Blog

There are many different kinds of people who come to work at Wilderness. Some are industry veterans, and some fell into it on a whim. Graham Skinner is a unique kind – a retired owner of a Carado motorhome who loved the lifestyle so much that eventually, he decided he wanted to work for the dealership.

Graham is part of the welcome team at Wilderness, driving guests between the airport and the base and helping them get oriented before they hit the road. But before he ever set foot in the Wilderness yard as an employee, he was a customer.

He and his partner spend significant chunks of the year travelling around New Zealand in their Carado. When he talks to guests arriving at the base, wide-eyed and full of questions, he's speaking from experience.

It's turned out to be a great fit in both directions: Graham gets to spend his days doing what he loves, and guests get someone who has owned the same vehicle and driven the same roads they're about to explore.

We spoke to Graham to find out his favourite things about motorhome travel, what brought him to the Wilderness team, and his top tips for a motorhome buyer.

Is buying a brand-new motorhome worth it? While vehicle depreciation never sleeps, the good news is that new motorhomes hold their value far better than new cars. Where a car loses a significant chunk of its value the moment you drive it off the lot, the decline for a new motorhome is much more measured. It’s like comparing the gentle descent of a hot air balloon to the sharp thump of a jumbo jet coming in to land.

Because of this resilience in residual value, the choice is often tipped in favour of splashing out on a brand-new RV instead of a used one. However, whether you are truly better off buying new depends largely on your personal circumstances and the mobile lifestyle you want to adopt.

Buying a motorhome is a big deal – often the biggest investment you’ll make outside of your family home. When the stakes are that high, finding a dealer you can actually trust is the secret to moving from "anxious buyer" to "confident explorer."

While the process is a bit like buying a car, the reality is much more personal. After all, you’re not just picking out a ride; you’re choosing a bedroom, a kitchen, and a lounge on wheels. You’re also thinking about a whole host of different warranties and servicing needs. The right dealer should make that complexity disappear, using their years of experience to help you choose right.

In this guide, we’ve scouted the top dealers in our two main RV centres – Auckland and Christchurch – to find the ones that truly walk the walk. We focused on the things that actually matter to owners:

• Genuine after-sales support (for when you're actually out on the road).

• Clear handovers and warranties (so there are no "hidden" surprises).

• Raving customer reviews from the local RV community.

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of packing up the motorhome and heading off the beaten track. But before you ditch the map and get lost in the moment, there’s one important number you need to know: your maximum payload.

Simply put, this is the total weight your motorhome can legally and safely carry. It covers everything from your passengers and pantry staples to your water, clothes, and that extra gear for the road.

Here’s the thing, though, sometimes the payload figure in a brochure doesn’t quite match reality. It might be based on a similar model from overseas with different chassis or suspension components. Or the motorhome may be NZ-new, but the initial payload doesn’t account for those handy accessories added after the initial payload calculation. 

That’s why we reckon the best way to start your journey is with certainty. Buying a motorhome that has had its unladen (tare) weight verified recently at a New Zealand weighbridge means you know exactly where you stand. Subtract that tare weight from the Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM), and you’ve got your magic number for safe loading.

This weighbridge certification is the only way to be 100% confident in your payload limit. Let’s explore why this matters and how to make sure you’re ready to roll.

The philosophy that a business should be accountable to its customers and its community for its impact is at the core of what we do. That’s why we’re incredibly proud to announce that we are now a B Corp-certified company, joining a global movement of businesses using their operations as a force for good — alongside other well-known New Zealand companies, including Kathmandu, Allbirds, and Kiwibank.

This certification is the clear, independent signal that you’re choosing a company that meets high standards of social and environmental impact while guaranteeing our customers a highly responsible and ethical purchase and ownership experience.

There are surprising benefits to carrying a modest amount of water in a motorhome. We all know the story of Goldilocks and how she was first attracted to the biggest bowl of porridge in the house of the three bears. After sampling the two largest bowls, she eventually found that the smallest bowl suited her best. You can apply this same analogy to motorhomes and water tank sizes. 

It’s tempting to choose the motorhome with the largest tank capacity without realising how the increased weight of the larger water reservoir negatively affects other aspects of the motorhome. We need to consider the bigger picture before automatically adopting the motorhome with the largest water tank size. So, what is the optimal size for water tank storage? 

The motorhome manufacturers with the most thorough research and development and design expertise are those based in Germany. They generally opt for water tanks of 100L–120L as their experience has shown that tanks of this size range represent ‘the Goldilocks zone’. 

However, with new motorhomes on the market fitted with 200L tanks, we ask the question: Is this extra capacity handy to have, or an oversupply that has detrimental effects on other aspects of the motorhome? 

In this blog, Joe Barton, retail sales consultant at our Auckland sales centre, shares his expert insights to help you make an informed decision on the size of your water tank. We’ll delve into the smart design philosophy behind German brands' preference for smaller water tanks and explore how it enhances performance, safety, and efficiency.

Do you find yourself starting at a map of Aotearoa and imagining yourself in the driver's seat of a motorhome? But are put off by the price tags of brand-new models that make your eyes water, and are wary of private online listings that can feel like a bit of a gamble? If this sounds familiar, a refurbished premium used motorhome from Wilderness might be for you.

But what does ‘refurbished’ really mean? For some companies, it’s a quick clean and a patch-up job. For Wilderness, it’s a meticulous, top-to-bottom process that ensures a motorhome meets a high standard of quality, backed by our comprehensive warranty for your peace of mind.

"The level of quality we're aiming for is the top end,” says our Christchurch Workshop Leader, Dale McLeish. “Some operators patch the problem, hide it, and do what they can to make the problem look good, while we properly repair and refurbish our motorhomes."

In this article, we'll talk more to Dale about our refurbishing process. Plus, we’ll explore why purchasing a premium ex-rental motorhome from Wilderness might be the ticket to freedom you've been dreaming of.

As a potential motorhome buyer, a visit to an RV show or a well-respected dealership will fill you with excitement and anticipation. There’s a myriad of choices available: different sizes, multiple body styles, a wide range of van platforms, and interior design layouts that usually range from two to six berths. 

It may be tempting to buy the flashiest, largest, best-looking motorhome that your budget will allow, such is the encouragement of the presentation and the friendly salespeople. However, bigger isn’t always better, especially when it comes to negotiating the serpentine New Zealand road network and the extraordinary remote camping opportunities that it leads to. 

This guide will help you decide which motorhome is best for your needs. It’ll explore different types and sizes and identify the pluses and minuses of each. It will cover everything from compact campervans to heavyweight A-class luxury liners and help you determine which is your best fit for touring New Zealand’s challenging yet rewarding roads.

Renting a motorhome is a great way to discover whether you want to own one. For Jacqui and David Williams, it was more than just a test run — it was the moment they knew they had to buy a new Carado T459.

Read on to learn how this couple discovered that owning a motorhome was the ultimate way to explore New Zealand, and why they chose an affordable brand like Carado.

Motorhome dealerships aim to impress from your first visit — with inviting showrooms and rows of sparkling new recreational vehicles visible from the entrance.

However, what you find out back of the dealership has the biggest impact on your long term satisfaction when buying an RV. That’s where you’ll locate the motorhome maintenance services and parts departments.

These areas determine what customer support you'll receive. They oversee your motorhome's warranty, influence parts availability and guide you to a reliable RV repair network.

In this blog, we discuss why a dealer's after sales service makes a big difference to your long term ownership satisfaction and trouble-free travel.

We also cover why technical motorhome expertise truly matters, and what to look for in comprehensive after sales service and parts. Plus, we highlight the main questions to ask your RV dealer and what warning signs to watch out for.