold temperature well".

I'll see if I can dig back through the archives and find out what issue the fridge comparo was in.

If you're buying on price, I'd be checking out a factory-seconds waeco (www.getawaeco.com.au) before looking at a Primus. Keep an eye out, I've seen 40L ones as cheap as $750 from time to time. Also, with the new models of Waeco released recently, you might find a shop wanting to do run-out specials on any remaining old-model stock too.

Good luck!
Matto

[Flighty (WA)]

Got a series 3 fridge and took it up the canning last year.
Had an issue at about 3/4 the way up where it had a major 
Got it back to Perth and took it for warranty work where I was told pick it up in 2 weeks.
Everything from performance to warranty work carried out by these people was nothing short of excellent.
I would have no hesitation in reccommending them with the exception that you need to seal out the inside with a high quality "food grade" sealant to prevent seepage to the lining.
( mine is used as a freezer )

Flighty

[stiling]

Many thanks   to all you guys that have replied . I will certainly take all your advice & comments on board. You have given me something to think about.    Cheers  Stiling

[GeeTee]

An engel versus a what?!
You can get an engel extreme for around $900, it is a tough reliable and efficient fridge that is hard to better