Earlier this year, we did a review on the latest model Ezytrail Ceduna MK3, which goes for just under $60,000 and around $65,990 for the next size up, the Ceduna 15 MK3. But for those of you with a budget that doesn’t quite stretch to a brand-new caravan, there’s nothing wrong with looking for a second-hand Ezytrail Ceduna in good nick.
While filming Foodie Trails, RVDaily gave the Ezytrail 2019 model Ceduna 13 (two-berth) and 15 (four-berth) a thorough field test. The brief was clear. Take two Ezytrail Ceduna off-road caravans on a three-week sojourn around Regional NSW and QLD, finding the most beautiful places to set up camp and the most delicious things to eat. Doesn’t sound like your average caravan review, does it? Here’s what you can expect from the older (and original) Ezytrail Cedunas.
Review: 2019 Ezytrail Ceduna 13 & 15
Marking Ezytrail’s entry into the caravan market proper, the Ceduna was Ezytrail’s first hard-top off-road caravan that aimed to provide everything you need for adventure in the one package. Ezytrail doesn’t believe in an options list as long as your arm, which is an approach I quite like for general touring. You won’t be caught out paying thousands of dollars more for your van than you first anticipated. The Ceduna was more or less ready to go, with plenty of hardware for exploration off-road, self-sufficient touring and comfort away from home.
An off-road tourer
Although compact at 13- and 15-feet respectively, the Ceduna is not the lightest of small caravans. The Ceduna 13 weighs 2100kg Tare with a 2800kg ATM, while the Ceduna 15 weighs 2380kg Tare, with a 3000kg ATM. And while this is stretching the friendship for smaller tow vehicles with three-tonne towing capacities, particularly in off-road environments, for the Ram 1500s with which we were hauling them, it was a piece of cake. That said, our off-road testing was limited to well-graded gravel tracks into a handful of the campsites we encountered, so we can’t claim to offer a comprehensive off-road review.
But, like Ezytrail’s other off-road camper trailers and hybrids, the Ceduna has all the right hardware for the job: independent trailing arm suspension with dual shocks; anti-chip underbody protection; an AL-KO off-road ball coupling (which we swapped for the optional McHitch Uniglide auto-coupling system which worked a treat); 12-inch electric brakes; and 265/70R17 off-road tyres, including two rear-mounted spares.
Ezytrail put its money where its mouth is
And in proclaiming the Ceduna a full off-road caravan, Ezytrail put its money where its mouth is by providing first owners with a lifetime warranty on the Ceduna’s chassis and drawbar, protecting against fault demonstrated in both on- and off-road situations. The Ceduna is fitted with Ezytrail’s ‘F5’ chassis and drawbar, which have both been engineer-certified ADR compliant for off-road use.
The F5 Chassis is made from 100 x 50 x 4mm Q345 galvanised steel tube while the F5 Drawbar is 150 x 50 x 4mm. The body of the caravan is aluminium RHS frame with composite panel cladding and has black aluminium checker plate trims.
The front storage box doubles as a stoneguard with anti-chip protection, and has two gas storage compartments plus a larger central compartment for jerry cans and tools.
Self-sufficient camping
The Ezytrail Ceduna won’t just get you to that remote campsite, it’ll let you stay there camping independently for several days. It has 240L of freshwater storage, split across front and rear tanks with 1.5mm checker plate protection and independent 12V pumps. There’s a 67L grey water tank to catch your used bathroom water, while a chemical canister loo takes care of the gritty business. There’s capacity to securely stow 18kg of gas, with the aforementioned twin 9kg gas bottle holders, convertible to 4.5kg holders.
A popular optional extra for this model was solar, which adds 3 x 100W roof-mounted solar panels into the equation. With these on-board the Ezytrail electrics system works a treat, providing near-constant charge into the 3 x 100amp deep cycle batteries. There’s a 25amp 7 stage charger, plus 240V power input. It’s all monitored by an effective battery management system. A new model of course, will offer more (400W of solar on the roof and 240A from a pair of lithium batteries), but the original offering is certainly still usable and not slouchy by a long shot.
Comfort on the road
Hot water comes at the flick of a switch, which fires up the Swift 240V/gas 28-litre storage boiler, plumbed to both the bathroom and kitchen sink. The on-board ensuite is surprisingly spacious for such a compact van, with shower, sink and Thetford chemical toilet. The Ezytrail Ceduna 13’s bathroom has a handy storage shelf for toiletries and towels (this space is taken up by the bunk beds in the Ceduna 15). The bathroom has a roof hatch and exhaust fan, plus a handy wall-mounted, mirrored vanity cupboard.
The main bed is a luxurious king, with innerspring mattress with pillow top. This folds in half during transit. Presumably this bed is designed for north-south sleeping, but I found myself sleeping east-west because I don’t find the join where the mattress folds in half comfortable at my hips. If I owned a Ceduna, I’d quickly invest in a dense comforter as a quick fix to alleviate this issue.
Is it comfortable to sleep in?
The Ezytrail Ceduna 15’s bunk beds have a single on top and a king single below, with mixed density foam mattresses. My illustrious co-presenter on Foodie Trails, Chef Macca, slept on the bottom bunk of the van he shared with RV Daily editor Tim Scott, and reported it to be comfortable enough for the two weeks-plus we were on the road.
There are reading lights at both bunks and two at the main bed, with adequate internal and external lighting throughout the rest of the van.
The Ceduna 13 and 15 we used both had the optional Dometic reverse-cycle air-conditioner, which got a look in during the cold September evenings when we had mains power, sufficiently taking the edge off the chilly night air.
For music and telly, the Ezytrail Ceduna comes standard with an entertainment unit with Bluetooth connectivity and a 19-inch TV mounted near the main bed.
Layout
The Ceduna has a blessedly quick set-up time, with the rear bed extension pulled out in less than two minutes and the Dometic awning wound out and pegged down in five minutes more. This comes with a lightweight annexe to enclose the outdoor space.
Inside, there’s a central dinette and wardrobe. The Ceduna 13 has a front storage area with a handy amount of bench space, although this could benefit from 240V outlets for the use of appliances like a coffee machine and device chargers. The Ceduna 13 also has a large 2.1m external tunnel boot with access from both sides – an extremely handy, cavernous storage space.
The Ezytrail Ceduna 15 swaps this front storage out for the previously mentioned bunk beds. They both have top and tail windows and reading lights, and the manner in which they tuck behind the ensuite makes them cosy, private little nooks kids would love.
The main bed has oversized windows on both sides, plus a large head window. And while these large windows frame the view and allow great airflow, it does mean the van isn’t as insulative against cold weather such as we experienced in the Central West, Far South Coast and Yass areas. I’d prefer smaller windows near the bed to provide greater insulation and a sense of privacy. And while the Ceduna has privacy screens on each of the windows, there isn’t a blind for the glass panel of the door, which was an issue for me at night.
But wait … there’s more!
Thanks to its hard-top fixed roof, the Ceduna provides more functional internal storage space than any Ezytrail before it. There are overhead storage compartments all round, plus underbed and under-seat storage.
Cooking is alfresco, with an external slide-out kitchen. This has a four-burner gas stove, stainless-steel sink, two drawers, a folding dish drying rack and a small bench extension slide on the end – plus an adjustable support leg to keep it all sturdy. This works well, although the sink area would be more functional if the sink sat a couple of inches out from the body of the camper rather than flush with it. This would make washing up larger items much easier. Those super-sized windows at the bed are a bit pesky from the kitchen, too, impeding upon one’s headspace when standing at the sink.
There’s a separate lockable pantry drawer alongside the kitchen slide. The fridge slide is positioned on the other side of the van’s door, measuring 1000 x 530 x 480mm with exhaust fan and a sensor light, plus Anderson plug, 12V and 240V connectivity.
The absence of an indoor kitchen might bother some, but didn’t worry me. I love cooking outside; it brings me quiet joy to have grass underfoot while concocting some delicious meal, a glass of local wine in hand and the breeze in my hair. I’d much prefer that to the splattered fat of lamb chops on my bedding. But, granted, sometimes the breeze is a gale and the grass is a puddle and the wine comes from a box. For those sad times, the option to cook inside would be appreciated.
The verdict
If you’re looking for a comprehensive, affordable and compact off-road caravan that has most of the boxes ticked for comfortable yet simple touring, a second hand Ezytrail Ceduna is well worth a look. This capable, intrepid van is a value proposition for fuss-free caravan adventures.
Pros
Cons
Specs: Ezytrail Ceduna 13
Specs: Ezytrail Ceduna 15
Words by Emma Ryan & RVDaily. Images by Stuart Grant & RVDaily.
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