Golden Eagle Escape Test

“Wow, that looks awesome,” and “Daddy, did you buy it?” are just some of the exclamations made by my kids as they looked at the pictures of the Golden Eagle Escape 20ft 6in (internal length) family van. I’d returned from a trip towing this van to Secret Spot #16 in country Victoria and was sorting through the images.

Watching me work over the years, my kids have become RV enthusiasts and, it seems, they can now spot a good van from 50 paces.

Overall, I thought their observations were close to the mark. With two bunks across the rear of the van, an offside combo bathroom, a family-friendly lounge, and a large, separate bedroom at the front, the Escape looked every inch the family adventurer.

But no, sorry kids, I didn’t buy it. One day…

THE BEST OF THEM

The interior of this van is up there with the best of them. I found very little to quibble about. There’s a mass of storage space in the kids’ sleeping quarters, including a large wardrobe and a few drawers in the entryway, along with a sizeable draw below the bottom bunk.

Each bunk gets its own 12V point, not to mention a TV antenna point, so the kids can charge their tablets and watch TV to their heart’s content, or, if you’re off mains power, until the battery runs out of juice.

For an extra $700, larger families can option in a third bunk; however, due to space considerations, this would require the onboard hot water service to be moved from beneath the lower bunk to the gal-lined tunnel boot. Naturally, this would reduce the useable space of the boot but why not compensate by optioning in a storage box on the large A-frame? Just a thought.

On the offside, between the bunks and the dinette, is the moulded fibreglass combo bathroom, which includes a hand-held shower rose and Thetford cassette toilet.

In some family layouts, the size and design of the dinette remains the same as it is in a two-person rig; however, this one would easily sit two adults and two children, and the multi-directional table works a treat. Just work a small lever and the table will manoeuvre any which way, allowing easy access to the lounge for all members of the family. And to convert the dinette into another bed, gently step on the button at the base of the table leg, applying equally gentle downwards pressure to the table. It will lower to form a bed base. Press that button again, and the table will automatically rise. It’s a very good system.

The kitchen, fitted to the nearside opposite the dinette, has plenty of bench space. It features a Thetford Minigrill MkIII four-burner cooktop and griller, a load of storage, including a slide-out pantry, large Thetford fridge, and a Sphere microwave built into the overhead cabinetry. Like the dinette, it’s a family-friendly kitchen with plenty of storage and workable space.

And then there’s the separate front bedroom. What a beauty. The bed can be configured to suit particularly tall people without drastically diminishing the walk-around space.

Like in the kids’ quarters, there’s a healthy dose of storage space in the bedroom. Overhead lockers, corner foot-of-the-bed cupboards, deep wardrobes… There’s a lot that this van does well, and storage options is one of them.

The bedroom is also quite light, thanks to a Camec all-weather hatch, front window (with stoneguard) and a large window either side of the bed.

Among the other internal features, there’s a Belair 3200 reverse-cycle air-conditioner, and the van is pre-wired for a reversing camera.

The CNC-cut furniture in the van comes together well, with neat joinery throughout. The small amount of visible silastic, such as in the bathroom, appears to have been applied by a practiced hand, too.

OUTSIDE ESCAPE

The tandem-axle Escape is built in a time-honoured way, with aluminium cladding over a meranti timber frame. The chassis comprises 4in main members with a 2in raiser, and a 6in drawbar. The suspension is Al-Ko’s venerable Roller-Rocker leaf-spring variety and it’s fitted with one shock absorber per wheel to further soften the ride.

Up front, you’ll find a ball coupling, an Anderson plug so you can charge the house battery as you tow, a couple of 9kg gas cylinders, and some room to fit that aforementioned storage box, should you choose to. Considering the unladen ball weight of this Escape, 150kg, not to mention the 600kg payload capacity, it would certainly be a realistic addition.

Having said that, the crew at Golden Eagle dealer Canterbury Caravans, Vic, from where I borrowed the van, told me moves were afoot to reduce the Tare weight of the Escape, as well as the ATM (to below 2500kg). The idea is to make the van a realistic option for owners of mid-range 4WDs, such as the Prado. A good move, I reckon.

Storage-wise, it’s all about the front tunnel boot. Meanwhile, along the nearside, there’s a Dometic roll-out awning, a fold-down picnic table, and speakers wired to the stereo/DVD player inside (there is, naturally, a couple of speakers inside, too).

As you’d expect, the offside of the Escape is quite sparse. You’ll find the access point to the toilet cassette and Atwood gas-electric hot water service, as well as the other side of the tunnel boot. Mounted to the main chassis rail is a couple of checkerplate battery boxes. One battery is fitted as standard, but Golden Eagle has thoughtfully fitted a second in case you want to upgrade your 12V storage capacity.

GORV’S VERDICT

With its 20ft 6in internal length, the Golden Eagle Escape is an honest, good-value, family-sized van with long-term adventure written all over it. Could more features have been fitted? Well, perhaps they could’ve crammed in a washing machine somehow, but that would’ve been at the expense of living and storage space. And any family van worth its salt needs as much of these as it can get.

As it is, I think this Escape strikes a terrific balance between creature comforts, living space, storage and features. This is a van I could spend weeks in on the road. My kids, too – just ask them.

THE SCORE

FIT AND FINISH –

LAYOUT –

INNOVATION –

HITS & MISSES

COMPLETE SPECS