RV REVIEW
Bailey Australia has just launched its promised
‘Australianised’ Unicorn IV Pamplona. Despite
now being built locally, it retains significant
British design flair. It is, after all, based on the
Bailey of Bristol Unicorn IV Pamplona, one of the
company’s most popular models.
However, for Australian conditions, the UK
version had some limitations, to which Bailey
Australia readily admitted. The new Unicorn IV
Pamplona sets out to address these limitations.
Among the changes: greater ground clearance
and payload capacity, larger water tanks, and
even a larger entry door.
To Bailey Australia, however, it was important
the new Pamplona kept that British look. To that
extent, I think the company has succeeded.
“OUR MU-X HAULED
THE PAMPLONA AS
THOUGH IT WASN'T
THERE”
TOWING A UNICORN
The Unicorn IV Pamplona employs Bailey’s
interlocking Alu-Tech construction method, which
‘clamps’ the hail-resistant fibreglass sandwich
panels together. The roof and wall panels, by the
way, are the only main structural components
imported from the UK – Bailey Australia is not yet
set-up to build its own. But this facility is coming.
Otherwise, from the Austrail RV chassis and the
lightweight ply cabinetry, to the electrical and
plumbing fitout, it’s all built here.
Behind our Isuzu, the new Unicorn IV Pamplona
was an acceptable towing proposition. Our MU-X
hauled it, frankly, as though it wasn’t there. Given
its light ball weight, however, the van seemed a
little jittery on the tow pin at 100km/h. I suspect
that once the van was loaded for travel, it would
settle nicely onto the towbar. It’s important to
note, too, that this van was virtually a prototype
– it was the first of its kind. Bailey tells me the
van was designed with such a low ball weight to
allow customers to load up the front and still have
a reasonably low ball weight.
gorv.com.au
15