MDC moves into locally built caravans

[Rumpig]

You didn't and I never said you had 

But for some personal reason, you have chosen to single out a particular company to express your dissatisfaction about an entire industry's blatant copying of other's products.

I was simply trying to balance the arguement and point out that it is not just one company, but lots of companys doing exactly the same thing.  How the others went about their copying may have been a little more subtle than the company you dislike so much.


KB

some people made comment on here about the company related to the thread, some made comment directed directly at posters saying they live in a Utopia and need to get real...I think I know who is making it personal mate, and it's not me. You are entitled to an opinion just as much as others on here, the fact you seem to think I have some personal agenda against them and single them out is a load of crap, I simply expressed a great dislike for how they went about doing what they did, in a thread that is about them....you have then added your slant to those comments after that, making out like we think they are alone in doing this.

[rags]

With regards to copying a competitors product and reproducing a replica copy,it truly only becomes a legal issue when that original product has a patient to protect that intellectual property.
In the case that seems to being debated here as a side issue to the original thread topic, the original maker did not have a patent so action by that maker was limited. There maybe moral/ effical issues by MDC but minimal legal consequences. I believe the original manufacturer corrected the issue on a new model by getting a patient before public release.
Copying is not a new phenomenon, just not everyone gets away with it. This is a great success story for a AUssie company
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-16/lucas-mill-family-fight-to-stop-chinese-copies-of-sawmill/7848394

[Paddler Ed]

I work for a small company who export worldwide, but refuse to sell in China because the risk of their product/IP being stolen is too great.

One of the interesting things I see here is that the Australian vans seem to be much more solid than the UK vans; in part this is due to the dry climate comparatively. Certainly in the UK, Dad got rid of his UK vans after about 3 years before they went rotten, whereas his German vans (Knaus and Fendts) he's kept for 5 to 8 years - in fact, the one he's got now is the longest he's owned a van in the last 32 years at about 9 years.

[bazt]

I have owned one of their vans for 6 months now. Have only had a few minor problems with it that were fixed very quickly. The after sales service is great. I live 4 doors from a caravan park and have had many van owners wanting  a look thru. All are very impressed with the quality of the van. Almost all of the appliances,fittings and annex etc are either Aus made or the same as fitted to most vans and can be purchased from a company called Aussie traveler on the Sunshine coast. Yes the Chassis and walls, roof etc come from the MDC factory in China but they are assembled in Brisbane.

[chillipepperz]

I haven't seen an MDC caravan in the flesh, but took the time to view the video of the XT-17HRT that popped up in my Facebook feed today...and I gotta say, that's a whole lot of van for $64,990! The features and design seem to be very good- though I'm no caravan connoisseur!

If this company can make a fully featured van that is actually tested off-road as they seem to AND make them locally, then good on 'em I say!

As said in an earlier post- the Facebook Lemon Caravans & RV's in Aus site shows a plethora of issues with most locally made brands of caravans, so if MDC can get a march on their quality control, customer service and warranty, then they may just clean up in a poorly regulated, highly overpriced and exploitative (i.e. grey nomad with no prior caravan purchase experience) market.

Cheers!
Andrew

[86gav]

In my opinion the original mdc xt10 was a copy of the original at10. But with the new vans they have gone above and beyond. And from what I've seen the quality is on par if not better in the MDC. Only downside I can see with the XT series is the exorbitant weight because they use thicker walled steel in the chassis

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[Bird]

If this company can make a fully featured van that is actually tested off-road as they seem to AND make them locally, then good on 'em I say!

Give one to the Gall Bros for testing...

[gronk]

Only downside I can see with the XT series is the exorbitant weight because they use thicker walled steel in the chassis

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Thicker walled "chinese" steel doesn't always mean heavier !! Knew a forklift driver on the docks yrs ago and he would instantly know if he was unloading chinese steel instead of australian steel.......20% lighter for the same size steel..

[Footy Shorts Shane]

Thicker walled "chinese" steel doesn't always mean heavier !! Knew a forklift driver on the docks yrs ago and he would instantly know if he was unloading chinese steel instead of australian steel.......20% lighter for the same size steel..

Try and weld the Shit

[86gav]

Thicker walled "chinese" steel doesn't always mean heavier !! Knew a forklift driver on the docks yrs ago and he would instantly know if he was unloading chinese steel instead of australian steel.......20% lighter for the same size steel..

The MDC vans are around 500kg heavier than the competition. Make of that what u will...

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[gronk]

The newer vans , are they a copy of something else ? When you say 500kg heavier than the competition, you'd really have to compare against something almost the same,  and bigger vans can have all sorts of extras these days, making comparing very hard.

[KevL]

The newer vans , are they a copy of something else ? When you say 500kg heavier than the competition, you'd really have to compare against something almost the same,  and bigger vans can have all sorts of extras these days, making comparing very hard.

I think what was being referred to was , as an example, the MDC XT12 has a tare of 2t ,recommended config, (whatever that includes ), the lifestyle AT12 is 1.6t, base config.


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[gronk]

I think what was being referred to was , as an example, the MDC XT12 has a tare of 2t ,recommended config, (whatever that includes ), the lifestyle AT12 is 1.6t, base config.


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Aahh, I thought they were referring to the bigger MDC vans...the dual axle ones !!

[edz]

Dont want too bag them, Good on them for having a go...   
But my take on one after walking in one today, must say  even If I had the dough [ $80k + ]  I wouldnt be  forking out that sort of coin for one, For me the seating timber work was very  flimsy and came across as cheap, nasty and just there for looks approx 10mm laminated  [ And I am a believer of building light BUT ] it flexed way too much and the joints opened up a bit much for me ..
Big wide kitchen bench was good but lost it with a cheap Black dimpled plastic sink with plastic taps and riser in rectangular section .. Plain white home type  power points  sitting proud on the walls on boxes not flush mounts again looked unprofessional and cheap, seemed to be a fair bit of white silicone around joins in the bath room area, Concertina pvc slider privacy divider for the toilet shower area and the fake wood  floor covering looked to be of the $40+pm   PVC  Bunnings variety , two pak white painted cupboard doors were a bit rough ..
The van itself was reasonably cool without aircon running and in full sun [ about 30*c + outside temp ] big windows made it feel open and airy .. The bed must have been an economy  Queen size ..
The wall floor roof construction looks strong and light, the only thing I would query is the thickness of the Ally extrusion section that  joins it all and locks it to the floor composite panel [ Looks to be 1 or 1.2mm, By my thinking it would be better if 1.6 or 2.0 mm.., They mentioned that the awning mounts and external fixtures etc bolt through the wall panels,  BUT made no mention of crush tubes to stop the wall foam core from squashing over time and mounts becoming loose etc .
Just my take on a few things that stood out to me and I'm not a flash must have the best  type of person ..

[Johnnos3003]

edz,

can you please clarify what made/model?

was it an MDC import or one of there AUSRV units

Cheers

[edz]

 Aus RV Finke  AT 19-02 rear door starting at $74.990 by the brochure  . Like anything they would be built to a price point and thats just the impression it made on us is all ..
Disclaimer : I'm no expert just a mug tire kicker ...   Potential buyers would need to have a look and form their own opinions though .

[KingBilly]

Think you are being over critical Edz.  No mention of crush tubes?  Really?  Who would even mention such a thing?

KB

[Johnnos3003]

Thanks Edz

http://www.caravancampingsales.com.au/editorial/news/2017/ausrv-debuts-at-newcastle-58582/

[edz]

I would have ..

[KingBilly]

I would have ..

KB

[moseyroc]

Wish I could have bought a Kingston Exodus, Complete Campsite stuffed a perfect hybrid price wise, but there not alone in pushing up prices. The horse has bolted now. Bugger

[gronk]

Wish I could have bought a Kingston Exodus, Complete Campsite stuffed a perfect hybrid price wise, but there not alone in pushing up prices. The horse has bolted now. Bugger

Yep, had the chance to buy an Exodus 2mths before they morfed into the CC.........$38,000.......but that's life !!

[Johnnos3003]

Give one to the Gall Bros for testing...

Nope but the ALL for adventure boys are...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zVhPhSpznY

[PWE]

Why have no-one copied the Kimberley Karavan design?
Off all the small off-road caravans the Kimberley is the best, so it is logic that one want to copy th best in th market?

I do not agree with copying other designs, but just wondering why it haven't happen yet.

[Rumpig]

Nope but the ALL for adventure boys are...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zVhPhSpznY

they take it across The Simpson in the next series...the trip was done about 2 or 3 months ago