A'van Hardtop Series

Was just about to buy one until I read the reviews – I’ve been looking for the right light smallish semi off-road affordable caravan with an en-suite. Thought I’d found it in the Avan Jensen, a great looking van with a great layout and a great price, until I read the Avan reviews.... Unfortunatley been down the track before with other caravan manufacturers and their so called warranties,… Read more

I’ve had the water leaks, rediculously bad wiring, aircond not bolted down and nearly falling off etc, not to mention incorrect Tare weights (your over Weight before you put anything in it) etc. The industry needs a big shake up, thought it would have come with all the competition out there but it seems the are all racing to the bottom rather than the top, it’s hard to work out who’s actually building a decent van at a reasonable price.

You would think in this day and age of the internet and reviews manufacturers would get their act together.

Thanks to the reviews you’ve cost this manufacturer a sale!

a'van francis HT – We purchased a new Francis HT Adventure pack from A'van Morisset in October 2017. Since then we have done a couple of "shake down" local trips, leading up to our recent big trip. We have just come back from an 6000 km trip from Lake Macquarie to Longreach, Winton, Hughenden, Charters Towers, Townsville and down the coast to Yeppoon where we stayed… Read more

for a few days before coming home via Goondawindi, Warialda, Inverell and One Mile Beach, Nelson Bay, where we stopped for a few nights before coming home.

The van has had a a couple of niggling issues, namely, the table top bubbled & was replaced without a drama by the dealer at Morisset. A connection in the en suite tap leaked, (thread tape had been used on an O ring connection, tape removed, tightened, fixed) and the main fill pipe into the water tanks had leaked. It was covered with silastic. After examination the radiator type clamp had not been seated correctly?? Repositioned, tightened, perfect.

On our recent big trip, the van performed perfectly. Everything worked as it should and it towed beautifully behind our BT 50 ute. We experienced dust, torrential rain and below average roads. The van handled these conditions easily. I read a lot reviews about vans before we purchased this van. (We previously owned 2 Jayco's) In my opinion the layout and dollar value of the Francis takes some beating. Overall a great van, a couple of minor quality control issues which shouldn't happen in these times, but we are very happy.

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Great value for money, modern & well equipped – Purchased from Avan Penrith Oct 2016. Great van. Mediocre customer service. The 19' Nathan is extremely well appointed with modern high gloss interior trim & finish that looks superb. Adventure pack allows dirt touring & off grid free camping. Just completed 5,000km trip to Longreach and van performed perfectly. I completed some minor… Read more

repairs along the way and when back home which were mainly loose screws and fasteners resulting from poor workmanship & quality control. If you overlook these minor issues which were easier for me to fix myself rather than returning the van for warranty then the Nathan is hard to fault.

The Nathan is extremely comfortable and everything is easy to use and functions perfectly.

It is easy to tow with the Triton 4x4 dual cab but sits high at the front on the tow bar so a drop down hitch is needed. Has a lowish tow ball Weight of about 160kg but needs a higher ATM/GTM rating on the compliance plate as it only allows me 180kg of extra payload ie difference between tare & ATM/GTM.

This van is excellent value for money, $55k drive away compared to anything else on the market in it's class.

We really like our Avan so far and are looking forward to doing the lap in it soon. So far so good.

Six years on! – This is our fifth post on the Francis. Its six years since we bought it new and its now done over 100,000ks. In the last eighteen months / two yeas we have had been on many rough roads anf done extensive free camping. The van trails well and has never leaked. Everything works as it should and its a reliable comfy unit. We have added a CTEK… Read more

charger and upgraded the two batteries to another 120amp. We made the right decision when we purchased this van and if we upgraded we would most likely buy another AVAN van. One other point is the ALKO torsion suspension. We were nit entirely sure when we bought the van. We were used to coil or leaf spring. Six years on couldn't recommend it enough.

Loving it – We bought a 2nd hand year old AVan Jensen 2017 model and love it. Great layout. All caravans need maintenance along the way but our is minimal compared to the European Adria we had previously. Show details

Bad design of flyscreens – Our van took in loads of dust over a couple of days. My husband did manage to seal the spots where the dust was coming in and it has been fine. The flyscreens for the windows and door are absolutely useless, at the first hint of even a gentle breeze they blow out and are of no use. This is my main gripe, they are so badly designed. Another issue… Read more

is the pilot light of the fridge goes out with wind.poorly designed in my opinion It is easy to tow and otherwise comfortable. It was bought as a second hand van, the van itself was made in 2011

things not done properly – have had some issues drain wasn't connected to basin in bathroom hole in bench to small for connection to go to basin had to remove basin to larger hole in bench and we haven't left home so we had leaks screws out of hinges ,doors not lining up .fuses missing .out of lighting system. towed well from port Macquarie to gold coast

Disappointed in building quality and after service – 555 seemed rusted workmanship screws missing from hindgers holes drilled in floor incorrectly water piping incorrectly fitted water leaks from tanks filled with silicone instead of replacing cracked fittings.Delivery date was late by 6months .Sorry Avan PERTH very unhappy with service after you had my money .Conversation travels fast

not happy with van – We purchased an Avan from the Port Macquarie Caravan and Camping Show, we have had various problems, windows not closing, air conditioner noisy, doors not fitting, and screen around microwave has broken in half, door to bathroom was not fitted at all, ensuite cupboards were not aligned, the upholstery had to be resewn by us as it was coming apart… Read more

at the seam, also leaking water tank. Some of these things were fixed by the Avan site, but it is an hour drive there and back as well as fuel, none of which has been reimbursed to us. So all in all poor quality , looks good , and bed is comfortable , stove ok, but we are waiting for the next thing to break down, and also have sent an email to their H/O but of course no reply. Will not buy another van from this company...... We found the Avan dealer good and they were prepared to fix all these things, but as with purchasing a new car there should not be any of these issues.

July 23rd 2018 Update: a mistake in buying this Van

once again we have had to take the Van back as the Brake away brake battery was not being charged by the Van charger, also the Van battery has to be replaced. This is the 4th time we have had to take this Van back to the dealer at around 100 ks each way makes for an expensive exercise. The dealer has been co operative but bad choice of caravan , wish we had never brought this brand, never again.

November 6th 2018 Update: Faulty front entry door

The door simply fell off the hinges during our last trip, it opens half way like a stable door, however the top half fell off. Would be a good idea if the screws were checked before every trip, as one screw had fallen out and is lost and you can only tighten them up with an Allen Key. Stupid design !!!!!

Great van – A good van - have only owned for a couple of months so far. I am more concerned that you have people posting a review about a van having not even used one? Instead they post a review based only on other reviews they have read - not first hand experience. Simply damages credibilty of your review site I believe. Show details

top help when chouising van orded extras ect 10 years on still happy top van fore price thank you crouse aus – tows verry well exelent good size van fore two & 2 dogs no real problems with sink tap leek but fixed promply i hav had many vans over lots of years top brands to but we are not only happy with van but are verry happy with crouse aus & team john lilian  Show details

Great experience – Had my avan owen for 3 years now and have towed it around most of Australia tows great has plenty of storage and great fridge and i have full stove apart from the normal maintainence no problems at all

Love our Nathan adventure pak – Picked our van up in November just did a trip to the Eyre Peninsula for a month the van went great just a couple of things to get checked but at the moment very happy we towed with a ford territory ghia awd not to bad on the petrol we thought it would be terrible did a lot of free camping very comfortable, and very easy to tow.  Show details

Best Family Van on the Market – The build quality of my Avan Aspire 617 is perfect. It is fantastic having a seperate shower and toilet with a triple bunk in a 19ft van that has an ATM of under 2.5t. The WA dealer (Premier Avan) are fantastic, they are friendly, always willing to help and gave a through handover of the van on collection. Best caravan we've had to date.  Show details

Poor workmanship – Bought this van as we thought it was value for money. Comfortable and easy to tow. TV antenna was incorrectly fitted to the booster, no reception, electrician found three different wires joined and replaced with one. Water pressure poor. Blew the hot water cylinder, what a job to remove and replace, van was built around it. Water coming up in… Read more

shower was fixed by replacing outlet with a bigger pipe. Toilet pipe also came off and flooded the van. Fly screens hard to clean and now windows take a bit to keep open. Removed awning as was too flimsy to carry the weight of an annexe, but apart from no help from the manufacturers, we still love our van.

Nothing but problems – We have been very disappointed with our Owen Limited. The light well over the bed has leaked badly twice. Had to be temporarily patched in the middle of the night both times. Had a gas leak near stove and campers could smell when walking past. As previously stated by others, after sales service is terrible. Shower door has fallen down a… Read more

couple of times. We also had the trapping holding up our water tank and my hubby had to make another set of straps using stronger metal and 4 bolts instead of 2. We rely on lots of longer screws with glue added to strengthen. Most of the trimmings have had to reglued. The camp kitchen has never fitted with gaps on sides and bottom. The lining of the camp kitchen is now flaking off. We are stuck with it as cannot afford to replace. The table and seating is very uncomfortable. The one plus is that it looks lovely inside. Altogether, a bad experience.

Good caravan but customer service is poor – Purchased in 2014. A wonderful caravan to tow and to live in for 3 months, as we did whilst touring WA. Took off the ensuite door, too heavy and replaced it with a light curtain - does the job wonderfully. The Frances shows no inclination to sway whilst towing. One problem has been the waste plumbing - because the shower drain is so low, the… Read more

kitchen sink empties into the shower, not good for hygiene. Told Avan about it and they put a one-way valve into the shower waste pipe, but it still lets the kitchen sink waste water into the shower. The dinette seating leaves much to be desired, especially if you want to watch TV and perhaps an L-shaped diner might be better. The Avan has been reliable and we love the comfortable bed and storage capacity. Unfortunately, the water heater went bust after only 2 and a half years. We have also had problems with the inside window surrounds not being screwed in properly, and the sliding flyscreen door is difficult to use - WD40 does not seem to help.

Unhappy Customer – After purchasing a new jack in 2010 i haven't had anything but trouble with this very poorly built caravan. Owning an A liner previously and finding it a well built and functional van. Believing that the Jack would be of the same quality. Wrong, on late delivery there were fault after fault ie leaking plumbing breaking plastic table tensioner… Read more

bolts. Dometic rubbish appliances. Draws so poorly constructed they fall of runners etc. After speaking to the Quality Control Officer i can understand why these substandard vehicles are being produced. In finishing off i wouldn't recommend these caravans to anyone. After purchase service was also very poor. When van could not be towed the seller told me that he didn't do house calls.! Thank you Ken Squire.

Load capacity – Happy with van and layout and all small problems fixed by either dealer or product warranty. Our main problem is weight as atm is well over stated limit. We purchased van from stock at penrith it has oven air con and awning fitted presumably at factory which I would hope is include in tare. We have 2 water tanks and coupled with the hot water… Read more

this gives 200 litres so 200 kg this leaves only 100 kg for every thing else if as stated the air etc is included in tare

Has anyone up dated chassis etc to accomodate greater load capacity .axle rating is 1600 kg

Wonderful van .... a few serious problems – We collected our new Frances Avan from the Penrith Avan franchise in mid Dec. 2015. It was missing the oven, tv, radio cutout and outdoor table. The plywood under mattress sheets were covered with dirty footprints and the ensuite sliding door was not properly fixed. This is our first caravan so we were assisted with the coupling between car and… Read more

van which almost came undone, hanging by full extent of chain on way home after turning a corner. The pin holding the tow hitch to the car had not been put in. The wiring polarity for the stability control was reversed and this resulted in stability control failing, the wiring loom in the towing car overheated and shorted .... this took an auto electrician a day and a half to investigate and repair and cost us $450.

We returned van in February 2016 to find oven was not installed. And returned it again for oven and decal, but decal on back of outdoor table is still missing and electric brakes were not working. We took them to another caravan repair place in Penrith before heading home. Now it is December 2016, out of warranty and the shower is leaking, the oven doesn't work and the vinyl wall lining is bubbling.

Dissapointed in Quality – The van itself comfortable inside for 2 people tows ok has an annexe which easy to set up however I now have a problem with some delamination on outside wall.Not getting a return Email from Avan Dealer in Adelaide.

Do Not Buy a New A'van!!! – Where do I start??!!! I ordered a new A'van Aspire 617 at the Melbourne Show in March 2016 through the Melbourne Supercentre sales team. As advertised the van came with a good specification and everything I needed and I was told 3 month delivery time hopefully at the end of June. I was really pleased as I wanted to buy a locally made van and… Read more

support the Australian Caravan Industry

2 weeks after the show and putting my deposit down I was told that it did not come with the same chassis as advertised (adventure/semi offroad) and it would cost me another $3500 for their mistake, even though the list of equipment at the show included the adventure pack. After some back and too (lots of emails and calls)we came to a reasonable agreement where I got some extras thrown in but not the adventure pack as I didn't want to pay the extra $3500.

In June I was told delivery will be July, In July I was told delivery will be August, In August I was told delivery will be September.

End of September I was told the van was coming of the production line, Yeah!! ----but that it had been built with the adventure chassis that I wanted in the first place but not the extras that I had been promised, and at an extra cost to me of $2500!!!!! (I should have walked away then) but I agreed to pay them $500 extra for their mistake (again)after going to his boss and talking to the customer service manager.

Then the van was ready for collection and I went to pick it up at the factory in Pakenham--- it had the wrong interior fitted, interior parts missing, extras missing and scratches all over it as well as other faults!!!!

After they said they would fix all the issues I went back to them to see how it was going and whilst I was there I talked about the annex to be told that there was no annex included (even though it was on the order sheet and I had talked about the annex at least 3 times previously with the salesman!!!!! ARGHHHHHHH!!!!) They said that there was no annex and that it was a mistake (one of many by this stage)

At the end I sent a 3 page email to the customer service manager listing all the issues I had with the service and mistakes that had gone on, I received a one line reply saying did I want to cancel the order!! Of course I did but no apology or explanation - nothing from A'van.

The customer service with this company is disgusting and I am amazed they sell any new vans if my experience is anything to go by, I was lied too, promised things that never appeared and the final product was rubbish. I warn anyone thinking of buying a van from A'Van that it is not worth the stress or hassle that they put you through.

Avan Frances HT560 - nice van but After sale service not so nice – After delay in getting the van (9 months from deposit taken) Van was not the colour we ordered and missing items, picnic table, LED lighting, outside shower that we were clearly told were included and thank goodness I took photos of when ordering the van. Had to push to have installed which they did. Took a trip up north, towed well and… Read more

comfortable van. Things required to get fixed: leaking vanity, ensuite door fell off hinge (hat not used it) and asked for service. Went back week later service not done, items fixed but van left with dirty floor, black mark on wall, glue and wood shaving in vanity. Due to poor customer service, will not go back or recommend AVAN.

AVAN LIAM: Decided the stress was too much after only 3 months since purchase – What a disaster, after only 3 months since purchase and more phone calls than cups of tea I threw the towel in. So many things wrong, charger not working, fridge relay clicking, floor creeking badly as it moved up and down leaving you to tread carefully as it felt like you were going to go through it, brake lights working on and off, hatch broken,… Read more

wiring under bed found to be not correctly tighten, found by my local Auto Electrician, all external lights including LED's blown at dealers showroom on pick up. All the promises from the dealer in Melbourne and the Avan factory and months later still unable to use the Caravan. So eventually I had it repaired by an authorised dealer who was annoyed that I didn't buy the van from them. After an extended wait for parts and finally getting the van to a condition whereby it could be used, I felt comfortable selling it as at last everything worked. I took a hit on the sale but felt it better for my health as it had deteriorated since the purchase and any future problem would have brought a similar result I believed coupled with bad attitude and parts delay. What a disappointment it turned out to be. I have now replaced it with a more expensive brand and I guess at the end of the day you get what you pay for. "A lesson learnt".

poor quality – Quality control non existant. Numerous problems. Although manufacturer still agreed to warranty work when van 3 years old 3 years of continuing problems forced me to sell van at big loss. As I spoke to fellow travellers it seems any Avan owner experienced simmilar problems. Last owner i spoke to had van only six months old and had it for sale due… Read more

to problems with van and dealer. The van towed well, looked good but if only Avan built vans to the quality the manufacturer beliefs they are.

Best of the"complete" single axle vans available – We purchased a Francis, complete with Adventure Pack, three years ago and have nothing but praise for the thoughtful design, weight, finish and durability. Our vans has now covered in excess of 30,000 klm over the many varied types of Australian roads, including the awful western bitumen "highways" and country gravel/dirt tracks - and - it will… Read more

still pass for a brand new van!; we do not do serious off road type work. We will leave this to camper trailers and their fans. We have had the usually reported issues - window surround screws coming loose, forgetting to secure the ensuite door during travel etc. All have been easily and permanently fixed with no further issues.

We enjoy the tremendous insulation of the composite build - wether cold or hot, it are a great advantage over the "old type" wooden constructed vans. The independent suspension rides so well that we use the bed to lay our camp table and chairs on during travel; they never move from where they are placed. We tow the van with a 150 series Prado and because of the light tare weight, it provides excellent fuel consumption figures.

Avan have provided great back-up service, always providing friendly advice and on-time delivery of any service/parts required.

So, it is now time to move to a little bigger van; we checked the thousands available, however, after considering all the glamour available, have decided to update to another Avan - Nathan this time around.

Twelve Months On – Its been 12 months since we took delivery of ta new Francis 560HT and we have done a number of trips with it. Most of these trips end up on dirt roads and camping off site for four or five days. My previous review said my wife and I were happy with the van and we still are. However I have had to do a number of small repairs to van that are the… Read more

result of poor design. Example the fridge shifted and moved into the van by about 60mm. The reason was the securing screws on the left hand side of the fridge were screwed into a thin sheet of chipboard and only penetrated about 5mm. In a van built to go down a dirt road the securing of the fridge is way too light. I "bolted" the fridge using small stainless steel bolts and nuts through this panel and used dress covers over the bolts. It looks like the factory did it. and it won't move again. The right side of the fridge had a double sheet of chipboard and I was able to use slightly large and longer screws to re-secure. The interior window frames are also screwed on and every frame came loose.I used wood glue and re-screwed every window and they are no longer a problem. Same as the cupboard doors.

From what reviews I have read most people complain about the build quality and its mostly the fit-out. I agree if Avan took a little bit more time and thought about the use of the van, then they would build with a bit more thought and care. We bought the adventure pack so we could go down dirt roads into State and National Parts. We don't do any serious four wheel driving. We have ironed out the few problems and we continue to enjoy the comfort the van provides. The best question to ask an owner is "would you buy another van from the same maker?" in our case its yes!

A for design , appearance, B for customer service and D for quality control. Australian company sho – Purchased new Avan Frances P/T ,12 months ago and it has now travelled about 4000km. I love the van, it is easy to tow, has a good external appearance and internal layout ,especially the separate shower and toilet. Some really good features such as the blinds/screens and large fridge. However the product was let down by poor quality control… Read more

during manufacture. I can't understand why Avan have dropped the ball so badly. Some of the problems we have had include : major water leak from air conditioner during rain, seal missing, Water coming in front window, after several attempts to fix the window had to be completely sealed shut to finally fix problem. Shower screen door fell off. No globe in number plate light. Screws missing from several door hinges and one door under bath room sink fell off and appears to be cut slightly too small. Loose fittings left rolling around in cupboards. Black foot marks on wall. TV antenna is very poor quality, looks good as it winds up from inside but outside capital city it has a very short UHF reception range even on boost Front boot leaks like a sieve during rain, a minor modification during manufacture would likely solve but Avan choose to take easy option by placing a sticker to tell you it leaks so they don't have to fix..Sorry but not good enough. Hand book which comes with van is pretty poor quality, photo copied pages, not very professional . Warranty period of 12 months is below industry standard. My first Avan had great quality and reliability, this one is a real step back in quality control.

Bad Mistake – De-laminating inside next to fridge. Had to replace all drawer runners. Emptying sink fills shower recess. Vanity came adrift. Edging came off locker doors and cupboard doors. Pressure reducing valve froze. Cupboard door push locks were ALL replaced. NO local dealer in WA, so have to rely on Melbourne. That's a whole other story.

The OWEN HT 4yrs On – Few initial problems. Wiring on fridge faulty. Water connection to rear of Toilet faulty. When town water connected fitting come adrift. Van floor covered in water. When sink is drained of water the toilet floor is covered with sink water. I have fixed these problems with a few minor adjustments. Workmanship is not up to scratch.

great van but!!!! – bought a new Owen late December. In the shake down electric hot water doesn't work, struts on bed fell off and draw slides all came away. The van tows well and is well laid out just a shame the lack of attention to detail and poor workmanship lets it down badly. For the sake of a few more screws and some liquid nails and a quality control… Read more

department these vans would be exceptional value. Off to Bunnings to buy a range of screws, battery drill and several tubes of liquid nails.

It got the lot – We bought the van because it ticked all the boxes it got the lot . It works well for the family of four,good to tow,we'll lade out . had been looking for a van for a while could not find one that was right found the avan charlotte have been on many trip in it never had a problem.

Bad experiences – Bad workmanship, poor quality & poor customer care. What can you say... an Australian company that we thought we would patronise, never again. Workmanship of this quality makes you understand why there is no manufacturing left in Australia. Our NEW avan Frances is a total disaster & a huge disappointment.