Welcome to 360 Explorers ! We are Sam, Sofia and Stella (The ADORABLE Border Collie). Join us as we traverse the vast landscapes of Australia in our off-road caravan. From the rugged coastlines to the expansive outback, we delve deep into the heart of the Land Down Under. Join us for some epic fishing adventures, camping under the starlit skies, and savoring Australia's flavors with our on-the-go cooking sessions.
Our set up is a Ford Ranger (tinnie on the roof), towing a semi-off road Jayco Starcraft. We previously travelled 6 months with our old fully off-road Caravan (Mars 15 Premium) which we traded in for our Jayco.
Make sure to subscribe and journey with us through the best Australia has to offer! #AustraliaTravel #OffroadCaravan #FishingAustralia #CampingLife #offroad #offroadcaravan #offgridliving #rooftoptinny #fishing
We always read comments so please feel free to reach out. We appreciate every subscriber and would like to say THANK YOU to you for watching :)
Pro tip: Batteries are either good or bad-no middle ground. If it goes down to 9V, throw it away and get another one. Yes, you can charge it, and yes, it will work for a bit longer. But can you rely on it anymore? NOPE! Don't waste your time; just buy another one. Also, get your alternator checked. A low battery is why you were experiencing strange electrical issues, like the car thinking you're out of fuel.
I checked out their office in Sydney. They could'nt even get off their chairs to talk to me & the one who did couldn't be bothered to demonstrate anything. That impression was enough to put me off the brand. If they treated me like how would they behave if I had issues afterwards.
Great episode. Stella could have sat on the floor of the track. I am glad you are back on the road again Safe Travels. And on to your next adventure.😎🦘🏕️🍻🍹
Thank you! I know we tried to negotiate with the driver. But it’s health and safety protocol. We were a little concerned about her being in the car but gladly it worked out. Hopefully won’t have to do it again for a while. Thanks for the comment Paul ☺️
Ohh guys what a roller coaster ride!!!!! Keep smiling and thanks for bringing us along. Mataranka is only an hour from Kathrine and is worth the 2 hr detour if yous have the time. Looking forward to seeing you guys explore the west coast - Olliesonodyssey 🤙
Hi Jay, So nice to hear from you. Thanks for the comment. we are soo excited about the West coast and yes we might do a drive down to Mataranka and Bitter springs. Maybe a day trip from Katherine. Hope you and the family are doing well ❤️
Glad the ranger was sorted without to much of a problem. Our NRMA roadside assistance had an extra that we took out for transport and accommodation for our dog in the event that we have a breakdown and our dog can't travel in the tow truck or stay with us. Can't remember the exact cost but was $40 something, well worth it I think. Daly Waters is an amazing place. Great place to breakdown, but was probably boring after 3 day's. Now for the water, get use to struggling to get water while travelling up north. You really learn how to minimise your water usage. Cheers for sharing another great episode.
Thanks Wayne. Water is something we’re still learning to use minimal of. I’ve noticed it’s a bit of a skill. So we bought some 20L bladders to fill up for extra water. You know, we met a guy with the same problem and was towed with a hire car accommodation and repairer. Because we were RACQ we were only entitled to the tow. And the person we met was RACV…. And they’re cheaper. So I might renew with RACV but I might also look into NRMA now. Thanks for that. 👍
@360-Explorers just phone around and find what works best for you. Remember to look at worst case scenario as that's when you need the insurance. NRMA has always worked for us with what they offer even though they are NSW based and we live in SA. We also only just learnt about the pet cover extra this week, we had never considered it, and thankfully it was a good NRMA consultant that my wife was talking to that asked if we travel with a pet. Pays to phone occasionally and have a chat about their products to make sure you have what best suits your type of travel.
Hey Jason, Yulara is the town close to Uluṟu which a lot of travellers usually stay at to visit Uluṟu. It’s about 20km away and they have a caravan park, fuel, shops etc.
Yes, It''s getting to that point, we might have to do something. We wouldn't be able to lock it then to leave for a few hours. someone can pull our string lol
Don't know what your thoughts are, but mine were that the rock is over rated and a rip off. Hopefully you visit Kings Canyon, it really is amazing. It's so much better than the rock!
It's nice. But yes very expensive. They might start charging you to breathe in the near future. hahaha We have done kings canyon a few years ago, yes we loved it!
@@360-Explorers By tools, I meant the seal puller for the rear seal. You should also get a common easy to find grease. You don't want to mix different types.
Just read a forum post where they paid $91 for an unpowered site at El Questro !! We are heading up to Darwin shortly & as an example, Kings Canyon campground/CP is around $60 unpowered and so it goes on. In the big scheme of things, $28 aint so bad. 🤨
Jeez, $91 is crazy! We have heard kings canyon is expensive but we missed it. In Darwin, check out Coolalinga or Robbie Robbin’s reserve for reasonable pricing.
i paid $48 for a tent site 30 years ago for a tent site at philip island and that was after he gave us a discount when i told him he won the prize for the dearest camp sit on the east coast
How is your roller rocker suspension going on the dirt tracks. We have the same suspension, and you hear its ok, its not ok for such tracks. We want to do lap next year, and travel all the iconic road's We will also travel with our dog By the way, like your channel, realistic and honest.
Thank you for the comment mate we appreciate it! We have the J tech suspension which are shocks.. no leaf springs. They go alright, not amazing because the van does rattle a fair bit. But we want to do the Gibb river road and we’re still iffy. I’ve heard good things about the roller rocker with leaf springs. If you take it easy I reckon we should be alright. Mate, doing the lap is the best thing ever! Let me know if you ever have questions
You should be called "Wogs in the Bush"please don't take it the wrong way... By the way U need to start wearing your seat beat and yes your dog should have one on all the time even if it is a short way incase a animals runs out and you hit the brakes she gets hurt...U would never forgive yourself... Wood bag hanging to low so it has been hitting road... Thanks for bread idea would be nice with herbs init or pepper... Yes U can make a net for Stella with elastic measure head to collar with some room then get elastic thread it throw to stop flies attacking her...also she needs air on her in the back seat... I hope U show us Coper pede place U are at now...stay in a below accomidation it would be so cool... Were are U guys from Melb or Syd...???❤❤❤I hope U get your door handle...
Hahaha yes if I don’t wear my seat belt you’ll hear the car beeping crazy at me. The wood bag has been sitting there for 5 months with no issue but the rocks from the Oodnadatta track ripped it and therefore it started hanging lower than usual, so we’ll get a replacement soon hopefully. The underground caves in Cooberpedy were wonderful and cool but to stay there you’ll need a tent or swag. I’m from Melbourne, Sofia originally from WA and came across to Victoria :) Thanks for watching
Our door lock broke 4 weeks ago at Cowell SA... So frustrating but a small thin flat screwdriver can open ya door...You work the screwdriver just like the handle..
Thanks for the comment! Oh mate it’s been a 3 weeks now using a small flathead and everyday there is less and less handle to grab lol. Should get it sorted asap now. Alice Springs had nothing in stock! It’s gonna feel like a brand new van with a handle.
@@360-Explorers I used the small screwdriver by inserting it into the mechanism and making it do that the handle would do... Bit tricky but can be done..I bought my new handle in Port Augusta for $162 i think...complete assy... Good luck..
We were in Adelaide wondering what spares we should take? A handle would have been nice! Because now we’ll wait to get to Darwin. Might buy a couple I reckon. I feel like if we carried a spare, it’d never break! lol
Track looked worth it imo, don't think the few problems are worth worrying about. The door handle could of broken while you were on a sealed highway, or in your hand next time you went to open the door. I'm a tight arse and think $25 and $28 is over the top when you don't need any facilities, I would of over nighted on the side of the track somewhere. Thanks for sharing your adventure
Thanks for watching Wayne! Yes, in hindsight it wasn't so bad! We seem to have avoided permanent damage besides a few stone chips here and there! Beautiful place and yes paying $28 for a bit of ground isn't ideal. Would much preferred a feed at the pub for double the amount!
You need to find out the efficiency of those panels. All look into wiring differently maybe. I also use a battery back up. I use the Anker757. This allows me to plug in the Mars-13. Btw, my tire came off while driving. I really need to publish my Caravan videos. 🤙
Yes, I’ve been watching them very closely. They’re now getting close to 15amps. Unfortunately, I left it all to the pros so I don’t have to worry about it. But yeah not entirely happy. They did tell me Victron was no good, but I love the stuff so I got the Victron panels. The tyre came off the Mars? Hope everyone was safe, yes that would have made an excellent video, also a heads up on how it happened so it doesn’t happen again.
Parking in the shade as you were, won't generate diddly. You'll get more from your system on a cloudy day than you will parked under a tree on a sunny day.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, the issue was we were in partial shade which threw off the whole system, I'll need to get more strategic in parking up I reckon
If you get onto Sarah and Keelan travels, he is a sparky and has done videos on how to set up your 4wd and caravan for the best charging options. Hope this helps.
The trees didn't look to be shading you van that much. You should be getting alot more than 8amps from 500watts, I can get 8amps from 160watts in the right conditions. Personally I'd get a foldout solar panel or blanket that you can put out in the sun if your van is parked in shade. Is your StarCraft independent suspension or solid axles? Keen to see how it handles the dirt/gravel roads.
Hi Wayne, Thanks for the comment. It seems the installer has left some silicone on the panels, causing the issues with low solar. I have spent some time up there cleaning, and now we get 13ah from 500watts on a perfect day. I was hoping for a little more ideally, but unfortunately, it is what it is. We took the van on the Oodnadatta Track and yes it is an independent suspension, we have that video should be ready to go next Saturday! we did break stuff but overall not bad.
@360-Explorers thanks for getting back to me. Don't accept 13amps as how it is, something else is wrong. I would be expecting 20-25amps, maybe even more. I'd question if the panels are as they are rated, or there's a voltage drop through to small of wire used for the length of the run. I'll look forward to the next episode!
So I thought it was pronounced ‘blue - etti’ - not that it’s at all important. I think you just bought another 200amp battery, which is cool and all. But a generator will give you power when all else fails- if you’re off grid for long enough and your power demands are high enough then a generator will win out. Get it, fuel, noise and all that. Also, check your leccy brakes are not draining power. Can’t remember exactly how, but one setting they will draw a lot of power when disconnected.
Hey Jason, Yes, you're right basically another battery, but instead of putting another battery system in the car, we have saved on wiring, inverter, charger, shunt, and labor. So we can still have power when we leave the caravan behind, I will need to look into this power draw because there are always a couple of amps coming out of somewhere, and I figured it was the display for the microwave or stove. Appreciate the comment, also with the pronunciation, we were confused so we asked the company and it's not a huge deal with them but they did say it is 'Blue-Tea' But to be honest, I don't reckon they are 100%
We have just been to the Flinders staying at 3 different stations and doing 3-4 hour exploring drives. We were so impressed with the Flinders it is so worth a visit.
For most solar panel even shading a small part will reduce its output significantly. There are some panels that are more tolerant of partial shading. If you're in a shady spot and can't move the van youll need to use a solar blanket.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, I need to find a way to plug in a blanket from the dcdc charger via Anderson. We can’t last off grid more than 2-3 days with 500 watts or else. Maybe summertime will do better
Thank you for the comment It’s the AC200L, check in description for a link and a discount. They do have sales every so often. They also have different sizes to suit you.
Great video, I have a question for you guys,would you recommend or buy again Mars caravan? We were going to put the deposit on Mars 13 X but after seeing your and other peoples comments about the issues I’ll have to consider that seriously ,your help with this matter will be much appreciated. Thanks guys 👍
Thank you! Well we traded it in at a loss. So we definitely wouldn’t buy again. We were misled with the weights and stuffed around with warranty. After speaking to a few people it seems to be normal to expect some problems with caravans and brands however it was the after sale service that tipped us over.
