We take a hard-floor camper to hell and back

I don't mean to be rude, but lending a motoring journalist a camper-trailer, knowing full-well that he'd be taking it up one of Australia's most perilous 4WD tracks, can't be smart. Cape York's Old Telegraph Track has been a graveyard over the years for camper-trailers, with its combination of unexpected obstacles, corrugations and water crossings wreaking havoc on all sorts of camper brands. So when Camp-o-matic boss Carey Leghorn threw me the keys to his Ranger XTC model, I just grabbed them and bolted until I was out of phone range. Nice. Mental note - don't answer calls from Sydney numbers for the next three weeks…

Actually, no sane person heads north to the Cape without doing their research on what they're towing. I wanted to be pretty confident before I left that the Campo would stand up to the journey; and the best proof in the pudding here was a trip I did to the Cape about nine years ago. We took a Camp-o-matic then and she performed flawlessly, and the basic design has remained much the same ever since. Good enough for me.

No doubt the biggest bonus of this design is the setup time

The Camp-o-matic has been around for almost 40 years. It's a simple design that makes so much sense that the basic tent construction has been copied by many over the years. It's what they call a 'hard-floor' camper trailer, in that when you step inside, you're standing on a solid platform. No doubt the biggest bonus of this design is the setup time. You can literally be by the side of the road boiling the billy in under a minute. You simply undo three latches, flip out the floor and you're done. In fact, they're even faster to erect than a rooftop tent. Of course, if you want to camp in the one place for a while, you'll want to set up the eight-foot awning, which runs the complete length of the camper from poly block hitch to tailgate.

Stepping outside the front door, you'll notice a handle which, when tugged, releases a full stainless steel kitchen. Here your stove boasts four burners, a full sink and a pump-operated tap. The kitchen slides out on sturdy runners, and has a set of fold-down legs for added support. As for the four-burner stove, it's really popular on camper-trailers these days, but I think two or three bigger burners would suffice. When we were cooking for a big crew with full-sized pans, we would occasionally use two burners for the one pan. But surely the best feature of this kitchen is the stainless steel bench; it's great for food preparation, and super hygienic.

In the wedge box up front is a myriad of storage. The front section boasts an upright 65-litre Waeco 12-volt fridge, which sits astride further cupboard space. The wedge doors feature automotive seals, and no matter how much mud or deep water we threw at the front of the Campo, nothing seemed to penetrate. On the driver's side is yet more storage, and it's compartmentalized to make it really useful. You can even slot a Honda EU10i generator on-board. Of course, it's always tempting to throw lots of heavy gear in such a sturdy compartment, but just be wary of your ball weight when doing so. Oh, and if you can't go bush without the tinnie, the storage rack is ready to go, and you can even tick the box for an outboard motor rack.

The interior of the XTC could comfortably fit a family of four, or perhaps five at a squeeze; this would simply require popping a queen-size mattress on the floor of the camper. Mum and Dad will be comfy though, with a double-sized inner-spring mattress on which to rest their weary touring bones. Beneath the bed are a couple of fibreglass access panels (one of which is a full-length drawer) which can also be accessed through the tailgate (when the trailer is not erected); handy for those roadside snack stops.

And the big question: was she dustproof? You bet. In fact, even when we got a little slack and left a flap or two of canvas sticking out, it never got dusty inside. The automotive seals are worth their weight in gold.

When the Camp-o-matic boys designed the chassis, I'm guessing they didn't want any warranty claims. It's big, sturdy and galvanized, so you needn't worry about rust. And that frame is integrated right through the camper. Slung underneath is one stainless steel 120- litre water tank, and some seriously heavy-duty independent suspension.

The suspension is actually worthy of special mention

The suspension is actually worthy of special mention, as the trailer really did ride beautifully throughout the journey. Our only hiccup here was a flogged-out shock absorber bush, but considering this was an ex-rental trailer (and a $5 part), we thought it did pretty well. Oh, and one minor complaint was the tyres. We had just one puncture (not too bad for the Cape), but I'd love to see a more sturdy big brand tyre fitted, to match the quality of the trailer. The model we had was shod with 'King' brand tyres, which I'd never heard of, and I wasn't impressed when I saw their construction. Perhaps something from the Michelin range would be better suited to a trailer of this calibre. I'm sure you can discuss your specific tyre needs if you're in the market for a Campo, as many buyers opt to match their tow vehicle tyres with their trailer tyres.

The Camp-o-matic also has pretty awesome ground clearance, and it never looked like scraping, no matter which tracks we took.

If a blown tyre and a shock absorber bush are the worst that can happen after a two-week sojourn on one of Australia's toughest 4WD tracks, I reckon that's not a bad thing. The Camp-o-matic is extremely fast to erect, a feature which can't be under-estimated on a stop-start journey. Plus, it's comfortable and has plenty of storage. It's not the cheapest around, but pound-for-pound, it stacks up well. Not to mention, these models retain their second-hand value really well, something that can't be said for all camper-trailers.

Caravan+RV magazine, April/May 2009.