Kokoda Major X Treme: Review

Being an offroad van, you would expect the Major X-Treme to have a fairly solid chassis and you’d be right. The main part of the DuraGal chassis is formed by 100x50mm (4x2in) rails, but the rails that run right back to the suspension mounts are 150x50mm (6x2in). Galvanised sheet-protected water tanks are fitted fore and aft of the suspension, which is a Cruisemaster setup with coil springs, trailing arms, twin shock absorbers and 16in alloy wheels.

DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION

At the pointy end, the drawbar looks very business-like. It comes with the expected features – a Hyland hitch, jockey wheel and handbrake. Also included are two jerry can holders and a tray behind the two 9kg gas cylinders.

Structure-wise, there are no real surprises. The Major X-Treme comes with a meranti timber frame, insulation, metallic silver alloy cladding and a lower waistline of black alloy checkerplate, which showed up the dirt very quickly after a short run down a dirt track.

On the road, my Land Rover Discovery handled the van without too much trouble at all, with the Major X-Treme well within the Disco’s towing capacity. With an external length of just 5.23m (17ft 2in) and a Tare weight of 1940kg, it’s a good towing proposition. During my road test, I headed off down a few narrow tracks to check out the van’s towability and the single-axle van proved to be quite a manoeuvrable rig. Unintentionally, I found myself in an awkward situation and had to reverse out, something that I managed relatively easily. A few weeks later, in a similar situation with a tandem-axle van, it was much more difficult.

INTERIOR

The larger bathroom means the kitchen is spread out a little further, with the kitchen bench across the front of the van and the fridge with microwave above butting up against the bedroom towards the rear.

White is the dominant interior colour and this is offset by darker upholstery and cupboards.

All the drawers and cupboard doors have been fitted with easy-to-use, but solid, push-button catches and all the cabinetry doors have piano hinges.

The electrical controls, including 12V fuses and the solar panel regulator, are found in the locker above the microwave. There are mains power sockets in all the relevant places but, given this is an offroad caravan, some 12V/5V USB sockets would be beneficial. Both LED downlights and reading lights are well-positioned throughout.

HITS & MISSES

Pros…

• Shorter length/lighter weight offroad van
• Practical layout, given the length
• Tows well
• Good departure angle
• Large bathroom
• Pretty good electrical setup

Cons…

• No 12V/USB 5V charger points
• Black checkerplate shows the dirt
• TV hard to see from the dinette
• Small kitchen

KOKODA MAJOR X-TREME SPECS

Weights and measures

• Overall length 7.32m (24ft)
• External body length 5.23m (17ft 2in)
• External body width 2.41m (7ft 11in)
• Travel height 3.2m (10ft 6in)
• Internal height 1.98m (6ft 6in)
• Tare 1940kg
• ATM 2420kg
• Ball weight 140kg

External

• Frame Meranti
• Cladding Aluminium plus checkerplate
• Chassis Austrail DuraGal 150mm rails
• Suspension Cruisemaster 2500kg independent
• Brakes 10in electric
• Wheels 16in alloy
• Water 2x95L
• Battery 2x100Ah
• Solar 1x120W
• Air-conditioner Aircommand Ibis 3
• Gas 2x9kg
• Sway Control No

Internal

• Cooking Swift four-burner and grill
• Fridge Thetford N504.3F 164L three-way
• Microwave Daewoo
• Toilet Thetford cassette
• Shower Separate cubicle
• Lighting 12V LED
• Hot water Suburban 23L

Options fitted

• None

Price as shown

• $55,990 (on-road, Qld)

The full test appears in Caravan World #549 May 2016. Subscribe today for the latest caravan reviews and news every month!