One of the biggest sectors of the camper trailer market is the family market. In the past the options were few: the ubiquitous sidefold softfloor or the pop-top with the pull-out beds and the mess of converting dining tables to a bed each night. Either that or buying each child a pup tent and having them located, satellite-like, around the camper.
Enter the Eagle Cheyenne. Based on a design that has been around for a while, it presents some significant options for the family of five or six.
Design & Construction
The camper is built on a sturdy hot dip galvanised chassis with trailing arm independent suspension with dual shocks, 10in electric drum brakes, alloy rims and Cooper all-terrains. At the front is a robust drawbar with polyblock offroad coupling, two gas bottle rings (single 4.5kg bottle supplied as standard) and two jerry can holders, all nestling behind an expansive stone guard with mud flaps beneath.
The checkerplate front box houses a carpeted fridge slide on the passenger side, large enough to contain up to a 60L Waeco, with additional storage space adjacent, including the resettable fuses for three 12V circuits.
Exterior
If the weather is inclement and there is rain about or you want to stay longer you have several options with the awning.
The Cheyenne has a huge 6000x2200mm awning that spreads out much wider than the camper on each side. Like all Chinese campers it is heavily dependent on spreader bars (we counted 34 for the awning alone), all of which are numbered and installed according to a plan.
The awning can’t travel attached to the tent, but thanks to the rear access step and the relatively low pitch of the roof it is easily attached to the camper or removed each time.
Interior
Inside you get a bench seat down either side of the roomy vinyl-covered floor that at 1380x2130mm is big enough for a fair sized table to sit inside so the kids can play games or a whole family can eat inside in comfort.
The tent, as stated, is roomy, with three meshed internally-opening windows on either side of the main body of the camper, and three around the front extension. However, in wet weather these would all have to be closed without some covering awning as there were no window awnings.
Kitchen
The kitchen is all stainless steel, with a fold-down front panel with a hanging basket for utensils and internal shelves. At the end is a slide-out section with supporting leg that contains the stove and sink. The stove is a domestic four-burner unit, which requires foam pads to be inserted for travelling to prevent components coming apart, and is surrounded by large fold-up wind breaks.
Hits & Misses
I liked…
- The internal room
- The size of the rear awning
- The huge storage capacity
- Nifty rear fold-down spare
I would’ve liked…
- More thought to the stone guard and mud flaps
- More user-friendly awning set-up
- More solid fridge tie-down option
- Relocated internal power outlet
Click here for more Camper Trailer Australia reviews
Click here to compare specs of Eagle products
Click here to find new and used Eagle products
Check out the full review in issue #79 August 2014 of Camper Trailer Australia magazine. Subscribe today for all the latest camper trailer news, reviews and travel inspiration.
