I have the Camper Essentials one on a SWB. Can‘t see it from the side unless you are very tall. I’ve used a Khyam sun shade and now a Vango Hexaway with a drive away kit. Both highly recommended. With a drive away awning it’s useful to mark out where your wheels sit before driving away, makes life a lot easier reconnecting the awning
 
Sorry, it's the Omnistor 4200 you want. LWB will want the 3.0m one. Brackets are as per this link. I can even get you a price if you want Lee.


With that setup, you'll be left with the two plates that are fixed to the van, but they are flat against the van and hidden under the pop top. The brackets that hold the awning can be removed.

If you can find a Brandrup rail, then you can get the setup that removes all of the brackets entirely. I can't do the Brandrup rail, but you may be able to find one somewhere else.
 
Right so thats the C-Rail, Reimo Multi-Chanel and wind out cassette sorted. . .


now for the Large Air Drive Away Awning ( that will attach to the above C-rail/Multi-rail) - ill start with this . . . . then look at the sail options later.

looking into this there seems to be three main players or options. . .

Vango, ( Galli Low 3 )
Kampa, ( Touring Air )
Outdoor Revolution, (MoveLite T4)

this seems to be reflected on one of my favourite Camping Stores Attwools. . . ( i just love a Attwools Mike YT video )


1664700100458.png1664700113620.png1664700142067.png


++++++++++++


one valid point raised by @VanDamMan was "check the pack size and weight" - and hes right.

i have, and have-had many,many tents . . . . in polyester and TC/Polly-Cotton.

while TC/polycotton is defiantly the better material ( i absolutely love it) it has three drawbacks. . . .

1- costs more
2- its heavier
3- packs down bigger

and when you start looking at 8man tents the pack size and weight are substantial. . . ( this is out TC Kampa Studland 8 + extra porch )

it packs down HUGE and weighs a TON !!!


1664700435148.png


.


looking back at a T6 camper. . . . the point Andy was making is that pack size is important as space in the camper to get the gear to size is a premium. . .

especially if you have people to transport in the back . .

and as you get older . . . man handling the weight becomes an effort.

He himself has has the TC Gally3 amongst other TC awnings and has sold them all due to size and weight.

+++


this good advice was backed up from @Jollyvan when they demoed there Vango Gally3 setup ( cleverly attached to the wind out cassette awning - that was wound out about 3ft)

they mirrored the options and recommended to got with the regular polyester . .


pack size expertly shown here by @Jollyvan

1664700769306.png1664700781158.png

that looks manageable. . .


+++++++++++

the other thing to note is that nearly all of the above offer extras and additions. . .

so you need to factor that in,

ie ground sheet, carpet, bedroom, front zipped door, extension etc etc etc .

when you start to add up all the additions you might want the prices start to creep up !!!

as an example id go for ground sheet, carpet, bedrooms, front zipped door + possible extension


++++++++++++


so moving on i started researching the above three . . .

sure there are some other manufacture offerings, but these seem to be main three. . .


as part of the research Google gave me some (sponsored) suggestions . . .

and one of them caught my eye.

the size and spec seemed to fit the bill and the optional additions seemed perfect . . .


++++++++++++


this is what popped up . . . id never heard of them before - even though there blurb claimed 30yrs UK venture.

(but some of the Trustpilot mentioned camping and caravan show and some good feedback)



1664701113603.png


they looked to offer 3 sizes . . . and a HUB version.

and what also caught my eye they looked to be a direct copy of the KAMPA range of tents - which is now owned by DOMETIC.

that's odd i thought. . .

so a quick Google search shows the company to have HongKong/China connections - so as we know anything goes in the wild-wild-East.

moving on these are the three standard layout awnings. . .


+++

AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 2 INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​


1664701417374.png1664701434296.png


+++

AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 4 INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​


1664701474488.png1664701484639.png


+++


AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 5 - 4 BERTH INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​



1664701514885.png

1664701527520.png

+++


just like the three bears the 2 seemed too small,

the 5 seemed to big,

but the 4 seemed just right. . .


they also do all the extras. . .

ie

carpet,
bedroom pod,
zipped extension canopy,
ground sheet
full front enclosure,
mesh full enclosure,


1664701709025.png

+++++++++++

they even had some YT vids showing the setup and teardown

all seemed to look good.

+++++++++++


pricing it all up . .

they were offering a SEVEN piece bundle deal. . . for £1249


1664701863651.png1664701877289.png
.

and then offered a 10% discount code. . . which then makes it £1125


so taking a slight gamble i thought i would give them a go . . .

they do offer a 30day money back guarantee after all . . .

and a supposed life time warranty . . . . .

++++++++++

That's where im at ATM. . . . .

but i did get caught up in the whole sale thing and maybe jumped the gun on that KHYAM purchase. . .



so the point of this was to ask you all, what driveaway awning have you got,?

why did you choose that one?

what are your likes & dislikes for it?

what did you have before?

if you had to do it again - what you do different?




++++

as i mentioned above well look at the sail/sheet awnings later - this post is just about drive away awnings.


++++





+
 
Unless I’ve missed something any you’ve already bought a second van. Why not hire a crafter PV for the times you need to take all of the kit?
 
Unless I’ve missed something any you’ve already bought a second van. Why not hire a crafter PV for the times you need to take all of the kit?
because of Cost . . .

we went away 8x times this year, from 3night - to over a week. ( most were 5 nights or more )

we priced a basic T6 Camper hire @ £1000pw

VW Crafter was £48 a night was £1500 for the total days,

and we mostly just camp and dont need all the Disco Tent stuff.

plus we would still have to LOAD and UNLOAD all the camping kit - this is what im trying to eliminate.

+++++++++++++

and turning up at a T6Forum meet with a CRAFTER is just not cricket. :mexican wave:

+++++++++++++
 
So have you bought that awning already then? If so are you likely to use it in the 30 day return window?

I have a vango Rhone (galli 3 TC of old) bought second hand and it is a great piece of kit but fricking massive packed and I daren't use it whenever it’s likely to be wet for fear of packing it down wet and it going mouldy(er). And the massive pack doesn’t easily hold the pump/footprint/inner tents/pegs etc so that’s all extra to stow.
The external footprint size is good for most pitches but with 2 inner tents up it’s a little limited for space inside.
And it’s a really light grey/cream colour so worried about getting it dirty.
The front door (in the porch) is awkward to open and close and a trip hazard and there is no door on the opposite side to the van tunnel side which would be useful.
The tunnel is a nightmare to get tensioned correctly to stop water collecting (although this is the same for most I think)
The quality is superb though and looks good when pitched.

Previously I had an olpro cocoon poled awning which was massive. It was about the same size inside as the vango but then plus a 5 person inner tent at the end (8m x 4m + tunnel + van caused issues on loads of sites). We could have 4 people sitting round a table in there with all our gear and the 2 large sleeping compartments for the kids though. BUT The quality was awful, I’ve always bought cheap tents and made them last (I still have the 2 man tent bought from a market when I was 15 and been to reading when I was 16 and backpacking round Europe in my 20s, then cycle trips with my son before he turned into a moody teenager) but the olpro barely lasted a season before it started falling apart. It did pack down to half the size of the vango though.
I’m not bothered by air tents and would probably go for a poled one again next time if they still exist then based on the price. The other thing about the olpro awning was that it never looked like it was pitched right which really bothered me and no matter what I did it always looked like it was thrown up by a staycationer on their first holiday under canvas.
 
Khyam have been around a while - I first came across them when a friend had one of their quick-erect tents over 20 years ago. So I was quite happy to buy a quick-erect awning from them. It’s the Motordome tourer lite that we have (which is just about big enough for our needs) and we have been happy with it so far.
 
Just used storage trays underneath bed frame and recessed rail for awning. Planar underneath ducted to rear and near handbrake.

IMG_20210606_162550.jpg

IMG_20210612_184120.jpg

20211129_161329.jpg
 
Right so thats the C-Rail, Reimo Multi-Chanel and wind out cassette sorted. . .


now for the Large Air Drive Away Awning ( that will attach to the above C-rail/Multi-rail) - ill start with this . . . . then look at the sail options later.

looking into this there seems to be three main players or options. . .

Vango, ( Galli Low 3 )
Kampa, ( Touring Air )
Outdoor Revolution, (MoveLite T4)

this seems to be reflected on one of my favourite Camping Stores Attwools. . . ( i just love a Attwools Mike YT video )


View attachment 174626View attachment 174627View attachment 174628


++++++++++++


one valid point raised by @VanDamMan was "check the pack size and weight" - and hes right.

i have, and have-had many,many tents . . . . in polyester and TC/Polly-Cotton.

while TC/polycotton is defiantly the better material ( i absolutely love it) it has three drawbacks. . . .

1- costs more
2- its heavier
3- packs down bigger

and when you start looking at 8man tents the pack size and weight are substantial. . . ( this is out TC Kampa Studland 8 + extra porch )

it packs down HUGE and weighs a TON !!!


View attachment 174634


.


looking back at a T6 camper. . . . the point Andy was making is that pack size is important as space in the camper to get the gear to size is a premium. . .

especially if you have people to transport in the back . .

and as you get older . . . man handling the weight becomes an effort.

He himself has has the TC Gally3 amongst other TC awnings and has sold them all due to size and weight.

+++


this good advice was backed up from @Jollyvan when they demoed there Vango Gally3 setup ( cleverly attached to the wind out cassette awning - that was wound out about 3ft)

they mirrored the options and recommended to got with the regular polyester . .


pack size expertly shown here by @Jollyvan

View attachment 174639View attachment 174641

that looks manageable. . .


+++++++++++

the other thing to note is that nearly all of the above offer extras and additions. . .

so you need to factor that in,

ie ground sheet, carpet, bedroom, front zipped door, extension etc etc etc .

when you start to add up all the additions you might want the prices start to creep up !!!

as an example id go for ground sheet, carpet, bedrooms, front zipped door + possible extension


++++++++++++


so moving on i started researching the above three . . .

sure there are some other manufacture offerings, but these seem to be main three. . .


as part of the research Google gave me some (sponsored) suggestions . . .

and one of them caught my eye.

the size and spec seemed to fit the bill and the optional additions seemed perfect . . .


++++++++++++


this is what popped up . . . id never heard of them before - even though there blurb claimed 30yrs UK venture.

(but some of the Trustpilot mentioned camping and caravan show and some good feedback)



View attachment 174645


they looked to offer 3 sizes . . . and a HUB version.

and what also caught my eye they looked to be a direct copy of the KAMPA range of tents - which is now owned by DOMETIC.

that's odd i thought. . .

so a quick Google search shows the company to have HongKong/China connections - so as we know anything goes in the wild-wild-East.

moving on these are the three standard layout awnings. . .


+++

AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 2 INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​


View attachment 174646View attachment 174647


+++

AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 4 INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​


View attachment 174648View attachment 174649


+++


AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 5 - 4 BERTH INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​



View attachment 174650

View attachment 174651

+++


just like the three bears the 2 seemed too small,

the 5 seemed to big,

but the 4 seemed just right. . .


they also do all the extras. . .

ie

carpet,
bedroom pod,
zipped extension canopy,
ground sheet
full front enclosure,
mesh full enclosure,


View attachment 174652

+++++++++++

they even had some YT vids showing the setup and teardown

all seemed to look good.

+++++++++++


pricing it all up . .

they were offering a SEVEN piece bundle deal. . . for £1249


View attachment 174654View attachment 174655
.

and then offered a 10% discount code. . . which then makes it £1125


so taking a slight gamble i thought i would give them a go . . .

they do offer a 30day money back guarantee after all . . .

and a supposed life time warranty . . . . .

++++++++++

That's where im at ATM. . . . .

but i did get caught up in the whole sale thing and maybe jumped the gun on that KHYAM purchase. . .



so the point of this was to ask you all, what driveaway awning have you got,?

why did you choose that one?

what are your likes & dislikes for it?

what did you have before?

if you had to do it again - what you do different?




++++

as i mentioned above well look at the sail/sheet awnings later - this post is just about drive away awnings.


++++





+
interesting timing . . .


our trade member @vangoawnings has posted a very nice selection of Drive-aways at reasonable prices.







.
 
The NEW HiLo HORIZON sport Roof has been announced


.

thanks to @Martin Stockwell for the heads up - Future of elevating roofs - Horizon

thanks to @Visiontech Automotive

its here:












1664877685699.png

1664877696759.png
 
im adding a list of converters in the SE above . .

and also listing T6F members conversions and built threads . . . .


ping me your build threads and ill add them in. .

+++





+++

@Rids - pull your finger out.
 
Right so thats the C-Rail, Reimo Multi-Chanel and wind out cassette sorted. . .


now for the Large Air Drive Away Awning ( that will attach to the above C-rail/Multi-rail) - ill start with this . . . . then look at the sail options later.

looking into this there seems to be three main players or options. . .

Vango, ( Galli Low 3 )
Kampa, ( Touring Air )
Outdoor Revolution, (MoveLite T4)

this seems to be reflected on one of my favourite Camping Stores Attwools. . . ( i just love a Attwools Mike YT video )


View attachment 174626View attachment 174627View attachment 174628


++++++++++++


one valid point raised by @VanDamMan was "check the pack size and weight" - and hes right.

i have, and have-had many,many tents . . . . in polyester and TC/Polly-Cotton.

while TC/polycotton is defiantly the better material ( i absolutely love it) it has three drawbacks. . . .

1- costs more
2- its heavier
3- packs down bigger

and when you start looking at 8man tents the pack size and weight are substantial. . . ( this is out TC Kampa Studland 8 + extra porch )

it packs down HUGE and weighs a TON !!!


View attachment 174634


.


looking back at a T6 camper. . . . the point Andy was making is that pack size is important as space in the camper to get the gear to size is a premium. . .

especially if you have people to transport in the back . .

and as you get older . . . man handling the weight becomes an effort.

He himself has has the TC Gally3 amongst other TC awnings and has sold them all due to size and weight.

+++


this good advice was backed up from @Jollyvan when they demoed there Vango Gally3 setup ( cleverly attached to the wind out cassette awning - that was wound out about 3ft)

they mirrored the options and recommended to got with the regular polyester . .


pack size expertly shown here by @Jollyvan

View attachment 174639View attachment 174641

that looks manageable. . .


+++++++++++

the other thing to note is that nearly all of the above offer extras and additions. . .

so you need to factor that in,

ie ground sheet, carpet, bedroom, front zipped door, extension etc etc etc .

when you start to add up all the additions you might want the prices start to creep up !!!

as an example id go for ground sheet, carpet, bedrooms, front zipped door + possible extension


++++++++++++


so moving on i started researching the above three . . .

sure there are some other manufacture offerings, but these seem to be main three. . .


as part of the research Google gave me some (sponsored) suggestions . . .

and one of them caught my eye.

the size and spec seemed to fit the bill and the optional additions seemed perfect . . .


++++++++++++


this is what popped up . . . id never heard of them before - even though there blurb claimed 30yrs UK venture.

(but some of the Trustpilot mentioned camping and caravan show and some good feedback)



View attachment 174645


they looked to offer 3 sizes . . . and a HUB version.

and what also caught my eye they looked to be a direct copy of the KAMPA range of tents - which is now owned by DOMETIC.

that's odd i thought. . .

so a quick Google search shows the company to have HongKong/China connections - so as we know anything goes in the wild-wild-East.

moving on these are the three standard layout awnings. . .


+++

AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 2 INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​


View attachment 174646View attachment 174647


+++

AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 4 INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​


View attachment 174648View attachment 174649


+++


AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 5 - 4 BERTH INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​



View attachment 174650

View attachment 174651

+++


just like the three bears the 2 seemed too small,

the 5 seemed to big,

but the 4 seemed just right. . .


they also do all the extras. . .

ie

carpet,
bedroom pod,
zipped extension canopy,
ground sheet
full front enclosure,
mesh full enclosure,


View attachment 174652

+++++++++++

they even had some YT vids showing the setup and teardown

all seemed to look good.

+++++++++++


pricing it all up . .

they were offering a SEVEN piece bundle deal. . . for £1249


View attachment 174654View attachment 174655
.

and then offered a 10% discount code. . . which then makes it £1125


so taking a slight gamble i thought i would give them a go . . .

they do offer a 30day money back guarantee after all . . .

and a supposed life time warranty . . . . .

++++++++++

That's where im at ATM. . . . .

but i did get caught up in the whole sale thing and maybe jumped the gun on that KHYAM purchase. . .



so the point of this was to ask you all, what driveaway awning have you got,?

why did you choose that one?

what are your likes & dislikes for it?

what did you have before?

if you had to do it again - what you do different?




++++

as i mentioned above well look at the sail/sheet awnings later - this post is just about drive away awnings.


++++





+
well its arrived. . .

so i thought id get it out today and have a look. . .

we have a 30 day return window, provided the ground sheet is used and guy lines are clean etc etc etc . . .

so lets do it and see what its like.


The seven part bundle arrived in three shipments via DPD.


1665066480023.png

ground sheet down . . . and main awning bag next to me,

this is a nod to @Jollyvan in regards to the size. . .


1665066538609.png

.
opening it up and putting some air in the beams. . .

1665066586874.png

we have this. . .

its very generous in size.. . . and so far the quality seems spot on.

( there is a separate ground sheet for the outside section if needed )

1665066604524.png


we have zipped inner curtains. . .


1665066667655.png

and zipped sky lights. . .

1665066688366.png

with a sewn in ground sheet in the main area . . .

1665066715346.png

the main awning is tunnel tent style, with three sections. . .

darkened rear bedroom section,
mid internal living area with windows and roof windows,
and a open front outside section,

1665066808189.png

.

the side tunel section is very wide, that will attached to the side of the van . .

1665066866296.png

and comes with the c-chanel bit . . .

so i defo now need the fitting kit with the c-channel on the van.

and the FIG-8 and strip - ill order that another day.

1665066948785.png
.

the next packet to open is the fitted carpet. . .

1665067109560.png

its very light in colour. . . which might not be the best disign ethic. . .

but whatever - it can be jet washed etc. . .

it come with Velcro pads for the corners . .

1665067169758.png


its a nice fit as expected. . . and covers the whole internal section.

1665067208638.png

there's a nice touch with the logo in the corner . . .

1665067332602.png

.


next package is the INNER BEDROOM,

the inner bedroom clips in at the rear of the awning like a standard tent . . .

but there is a couple of differences from here on.

the inner bedrooms sit ontop of the fitted carpet. . . . which is unusual but not a problem - it will help with insulation.

the other difference is the inner bedroom has a full sew in ground sheet too . . . . now that different. !!

1665067527622.png

1665067549146.png

it comes as the standard layout with 2 plus 2 zipped bedrooms. . .

1665067579037.png

or fully open as one room . . .

also note the six storage pockets each side . . . .

1665067598248.png

..

next package up is the MESH DOOR . . .

this zipps onto the front porch section..

1665067670198.png

there is a double zipp . .

with a elastic cover . . .

and a very nice touch of clear plastic strip that goes over the zip area - all signs of good design and quality.


1665067816258.png

zipped on the front it works well to add a mesh door to the front outside section. . .












+
 
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Reactions: CAB
pt2

zipped on the front it works well to add a mesh door to the front outside section. . .

1665067921356.png

next package is the CANOPY ENCLOSURE,

which is basically a fully zipped waterproof front section . .

1665067988396.png

once zipped on you can see it adds a wedge section to the front. . .

1665068024674.png

it comes with full zipped windows and curtains. . .

1665068070034.png
1665068083181.png

at this stage it got me thinking about our standard kitched layout. . . .

we use the 4ft LIFESTYLE folding tables . . . . for our kitchen section. . .


lucky for me it fits nice and snug.

1665068173625.png


.


next package is the EXTENSION CANOPY . . .

1665068242110.png

again it zipps on the front zipper section . . .

this now adds a 4th section to the whole lenght


1665068276039.png

it has an additional air beam . . .

1665068337341.png

from the back looking forwards we get this . . . with the front MESH DOOR zipped on again . . .



1665068360265.png




+

so that's all the seven items. . .

overall the quality seems to be very good to excellent.

the attention to detail is superb.

it has copied elements of KAMPA and VANGO from what I'm seeing.

example is the zipper detail:

1665068560319.png

and the side tunnel:


1665068591603.png

and air valve system . . .

1665068629522.png


so overall im very impressed,

and ill be keeping this Air Awning / tent.

ill happily sell off the other tents we have,

quality is good,

delivery time is good,

packaging is good,

customer services and comms is good,

price and value for money is good,

size and layout is good to very generous.

even the dog likes it . . . .

1665068851960.png

+++++++++++++++++



++++++++++++++++++

1665068963421.png



+++++++++++++++++++

our unit is the :

AIRTEK KAMPER PRO 4 INFLATABLE DRIVE AWAY AWNING​

SKU: 188940

plus the other six extras . . . . . . .


+++++++++++++++++++



+
 
Last edited:
pt3

extras and upgrades. . . .

im thinking i need this . . .

1665069256273.png

but looks like i need - set of Figure of 8 Strips.



. . . .


but ill have to get the c-rail for the van first - to make sure i have the right size.


++++



ill also be looking at getting some additional Zip Pullers for the zippers that dont come with them.










1665069411674.png


+++++


and some more storm pegs to replace the smashed up bent ones from the 2022 season . . .









1665070020309.png



++++++++++
 
Last edited:
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