Caravan Review: Hilltop Mawson 18ft 5in Limited Edition

Over the years, I’ve kept a mental list of manufacturers I’ll consider for when the time comes for me to hit the road full time. That’s still a few years away, but that time is coming, and Hilltop Caravans has earned a spot on my list. My opinion has been shaped by conversations with vanners who have bought a Hilltop, and by my own two eyes.

In mid August, I had the opportunity to hitch up a brand new van by Hilltop Caravans: the Mawson. This van is a limited edition rig built to celebrate the manufacturer’s 10th year. This 18ft 5in rig appealed to me immediately. It hit all the right notes: it’s on a single axle, it’s sub-19ft in length, vulnerable underbody components are protected, and the layout makes good use of the available space.

I towed the Hilltop Mawson to Golden Beach, a little spot I travel to frequently in Victoria. I’m building a beach house there and might even retire to that little hamlet eventually. There’s a campsite in the bush on the way to nearby Loch Sport that I thought I’d try, right beside a massive lake. I couldn’t recall if it was accessible by caravan, but there was only one way to find out…

APPROACHING CAMP

The Hilltop Mawson comes with Bosch sway control – an excellent addition for peace of mind. The van towed brilliantly along the highway as I headed south-east towards the Ninety Mile Beach. It tracked nicely behind my Nissan Patrol tow vehicle at 100km/h.

When I arrived at Golden Beach, I headed straight to the campsite. The track in is sandy but I had traction boards and an air-compressor, but I was familiar enough with the terrain to feel confident about avoiding a bogging. But… my approach to the campsite was eventually foiled by an overhanging branch that would have potentially damaged to the top of the van had I proceeded. I couldn’t go around it as the embankment was too steep. My only option was to reverse out, turn around, and park up instead at Golden Beach’s lovely little RV park, where you can stay for a contribution to the donation box.

There’s a lot of equipment on the Hilltop Mawson – fitting, considering it’s a limited edition van intended to celebrate Hilltop’s 10th anniversary. First, the van rides on a 6in X-Guard-coated chassis with Cruisemaster ATX airbag suspension. Hilltop also fitted Cruisemaster’s Body Control System, a sophisticated system that levels the van east-west as well north-south via its ‘Horizon Levelling’ feature. Basically, the user interface tells you how much to adjust the jockey wheel to achieve a perfect level. It’s difficult to do justice to the Cruisemaster BCS system here and I recommend you look further into what it can do, but suffice to say it’s an intelligent, app-driven way to achieve the perfect ride height, the perfect level at camp, it allows you to tap into the onboard compressor to inflate the tow vehicle’s tyres, and much more.

On the A-frame, you’ll find a powder-coated aluminium storage box with a slide-out tray to suit a portable fridge on the nearside. Hilltop has included an Anderson plug here too – great! Now, this storage box is also intended to house gas cylinders, but here’s the thing: no gas is plumbed through to the body of the van. It is intended solely to power a gas-fired barbecue, with a gas bayonet fitted to the offside.

The cooking facilities inside the van are electric induction. The van is equipped, after all, with two 200Ah Hitech lithium batteries as well as 800W of solar on the roof. These batteries can pair with an app so that you can instantly see all the battery parameters, from the operating temperature to the state of charge. On this topic, the Hilltop Mawson is also equipped with yet more intelligent equipment. The Hitech power management system contained a three-in-one charger (AC, DC and solar), a 2600W pure sine wave inverter, as well as a special control module.

The digital display screen allows you to control all the 12V circuits as well as the lights, whether it’s the reading lights at the club lounge or the light in the bathroom. Of course, these can all be controlled via the intuitive app, too. Once I began to use the system, I realised how beneficial it would be, not to mention how easy it is to use. Further, the kit comes with two separate, wireless switch panels that you can mount anywhere in the van you like.

This Hitech system is fairly new but it works seamlessly and I suspect we’ll start seeing it in more and more Australian caravans.

It gets cold in Golden Beach in winter. Very cold. Therefore, the onboard diesel heater was a God-send. The control is by the bed too – perfect! The diesel tank is mounted to the offside chassis rail and protected by checkerplate. On that topic, the outlet for the 60L grey water tank is also protected – also perfect!

What else? Honestly, the features and comforts keep coming. The underside of the van is protected by a sheet of aluminium, there’s a BlackJack electric jockey wheel (though I just used the standard manual jockey wheel), a Camec keyless entry door – the double fold-out step automatically deploys and retracts when the door is opened or closed.

INSIDE THE HILLTOP MAWSON

The layout of the 18ft 5in Hilltop Mawson features a rear club lounge, with inbuilt cupholders, nearby USB points and reading lights. The switch for the Gusto dust reduction system is mounted inside one of the overhead lockers.

The kitchen, however, is split across both sides of the van, with the induction cooktop sitting atop a three-in-one microwave on the nearside and the sink on the offside, between the Dometic compressor fridge-freezer and the lounge. Splitting the sink off from the main kitchen bench is a different approach, but in the context of this van, I thought it works well.

Now, the Hilltop Mawson’s bathroom is split between a shower on the nearside and the toilet and vanity on the offside. There’s a door separating the bathroom from the main living quarters, but there’s no door between the bathroom and bedroom, probably due to space constraints but is a door here really needed anyway? Besides, not having a door actually makes the bedroom feel more spacious. Further, it has allowed for a larger shower – it’s a triangular unit that does not feel cramped at all. The design has even allowed for a front-loader washing machine.

Unsurprisingly, Hilltop Caravans has given this van an east-west bed. Frankly, that’s the only way the manufacturer would ever be able to fit so much stuff into a smaller van such as while retaining a sense of liveability and space. Is it a compromise? I don’t think so, especially when you consider everything else this van offers.

Among the other features of the Mawson are a 4G Hitech wi-fi router with a 4G antenna mounted permanently to the roof of the van. There’s also a Hitech flatscreen TV on a swivel arm in the bedroom, but there’s a mounting point in the main living quarters with the relevant power and antenna connections.

There’s also a reverse-cycle air-conditioner, numerous storage options throughout, and overall a high standard to the fit and finish.

GORV’S VERDICT

With its sophisticated Hitech power management system and the associated powerful 12V system, its robust build, different but inviting layout, and a long list of standard features, the 18ft 5in Mawson is a van to be reckoned with. Frankly, I really liked it, and I don’t say that lightly. At 2550kg Tare, it isn’t overly heavy, though with its ATM of 3000kg, payload is limited to 450kg, 180kg of which would be taken up by water (two 95L water tanks are standard).

Nonetheless, this van makes excellent use of modern technology. Nothing is missing or out of place. Hilltop really does build a good caravan, and this Mawson is a case in point. It is a fitting tribute to this reputable manufacturer’s 10th year of building caravans.

As I said, Hilltop is on my list of caravan builders I might one day entrust with my money., and this Hilltop Mawson closely resembles the van I will, one day soon, hitch up for my own personal Big Lap. Good one, Hilltop.

THE SCORE

FIT AND FINISH –

LAYOUT –

INNOVATION –

HITS & MISSES

COMPLETE SPECS