Review: Gold Class Caravans AC19C

There’s a new brand of caravan on the market, Gold Class Caravans. Based in Queensland, under the umbrella of Market Direct Group, Gold Class Caravans has two model ranges: Adventure Class and Luxe Class.

Adventure Class is, as the name suggests, all about the off-road lifestyle – vans built to go anywhere your 4WD can. Luxe Class vans are for more sedate adventures – blacktop touring and holiday parks.

Market Direct Group is one of the largest manufacturers/importers in the country. It’s the name behind the large range of trailers in the MDC line-up, and the new Gold Class range benefits from access to Market Direct Group’s many dealer and service locations around the country.

Up front, these vans, like all in the Market Direct Group range, are made in China to MDG’s spec. They are then shipped to Australia and finished off in the factory in Queensland. This might include adding the AC unit, the suspension, terminating wiring and adding any gas lines.

Compliance is a focus too. Where some importers have fallen by the wayside or developed a reputation for dodgy, non-compliant products, it’s fair to say that MDG has tackled the issue of compliance head on. It was the first RV importer to become RVMAP-accredited, and over the years has employed staff who are experts in RV compliance.

We had the opportunity to check out the brand new Gold Class Caravans AC19C (Adventure Class, 19ft, Couples) during a recent trip to Brisbane. Here’s the run down…

RIGID AND STRONG

First, it’s impossible to look at these vans and disregard them as ‘cheap Chinese’ product. It’s true that these rigs, like other imported vans, typically come with a lower price tag… but in this case, the price tag is only part of the story. Because what you’re getting is, in fact, a pretty serious offroad van fitted with highly regarded products and appliances. 

But one thing to know about these vans is that, with some small exceptions, they are ‘what you see is what you get’. Being built overseas, the scope to customise your van is limited. However, that’s one reason Gold Class Caravans aims to have them so comprehensively fitted out from the get-go.

Stepping inside, there’s absolutely nothing flimsy or cheap-looking about the AC19C. It presents as rigid and strong, not to mention nicely finished – in fact, I’d go so far as to say it looks better than many of the locally built vans in the same market segment.

One of the first things you’ll notice is that the north-south bed is mounted higher than normal. I loved the large bedside tables with their lift-up lids to provide access to some hidden storage beneath. You’ll find wireless charging pads either side of the bed too, along with USB A and C points, 12V points and 240V points, wardrobes and overhead lockers.

However, access to the space beneath the mattress is limited. The mattress base doesn’t lift on gas struts, and in any case, you’re only really able to access a service hatch to the water pump beneath the bed. A couple of doors are fitted to the bed base, though, for access to a small amount of storage. 

The reason for the limited under-bed storage: the fact that Gold Class has equipped the AC19C with two large tunnels, one for a portable fridge, and one for a slide-out kitchen… which also explains why the bed sits quite high.

I loved the fact that Gold Class Caravans had fitted plastic collars to all of the pipes’ cabin entry/exit points beneath the bathroom and kitchen sinks. Covering up the giant gobs of silastic beneath the sinks of Australian caravans is something I’ve been asking manufacturers to do for years, knowing the solution was cheap and easy. I give Gold Class points for attention to detail.

The waterfall kitchen benchtop is a classy touch, too. With its black sink and tapware, two-burner induction hotplate and Thetford Duplex oven, the kitchen is practical and inviting. A Gusto dust reduction system is fitted in the locker above the rangehood – just press a button and the fan will draw filtered air from outside to pressurise the interior, keeping road dust out.

Between the full-height pantry and rear bathroom is a large 224L compressor fridge-freezer, and no, they haven’t forgotten to include a microwave too. The L-shaped dinette is upholstered in faux leather and here’s a cool touch: at the push of a button on a remote control, you can lower or raise the height of the table!

The bathroom certainly doesn’t miss out on the same high-quality fit out. There are the usual features: cassette toilet, wall-mounted washer/dryer combo and nearside moulded-fibreglass cubicle. But it’s an attractive space and once again, the attention to detail can’t fairly be faulted. Another cool touch: the mirror contains two buttons: one to active the surrounding lights, the other to de-fog the mirror glass!

There’s a whole swag of features inside, many of which I haven’t touched on for space reasons, but in short: the AC19C comes ready for Starlink, including the excellent Cowfish Cosmo Starlnk Gen 3 12V power supply, there’s a Dometic reverse-cycle air-conditioner, an Eberspacher diesel heater, no shortage of charging points, a Fusion sound system, 12V Sirocco fans, a 28in flatscreen Google-ready TV from NCE… the list goes on. Further, it’s all presented in a neat, cohesive way. The interior is tough yet soft – it conveys a sense of strength and purpose, while being comfortable and modern.

GOLD CLASS CARAVANS CONSTRUCTION

The Gold Class AC19C is built atop a 6in hot-dipped-galvanised chassis on Airbag Man suspension with auto height control and digital pressure monitoring. The floor is a ‘honeycomb’ system, while the van is framed in laser-welded aluminium clad with composite aluminium and black checkerplate.

Let’s look at the van’s power system. At the heart of it is a generous 600Ah worth of Enerdrive lithium power with a whopping 1225W of roof-mounted solar with dual 40A MPPT solar controllers. There’s a 3000W Enerdrive pure sine wave inverter, too, as well as a 100A mains charger, and no, they haven’t forgotten the 40A Enerdrive DC-DC charger. It’s a comprehensive 12V system. Further, you can expand your solar input via the inbuilt Anderson plug on the offside which, I’ll add, is nestled within a protective housing – wonderful. 

When it comes to monitoring the 12V load and state of charge of the batteries, there’s a Simarine digital display inside the van, which also has smartphone connectivity so you can monitor things via an app.

The features keep coming. There’s a large storage box on the A-frame complete with general storage either side (the diesel heater tank, though, is in the nearside compartment) while two 9kg gas cylinder holders are in the middle. Why have gas when the van has such high battery capacity? Well, the gas powers the stove on the nearside slide-out kitchen, as well as the gas-electric hot water service. As much as I appreciate that caravans have adopted the ‘gas-less’ approach, I think it’s wise to have a gas backup so that you can at least cook if there’s an electrical failure somewhere.

At the rear, Gold Class Caravans has fitted a rear bar with internal storage, a spare wheel, and even a service ladder for easy access to the roof. You’ll also find a reversing camera at the rear, as well as an LED light bar – there’s one up front too. 

Anti-insect lights, MaxTraxx mounted to the front, a Fusion All-in-One sound panel, a picnic table, an electric awning, filtered ventilation for the doors to the kitchen and portable fridge slide-out… it’s a thoughtfully equipped caravan. Gold Class Caravans has even included Tuson asymmetric sway control.

What does it all weigh? The AC19C tips the scales at an average of 2990kg Tare and has an ATM of 3500kg, giving it a payload capacity of just over 500kg.

GORV’S VERDICT

I’ve used words such as ‘comprehensive’ and ‘cohesive’ to describe the AC19C by Gold Class Caravans, and they’re fair adjectives.

And then there’s the warranty, which includes a two-year manufacturer’s warranty and a lifetime warranty on the chassis and drawbar across both Adventure and Luxe Class vans.

This van ticks a great many boxes. It looks and feels strong, it has a great layout and the attention to detail doesn’t disappoint. While there is only a small handful of vans in the Gold Class range, in both Luxe and Adventure Class variants, we can soon expect up to 12 models from which to choose. Looking forward to see what comes next!

THE SCORE 

FIT AND FINISH –

LAYOUT –

INNOVATION –

HITS & MISSES

COMPLETE SPECS