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.

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.

If you’re looking for a leading innovator in developing German RVs with a similar standing to Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz with German automobiles, the name Bürstner stands out.

Bürstner's debut recreational vehicle, the Delfin caravan, quickly gained popularity among European caravanners. Its quality construction and innovative design details set it apart from competitors.

The original Delfin featured innovation, quality and ease of ownership — company hallmarks fully reinforced when Bürstner entered the motorhome sector in 1986. Not long after, Bürstner revolutionised motorhome design by releasing the world’s first semi-integrated model.

The innovations kept coming — with pioneering drop-down beds and double floors in motorhomes. More recently, there’s the space-expanding inflatable alcove above the cab of some models, and Bürstner became one of the first RV manufacturers to put a fully electric campervan into series production.

Bürstner isn’t a motorhome maker prepared to rest on its rich history or laurels. In this blog, we highlight nine reasons why Bürstner owners are so loyal and why the brand's reputation continues to be a magnet for those who aspire to own one.

Does it feel like the right time to own a motorhome, but your savings aren’t quite where they need to be?

Perhaps you’re expecting a future windfall through a property sale or inheritance. Maybe you’re thinking about a lifestyle change to travel for an extended period of time. Or you may be a first-time buyer needing additional funding to cover the full cost of your dream RV.

Purchasing a motorhome is unquestionably a significant investment. However, there's a way to get the model you want sooner than you think — by buying it on finance.

After a long drive in the summer heat, there’s arguably nothing worse than arriving at your freedom camping spot to find a fridge stocked with warm beer. 

One of the greatest joys of living the motorhome lifestyle is the convenience of having everything you need at hand — including a couple of cold ones to relax at your destination.

In this fun blog, we offer advice on preparing and optimising your fridge for travel. We also discuss how to prevent your beer from getting warm and manage power to keep your fridge working well. Plus, we look at keeping your fridge cold when freedom camping off-grid.

Freedom camping is one of the most peaceful experiences you can have while owning a recreational vehicle. But if you want to camp away from commercial campgrounds, your motorhome almost always needs to be a certified self-contained vehicle.

In this guide, we cover everything you need to know about certified self-containment, including the current standard and most recent amendments to the regulations. We also look at the different types of self-contained certification, how to get your motorhome certified and share some maintenance tips and checks to help your RV stay compliant.

Remember being told when you were younger that buying a secondhand car with high mileage was a bad idea? That may still be the case for pre-owned cars — but it doesn’t ring true for used motorhomes.

A recreational vehicle with a few miles on the clock can actually be a smart investment. In this blog, we explain how — by discussing what’s considered to be a high mileage motorhome, the advantages of buying one and the challenges of owning one.

We also look at factors that will mitigate your high mileage concerns, what to consider when evaluating and inspecting a high mileage RV — and how to finance one. Finally, we offer some tips when browsing used motorhomes with high mileage.

Let’s flip the script and uncover some myth busting truths about high mileage motorhomes that may save you a bundle and get you on the fast road to camping freedom.

Elizabeth and Hans Van Der Linden purchased a brand new 2023 HYMER MLT 580 RWD from Wilderness in September 2023. In this owner story, Hans explains how everything’s going with the couple’s exciting new ride — and talks about what it feels like behind the wheel of a rear wheel drive motorhome.