Hyundai and CUB Campers are pretty close right now, and to celebrate the release of the Trek 'n' Tow package for the new Santa Fe, CUB has launched a new camper trailer.

A successful Hyundai/CUB partnership saw adventurer turned environmentalist, Hans Tholstrup, tow a CUB Camper behind a Hyundai i30 for an economy record of 5.66L/100 kilometres in early 2008. Hyundai and CUB combined again to celebrate the launch of a Trek 'n' Tow suspension kit for the Santa Fe seven-seat 'soft-roader'.

Hyundai has made cosmetic and equipment changes to the 2009 Santa Fe range. The most significant is an optional Trek 'n' Tow suspension kit ($1600, plus fitting) that increases ground clearance and towball load capacity. It consists of four re-rated coil springs, Edelbrock monotube rear dampers and progressive rear bump stops. The Trek 'n' Tow kit can be retrofitted to current-shape Santa Fes.

The Santa Fe fitted with Trek 'n' Tow sits 20-30mm higher than the standard vehicle and, because the spring rates are higher, the vehicle doesn't have as much dynamic change to ground clearance when running on rough ground. In addition, the kit allows a higher towball load to be imposed - 180kg, compared with the standard vehicle's 150kg rating. Towing capacity is 2000kg.

The suspension change doesn't turn the Santa Fe into a square-rigged, hairy-chested 4x4, but it does allow a full onboard load and a packed trailer behind, without much suspension sag.

To celebrate the release of the Trek 'n' Tow Santa Fe, CUB Campers came up with a limited-edition model that matches the Hyundai's characteristics. The special edition Kamparoo features a Trigg off-road coupling, override disc brakes, independent coil spring and telescopic damper suspension, a new roll-out kitchen module, a large aluminium chequer plate storage box, two gas bottles, a mesh stone guard and 235R15 tyres on spoked aluminium wheels.

The new kitchen arrangement features a stainless steel, roll-out stove and sink structure that has a lift-up tap and a clip-on drain hose. A long pantry rolls out in front of the kitchen.

This new kitchen and the independent suspension were added to this limited-edition model as a way of testing the water, so to speak. And, according to CUB's Russell Wood, the response has been overwhelming. "Both of these new elements will find their way onto Kamparoo Daintrees for 2009," he said. "And that model will retail for around $15K."

The Kamparoo H2 opens with gas strut assistance, controlled by CUB's winch strap. Once the trailer top has flipped over to become the hard floor the landing legs can be adjusted for distance to the ground. Then the internal roof support bars can be adjusted for correct tension and the floor struts clicked into place. Snap fasteners lock the canvas sides to the trailer body and that's it for overnight stays.

For longer-term camping, the awning can be zipped on. This awning comes with spreader bars that simply click onto the three supporting poles, so erection is quick and easy.

Unless there was a strong breeze, I found guy ropes unnecessary and the awning can be left attached when folding up the trailer.

Packing away was the reverse procedure, with the winch and strap taking all the effort out of the folding operation. The strap holds the folding roof in tension, so it's easy for the 'wincher' to stop and do some canvas tucking during packing. If there are two people on hand, one can winch and the other can 'tuck'.

A secondary winching roller is provided, to give direct downward compression during the last few centimetres of folding, so there's no physical effort required.

The H2 as tested weighed in at 650kg empty, with a 90kg ball load and it had an aggregate trailer mass rating of one tonne, making it a useful load carrier.

The combination of Santa Fe with Trek 'n' Tow suspension and CUB Kamparoo proved to be a pleasant one. The Hyundai 2.2-litre turbo-diesel had ample power and torque to provide effortless highway performance and the slack-free Trigg coupling meant there was no thumping from the back-end and quick response from the override trailer discs.

On rough and uneven surfaces, the Santa Fe's and the CUB's independent suspensions soaked up irregularities without excessive bouncing and the trailer tracked neatly over the Hyundai's tyre marks through all but very tight turns. Manoeuvring was easy.

You can buy a Hyundai Santa Fe diesel auto with Trek 'n' Tow kit and couple up a CUB Kamparoo for a combined price that's around what you'll pay for a large 4x4 wagon alone. Makes sense for many bush travellers, I reckon.

Caravan+RV magazine, issue 9, Feb/Mar 2009.