The Spirit sets up matter-of-fact so
you can get busy livin'There’s plenty of pantry space
around the kitchen area, larger
items can find their way into the
storage boxes on the other sideperfect than actually using it, but Phil and
Celso were able to throw their awning up with
the bare minimum poles making it a quick
and easy affair to get shelter over our heads.
Over the course of the trip the pair fired up
plenty of meals on the included kitchen, but
the real winner was the portable barbecue
they’d set up by the gas bottles up front. I can
still smell the barbecued pork belly now.A SPACE FOR EVERYTHING
The Spirit doesn’t break any new ground in
terms of storage, but that’s not necessarily a
bad thing. Kicking the lid over, there’s loads
of room on the floor inside as well as under
the table for bulky items like pillows and
bags of clothes. Sheets and blankets can stay
strapped to their respective beds preventing
them from eating into precious space. There’s
also space under both flanks of the lounge,
they’re around the wheel arches and a little
goofy to access so are best for long term
storage things like spare wheel bearings and
hose connections rather than daily items.
There’s reasonable storage in the kitchen as
well with enough room for bowls, cups, and
plates under the sink with a usable cutlery
drawer under the gas cooker.
Like most forward folds the bulk of the
storage is in the front box. The passenger
side has room to store most large fridges
with Celso and Phil loading up a dual zone
Waeco for Race to the Cape. A pull-out
pantry hides inside the next compartment
with pole storage directly above. The driver’s
side storage box features a large vented
box perfect for generators, portaloos, or old
socks.WHAT'S THE VERDICT?
There’s a divide amongst camper trailers
that comfort can’t equal capability and it’s
simply not true. Yes, the lighter something is
the more capable it’ll be, the smaller it is the
easier it’ll be to steer around offroad, and the
more engineering that’s gone into it the more
competent it’ll be when the going gets tough.
And hey, if you’re heading off into the sunset
to take on every challenging track you might
want the smallest lightest trailer you can find,
but the Mars Spirit proved you don’t need all
the bells and whistles to get out there and
explore Australia. It supported two blokes forweeks on end and could easily do the same
with a family. It was never the deciding factor
on whether or not we could take on a track,
never once had a failure, and didn’t let a drop
of water in despite floating across a 100m
river crossing.
When you factor all that in and remember
it’s one of the most affordable campers on
the market it starts making a whole lot of
sense. Sure, you don’t get the flashy designs
you might with other manufacturers, but I’m
yet to see someone miss out on an adventure
because their trailer wasn’t flash enough.CTA"IT’S ONE OF THE MOST AFFORDABLE
CAMPERS ON THE MARKET"