Swift Challenger SE
7 reviews
Swift Explorer 4 - A great caravan with a lot of extras – We bought our caravan second hand from a couple in Adelaide. We're from Melbourne, so had a great trip with a stay overnight in our new caravan. Being our first caravan, we had a lot to learn. More than we had realised. I remember when I was a kid, my parents had a caravan, but that was different as theirs didn't have all the bells and whistles… Read more
like modern caravans have, so we weren't prepared enough for ours. We drove up in our WH Statesman (V8), which used a tad over a tank to get there. On the way back, the Statesman used a little over double the petrol, even though the caravan is well under the towing capacity of the Statesman. A few days after getting back, the car broke down with a dodgy sensor. The Mob at the Holden dealership said that the sensor could have caused the bad fuel economy on the way back, so I'm not sure if the car was thirsty because of the dodgy sensor, or if it wasn't happy towing the caravan. While driving, especially after the sensor was replaced we barely noticed that we were towing the caravan. We have since bought a Jeep Grand Cherokee, which tows it nicely, and is far more economical than the V8, especially considering its a diesel.
Unfortunately we weren't told about the 12 pin trailer plug, but the couple we bought it from towed it to a pet friendly caravan park, as we had our dogs with us. In the morning I went on the hunt for a sparkie to get the plug replaced. The best I could find was a mob who sold the plug, so I wired it up myself, but only the 7 main wires, which got us home. I have since learnt that a standard 7 pin flat plug will fit the 12 pin socket to get by, which is great as we don't need a second plug, or adapter to Tow our trailer.
The caravan has a lot of extras that we liked, especially the ensuite, which is perfect, especially considering my brother is disabled, and we don't have to take him to the toilet in the middle of the night. Had we known that we were going to upgrade our car, we would have bought a bigger caravan with at least an extra bed. My dad has passed away, and with the extra bed, we could have taken mum with us sometimes. There were some similar caravans for around the same price advertised. Also, we could have bought an off road caravan, but I'm still very happy with what we got. The finish is exemplary, except for a small bit of wood grain contact that has deformed on a shelf near the ensuite. The panel on the side of the couch near the door has pulled away, but that's because my brother uses it as a handle when getting in and out of the caravan. It's easy to fix, and I plan on reinforcing it. We love the airconditioner, especially on a hot day. There's an optional remote control for it, which I plan on buying soon, although it is quite expensive. The only drawback is that the airconditioner only works when the caravan is plugged into 240v. The caravan has a couple of solar panels, which is great to keep the batteries charged. Apart from the airconditioner, we can live in it off the grid. As long as there's enough sun for the solar panels of course. And we have to carry water with us, so we can fill the tank.
My only complaints are that a manual wasn't included, and the couple we bought it from were a little ditzy, and seemed confused when explaining some of the functions, so we really weren't shown how to make things work, especially the heater, and water heater. We kind of had to figure it out, but we still really don't know how properly. Every time we got it working was by accident lol. The other complaint is that it seems heavier, and less stable when towing with the water tank full. It's located on the right side rear, and even when full, it's never truly full, so it moves around whilst driving.
I have since installed caravan movers, which are a pair of motors that slide into place, and rollers turn the wheels, and with a remote control, we can move the caravan without needing a car, especially when trying to park it in a tight space. It's also great when pulling up at a caravan park late at night. That way we can back it in as close as we can with the car, then unhitch it, Park the car, then park the caravan properly, which is quieter than using the car, and there's less chance of waking the neighbours.
Overall we are happy with our Caravan, and would gladly buy another in the future. I have seen a few bad reviews, but I can't complain with ours, and I would happily recommend our model to anyone who is looking for something similar. Just do your homework first, and make sure that it's what you want. It's a great light weight caravan which sleeps up to 4 people. If you can, get one with an island bed, as I have to climb over my wife to go to the toilet.
Great lightweight caravan, fully equipped! – After lots of research we purchased a 2014 Swift Explorer 4. It's been a fantastic van for our small family. So easy to tow, double glazed windows everywhere, a real luxury modern van with a list of extras as long as your arm, plus it has uprated suspension, so tare weight is about 1150kg and GVM is nearly 1600kg. That's better carrying capacity… Read more
than the typical big heavy Australian vans. And you can tow it with a normal car!
Very happy with our purchase.
Swift Explorer 584 – Some of these observations cast a shadow over Swift quality or service and although I would not wish to minimise any obvious trauma, there does seem to be a lack of research before the purchase. Certainly Swift caravans may not be as robust as some Australian manufacturers, but when you look at what you get in the overall package, they do… Read more
represent very good value. It is also very important to choose the right dealer, we also dealt with Damien to order our Swift Explorer 584 and took delivery through the Brisbane dealer in August 2014. Yes there have been some niggling problems, some of which I could handle myself and some which were done by the Swift dealers, both in Brisbane and more latterly at the new dealer in Melbourne. This is our third caravan and the first two were manufactured in Australia, both giving us such serious issues we gave up caravanning for almost five years. Obviously there are frustrations in dealing with a factory on the opposite side of the world, but can say both of our dealers have been so patient and attentive, they have been far superior to anything we found from our Australian manufacturers. Our Explorer 584 is now well sorted, it REALLY IS A DREAM TO TOW it offers the most comfortable saloon area and bedroom, includes most of the items you have to pay for as an option on many other vans like central heating (Yes you do love it overnight around South of Australia), twin solar panels, twin batteries, fresh water tank, grey water tank, full cooker, full shower and en-suite etc etc. So the real matter in hand, is to do your homework very well before the purchase, everything has pro's and con's, Swift is basically a good product but not for everyone !!
Shocking after sales service – We bought our Explorer in September 2014, not long after we bought it the dealer went out of business, trying to get any after sales service from Swift was impossible. Our van is not registered and remains on site, Our elderly Mum lives there permanently. The fridge will not defrost, the windows have dropped and cannot be shut properly, the… Read more
curtains will not run and the cupboard doors have dropped and are out of alignment.
We have been in contact with Leigh at customer care swift RV who have informed us that as we have not completed the required service schedule by Swift approved people our warranty is void.
Swift Explorer 2 – Frankly I am at a loss to understand the problems reported here. We bought ours in April 2015 from Swift Brisbane. We were informed of the differing plug when we were discussing buying the van and the service given to us by the dealership from start to finish was first class. As the hand over was later than expected on the day they even booked us… Read more · 3
into a caravan park and paid for it. So far we have towed it from Brisbane home to Cairn, through the Atherton Tablelands, down the Bruce to the Gold Coast, through outback NSW, to Sydney, down to central Vic, over the Great Alpine Road to Lakes Entrance, back over the high country to Wagga, up through to Bathurst and back to Sydney. On the way down we called into Swift Brisbane and they regognised us by name. When talking to Daniel I asked him if he had any conacts at Dometic as the fridge kept bipping as the sensor telling you the door was open had failed. Daniel rang Dometic and it turns out that with the aes8555 fridge this is a commen problem and they told him how to unplug the sensor which one of his guys did. A Sydney agent has since fixed this with no hassles at all from Dometic. What problems have I had? Apart from the sealant in the ensuite shower hardening, a screw coming loose in the kitchen and finding a crack near the grey water pipes at the back absolutely none. The Customer Care person at Swift is a complete waste of time so if you email him send any copy to the dealer you bought yours from. When I got to Sydney I contacted Sydneyrv and they had everything done in no time at all. Would I buy another Swift?, any day. We are even thinking of buying a bigger version next year. I will say that one of the biggest problems we have had is being pestered by people wanting to know about the van. From reading other revies on different makes it seems that they are all tarred with the one brush with after sales but like most brands, even cars, if you get a good dealer you can be confident.
Look very carefully before you purchase – Totally agree with the previous review. The cabinetry is very poorly constructed and there were things which should have been done and checked before leaving the Caravan Super Center in Melbourne. We had 1 screw in each of the 3 hinges instead of 3 in each on the ensuite door, so after our 1st trip away the door sagged. The screws holding the… Read more
panel on panoramic window section have fallen out & I can't get them to stay in because metal screws to a plastic hole does just not work. Shower join is coming unstuck. We were only made aware of the wiring for the car needing to be changed at the time we were told it was ready to pick up and at a cost of $480. Also were not aware that there is no water tank to the FB4 and had to have one installed before picking it up. The Alko hitch is not all it's cracked up to be. After the 2nd trip there was a piece that broke out of it that looks like a hard plastic or a very light metal. This I was told would have to be paid for ourselves even though the van is only a few months old. The after sales service has been a real problem. No one returns calls or follows up on anything. The layout & the low tare weight of this van is the reason we went with this van. We do still like these things about it but are very concerned that the fittings are not going to hold together for long.
Anything but Swift – Problems encountered since purchase: cabinets and joinery poorly fitted, battery overheating causing toxic fumes and almost causing fire, front window warping and needing replacement - over 3 months to replace, k-act anti sway system failing, water leakage, incompatible vehicle electrics connector plug for australia - unable to attach to another… Read more
vehicle (cost to reconfigure $480), rear indicators / parking lights electrics need repairs (cost $350) - this is all in a little over 12 months since buying in queensland. The warranty is dodgy and the service centre on the gold coast told me they wouldn't help out a local auto electrician in configuring the complicated connector plugs. Lots of bs when it comes to replacing or fixing defects. Very unhappy with swift australia and not a good idea to buy euro vans. Looks good, easy to tow
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