Short review of the MIY caravan after our round trip to Inner Mongolia from Shanghai, 7200km in total.
The price for this unit is around 130.000CNY/17.000EUR, and for this price, I see the quality is a good match with the invested money.
The caravan brand is MIY, and here is some swift report of it.
We were able to rent this from Shanghai at a reasonable price of 14000CNY/1822Eur/4 weeks. The interior looked suitable and did have 4 beds for us. We are 2 adults and 2 kids traveling, therefore, the bed arrangement is good. Personally, I slept well in them and I did not hear any complaints from others.
The caravan itself was a little bit too small for the four of us. we needed to make the beds each night. Cabinet space was too limited and mostly in front. Due to that, the ball weight was difficult to handle as most of the weight was in front. We conducted a test after the trip, and measured by the support wheel, the result is 180kg (Kia Sorento ball weight maximum is about 100kg) with half a tank of water. We knew the weight should be measured from the ball, but we could only measure under the support wheel due to limited measuring equipment l. That gives you some estimate of the weight split of the caravan. A recommendation is to move the water tank 50cm backward closer to the axel.
Specification of the rented caravan
- Manufacturer 三创联盟(沧州临港)科技有限公司
- AL-KO
- Dimensions 5970×2070,2160×2670(mm)
- Total mass 1500 (kg)
- Solar panels of approximately 800W. Can keep the refrigerator running without external power
- Batteries 240A
- Diesel heater, did not test it as it was not needed in July.
- A/C unit maybe (2500W), might be under-powered in excessive heat.
- 800W electrical cooking plate
- Microwave, power was enough
- Fresh water tank 145L
- Gas heater for water
- Portable generator 2kW
- Shower and toilet
- External shower
- Outside Gas cooking station
- All electrical sockets had also double USB charging
Final verdict about the MIY caravan
This is a relatively small caravan but for 2 persons it should be OK for longer trips. For 4 persons shorter trips are preferred. The price of the caravan is directly reflecting on the build quality and a couple of times needed to fix, for example leaking pipes. The solar panels + batteries could easily keep the refrigerator running but in case AC needs to be used the batteries will drain fast.
Next time rental must be a bigger one and maybe better quality. It is impossible to find any rentals and even no private persons that would rent a caravan. The selection in China is very limited even they make a lot of the for export.
Be reminded of new regulations valid from April 2022 regarding pulling a caravan in China. LINK
