Coromal Pioneer Silhouette

Mains water – Hi I’ve just purchased a 2007 ps421 Can anyone please tell me where I connect the drinking hose to the mains water it has 2 water tanks but im wanting to also connect a hose

Absolutely brilliant little van – Great to tow, easy to set up, changed the lighting to LED, water tank to an 80L with electric pump, new power supply, stereo unit and all good to go Show details

Pick of the pop-up camper trailer / vans – Having rented a new Jayco Swan to try out the concept we decided to buy. The used Coromal PS421 got our vote (mum, dad and two teens) for the better build quality, slide out kitchen, couldn't sit four 'big people' around the Swan's table, independent suspension (Coromal's system is unique) and higher bench top height. Also one piece fibreglass… Read more

roof means no leaks. After sorting a few minor issues and improving a few things we are delighted with it. Easy to tow and set-up (I can do the whole thing on my own), wind-out Fiamma awning is a breeze, full-height door takes practice to manoeuvre, very little to fault on a 2004 van. It's important to check the age and condition of brakes, bearings and tyres - regardless of RWC. I found the tyres were original so changed those even though the ones on the van looked OK (which was a great idea as one was not at all good), and I rebuilt the brakes and bearings myself, mostly for peace of mind but found that brake shoes were no good at all. The Pioneer (off-road) version of these vans run parallel bearing sets, which are very very strong, but do need greasing and inspecting each year. Wiring is crude but effective. We can do short overnight free camps by using the sofa base cushion to make a double out of the dinette, but for longer stays our 15 yo sleeps in a little tent alongside. What a great product - pity it's no longer made.

Rugged and spacious – We bought our 2007 model Silhouette Pioneer PS421 last January. As we intended doing some extended outback touring we wanted a strong and spacious unit without excessive weight. We did a couple of shake-down trips including some rough roads which indicated a few potential problems, mainly to do with the door in its horizontal travel position. I… Read more

inserted a strip of stainless steel along the base of the door as the locating holes were flogging out. As a precaution I replaced the screws holding the door support sling with bolts and also added a small block on the bench above the microwave to support the front left bed slide arm when travelling. I also slid protective sleeves over the water hoses underneath. I considered the 12V power cable to the fridge and battery to be inadequate so I upgraded the cable and added a separate cable direct to the battery for charging. Connection to the tow vehicle was by two Anderson plugs. The fridge will now cool well on 12V and the battery is fully charged. I also converted some lights to LED, added two 20L water containers on the rear and a rear-view camera. The TREG coupling can be difficult so I replaced this with a McHitch, a 15 minute operation.

We have just returned from a trip of over 22,600km including some 3,000km of unsealed road and tracks (Sydney, the Centre, Great Central Road to WA, up to Marble Bar, WA coast, Nullarbor). The van towed beautifully over all surfaces including some rugged tracks, the slide-out kitchen gave a lot more room inside, electric brakes were great. The only problem was with the ceiling electrics. These are sealed within the fibreglass roof so I installed new cabling around the ceiling perimeter.

I have no hesitation in recommending this model to anyone looking for a rugged and spacious camper planning to do extended travel over rough roads. I see the new version (now marketed as a Windsor Silhouette) is over 500kg heavier. Apart from the rugged looks I wonder "why?"

Love it – We have just bought our 2011 421 XC about a month ago and used it twice already with two more trips planned before it gets too cold for it. We did a bunch of research on the coromal vs jayco and with the overwhelming positive feedback on the coromal that was what we went with and couldn't be happier. The great layout with the push out kitchen… Read more

for space is brilliant.

The one we bought came with the fiama awning which is also a dream as it's up 1 1/2 minutes so you can spend more time having fun rather than setting up an annoying awning.

Another thing that no-one in the forums seems to know about is the fact that the whole door side unzips and rolls up to create an open cafe style van, the kids loved it.

It tows really well and sets up easy too.

So in a nutshell we are very happy and would recommend one to anyone looking for this style of camper.

Tough little van – We bought our Coromal 390 three years agoin 2013 (it's a 2004 build) and have been happy with our purchase. We have towed a Jayco camper up the Gibb River Road, and have taken our Coromal to many similar places. We also lived in it for three months on our 13,000 bottom half of Australia" trip. I would buy Coromal over Jayco again: Much stronger… Read more

chassis, 6 inch vs 4 inch rails,

Great (and simple!) independent leaf suspension that tows extremely well,

Bigger wheels and tyres (16 inch Pajero/Prado sized, so can share spares between tow vehicle and camper),

Whilst we have the smallest one (a 390), it's caverbnous in its room. On our around Australia trip we only have the two kids bikes and the car fridge in the car - everything else went in the van,

Bed rails to support the bed whilst travelling are longer and tougher than Jayco. All bed rails on the Jyaco failed on the Gibb River Road. No sign of failures on the Coromal yet.

Everything seems a little tougher than the Jayco - thicker plywood inside, extra hinges, everything just seems that little bit tougher.

All the electrics are really well integrated and largely maintenance free.

The front boot is huge - loads of space.

What don't I like:

My wife hates putting it up and down - so we'll likely change to a caravan next time,

My three boot latches on the front boot failed today - mind you, twelve years old I shouldn't be complaining.

The water tanks are very difficult to fill; but then again, half a day's work and I'll fix that.

In short, I think these are a quality product to buy second hand - they are built to last.

Well built camper – Good to excellent quality materials with decent production standards. The PS451 tows exceptionally well, only being noticeable under heavy braking and at the bowser. Real peace of mind knowing your trip won't come with annoying surprises. Well equiped with a brilliant slide out kitchen. The family really like the convenience of space. In this area… Read more

it is miles ahead of even somewhat larger caravans. If you don't mind 5 or so minutes longer to set up and pack up it will more than make up for it when you are settled in or on the road.

Glam-camping at its best.

What a great little van! – After looking at around a dozen Jayco Hawk, Eagle etc pop tops I just wasn't convinced. Came across the Coromal Silhouette and bought it straight away. Had it now for 8 months and couldn't be happier. It has the quality feel you don't get with Jayco's, everything is feels strong and sturdy. The pull out kitchen means it is really roomy inside,… Read more

something everyone comments on when they look inside. The microwave and battery are standard, as with many other features and nice touches that you don't get in a Jayco. The quality of the canvas, plastic windows and flyscreens means that after 10 years it still looks new.

The one piece roof and fibreglass floor mean you don't have the leaks and water damage of other vans. With the independent suspension towing is a breeze.

This is a van I know will still be a great van in 10 years time.

Well travelled in our PS451 – We are a family of six. The PS451 accommodates us very well. I have two kids on the double bed and two outside in swags but we can all fit around the table for dinner, although we bring an extra chair in on the floor. The slide out kitchen is great and gives us heaps of room inside. We have made some mods over time which are replaced front… Read more

hatch hinges with stainless ones as they kept perishing and falling apart. Replaced flys with privacy ones. Put shelves in all the cupboards for pots, pans, plates, baking tins etc, installed a 1.5kw split inventor air con in the back wall - outside unit sits in the spare wheel rut and the spare wheel is in front of it. The air con cools it down in summer to an easy 23degs and we have used the heating in winter to take the chill out of the air even with canvas it has worked great. We have changed the lights to LEDS to save battery power, installed USB charging points, volt metre and a sound system with external speakers. Also put a 12v plug outside for the engel. As mentioned we too changed the wheel lock nuts back to normal ones for the same reason, didn't want to get stuck and not be able to remove them. We have travelled around Aus with ours, done some gravel roads, camper did suck in a bit of dust but hey it's not perfectly sealed either. Lots of beach camping too. We have to scrimp on water a bit but always have enough to drink just not shower. The lounge has held up well considering we climb over it everyday. Only thing left for us to add would be a roof rack just to carry some boards as the car is loaded. Love the camper it's held up well, will see many more happy trips in it I hope.

Nicely Built Van but look out for useless security bolts and lousy after sales support – I have just recently bought a Coromal Silhouette Camper Caravan. The van itself is of excellent build quality overall, and far superior to their competitors. Things like triple hinges on every cupboard door and fully independent suspension. But I need to warn prospective buyers of a few traps. Firstly, Coromal tend to produce their vans with… Read more

special security bolts on the wheels to hinder theft with a 5 sided insert socket adapter. The only problem is that this adapter is designed with a reduced diameter shank which will twist and shear under even moderate torque. Very poor engineering design. In my case, the wheels nuts had been very securely tightened (probably not by Coromal themselves) and could not be undone with the adapter tool. The tool simply shears under pressure. I went through 2 of these adapters at $40 each and both sheared before having to resort in the end to cutting the studs off with an angle grinder and partly damaging the wheel. This is not Coromals engineering which is at fault, but a third party product. Believe me, you do not want to be stuck up a sandy track with a flat tyre if you have these wheel nuts. Better to replace them with standard wheel nuts and take the chance of your wheels being stolen. I re-stress this is not so much Coromal's failure but that of a third party supplier.

Secondly, Coromals User Manual is so generic as to be almost useless. One size fits all. Their wiring diagrams in particular caught me out as they are inaccurate and misleading. Coromals response to my enquiry was EXTREMELY unhelpful and terse. They will not provide wiring details, and I must take my van to the closest dealer and pay them for the service. They directed me to their website where there is an interactive dealer locator. Now, I was in Tasmania at his time and guess what? their nearest dealer as reported by their website is at Ballarat Victoria. It would have cost $1500 to go to Ballarat for a simple wiring problem, but they don't care. So for Coromal support, I would have to give a 0/10.

In short, an excellent quality van (when you replace the wheel nuts), but don't expect any sort of support from the makers. They are just not interested Excellent strong build Quality. Great design. Slide out kitchen gives heaps of room.Triple hinges on cupboards etc. Replace the stupid security wheelnuts. Lousy after market attitude to owners.

421 Coromal Sihouette Off road – We purchased a new PS421 this year after considering the opposition and reading reviews. We were impressed with the features and finish and we obtained a slight discount as it had been on the floor for a while. Have only used it twice and have found a few bugs with it but overall pleased with it and how it tows. The layout is good and the slide… Read more

out kitchen is very effective. A longer trip at Christmas will be a good test. Have fitted an extra water tank as water ran out in a few days. Nowhere to mount jerry cans and too much weight already on draw bar.

Second problem was the tap on the draw bar. When it was connected to mains pressure for the first time it leaked badly. Should have been tested at the factory. Fixed by dealer. Screws fell out of cupboards which are supposed to be upgraded as apart of the off road package. As others have reported, bedding got wet when it rained despite bag end flies. Performance of fridge on 12 volt is very poor. Need to run for 24 hours on gas/240 before leaving on next trip. Dust leaks in between gaps in canvas and walls when driving on dirt roads. Good finish and features overall and tows well. Looks good and relatively compact to store. Spacious interior. The original Al-Ko coupling was very hard to use due to tight tolerances and it had a useless red plastic disc that kept falling off. Junked it and replaced with a Treg. When I replaced it noticed it had undersize 9mm bolts and the whole coupling wobbled around. Reported to dealer who didn't assist in any way except to tell us where to buy bolts (this after spending over $37,000). Had to buy proper 12mm replacement bolts. Also replaced the number two power wire in the 7 pin plug with an Anderson plug. Don't know why they go to all the trouble of designing and building a camper to skimp for the sake of a few dollars. Finally, fitted a professionally made stone guard and a second chain, another example of skimping.

Poor after sales service – We purchased a Coromal second hand which was only 9 months old, however when we went to get things fixed which were clearly poor workmanship and materials . Coromal said we had no warranty as warranty does not pass to the second owner, I think this stinks that large companys can wriggle out of issues which clearly are their responsibility, I would… Read more

not buy another COROMAL van, and would advise other to check the fine print,

toilet leaked on first use, door frame and door crooked and jamming, shower rail broke, venetian blinds broken.

Excellent – Excellent towing. We towed it with a Falcon Sedan. No leaks in the canvas. Plenty of room. Excellent for a couple with 2 or 3 children, also the annexe has room for an extra bed. We would recommend it on our experiences with the Coromal 421. We will be going away again next year & looking forward to it. We are a retired couple & recommend it for… Read more

any age.

Happy COROMAL campers We bought a brand new Coromal Silhouette 421 from the 2005 Caravan & Camping show in Brisbane which was delivered in April 2006. It has an electric winch which was included in the price. When it arrived in Brisbane we got flies put on each end through a place at Currumbin at the Gold Coast along with an awning from the same place. We spent 7 months travelling in 2006 travelling 20,000 km's around Australia - We had the van serviced at Coromal - Loganholme Brisbane when we came home, & the only things that needed doing were a couple of screws holding the microwave down that had come loose. They only needed bigger screws. 2007 We had an annex made to suit the awning & we went away again for 3 months to W.A.- S.A. Victoria & home which was another 10,000km's. Had the van serviced again & nothing needed doing. 2008 stayed home & we've just got home from another 3 month trip to W.A. - Northern Territory - Queensland dong another 15,000km's trip. We arrived home on Sunday May 31st 2009. We cannot fault the Coromal Silhouette 421 in any way. We didn't have so much as a flat tyre. Nothing to dislike.

Excellent – We bought a second hand on road Silhouette 421 in 2009. We have been very happy with it and find it suits our needs perfectly. There is ample bench space across one whole side of the caravan, comfortable couch and seating for 4 at the table. I am a big believer that caravans are for sealed roads and campers and tents left to the off-road because… Read more ·  1

caravan appliances are not designed for off road travel e.g. dometic fridges, air-conditioners, stoves etc.

As such we have found the caravan to be trouble free.

I really like the bench height inside because you don't have to bend down as much as in other models.

There is ample storage under seats and in the large front boot. The Gas bottle is nicely stored in the front locker out of the way and makes the whole unit very neat and tidy.

Overall I would recommend these campers to anyone who likes some comforts but still wants to experience the outdoors with out having to have a highly priced tow-car such as a landcruiser etc. I tow this caravan perfectly with a Ford Falcon. Well finished and designed love the slide out kitchen. Easy to towBench height higher than a Jayco or Goldstream.Have used it in cooler days and found it to be comfortable. Seat padding needs re stapling every so often because kids climb on it.

Good – all in all, a good van, litle things not finished properly. poor after sales attitude unfortunately but apparnetly typical. better service would sell more vans. front hatch hinges poor, been replaced now but expensive! we have a 391 pioneer. we travelled 19000 kms in 2009 from melbourne to centre then thru mereenee loop to alice. put stone thru… Read more

water pipe from tank. we fixed that in alice with foam tube from clarke rubber. should have been lagged by manufacturer! gibb river road including up to drysdale river and mt hart. up to middle lagoon and cape levique. back to broome, on to pilbara incl mine roads to karratha. We also traversed rough road in outback midwest. only real problem was the screws in door mount slide came out. canvas a bit sloppy. fridge failed due to short due to grommet missing. overhead door mount should have been bolts not screws in particle board. otherwise a great van. led lighting would be good when offroad to conserve battery.

No leaks with mine! – I bought a Sillhouette 451 in November 2012 to tow behind a Prado. We are a combined Family, 3 teenagers with us and 3 optional. We have done about 6000kms with it, mostly all bitumen but also some gravel (This IS Australia after all). I've also had it on Fraser Island, as well as shorter weekend trips locally. I bought it for family holidays at… Read more

caravan parks, weekends at national parks, and a quick unpack/pack up overnighter on longer road trips.

The previous owner has done about 30 000kms touring in it. It's easy to set up. 3 people chave it ready to go in 5 minutes (or about 10 mins solo, my wife can do it easily if she needs to) - great after a day's driving. Same deal - also just as easy to pack up. Add 10 minutes for the awning, another 10 for full annexe. Inside it's comfortable, no leaks whatsoever. It tows and rides very well. Everything works well except where listed below. My main bugbears are they typical things with this style of van - ie lack of storage space. More than 4 adults/teens need a tent. I guess I can solve that byding up to a full van. Specifically minor bugbears include climbing over the dining area to get to bed. It's quite cold in winter (forget insulation -it is half canvass after all). I also have had the winch cables go twice - both times ironically after gravel roads, although not on Fraser). The first time a local guy patched it up as we had no dealer close. It went again today, will try the new dealer tomorrow. At this stage I'd thoroughly recommend it over it's competitors