The
CD Special Edition simplifies a long trip.
In the late 80’s,
Mac Donkin and his friend Lloyd Gartrell, both Okanagan, BC
area residents, were in early retirement, and considered taking
their wives on an extensive journey throughout Canada and the
U.S.
After pouring over numerous brochures, they purchased two truck
campers from the struggling manufacturing facility that produced
Northern Lites. Although this story is not about their voyage,
“We liked the Northern Lites so much, we simply had to
buy the company,” explains Donkin.
Kelowna-based Northern Lite became a truck camper builder under
the leadership of Donkin and Gartrell, and since Gartell’s
passing in 2003, Mac’s son, Keith, joined the company.
Picking up the Northern Lite, we were given a full facility
tour, and discovered how the campers are made. We were also
instructed on how to glide the camper on and off the truck.
During the tour, we learned that there are only a handful of
manufacturing facilities in North America producing moulded,
fibreglass truck campers. Northern Lites are built using moulds
similar to those in boat construction.
The goal of Northern Lite is to build a shell that is strong,
and perfectly sculpted and finished, resulting in easy maintenance
with a high resistance to marks and dents. A high strength-to-weight
ratio and high impact resistance means there’s no need
for heavy wood framing. In addition, aerodynamic design helps
to reduce fuel consumption.
The Special Edition sleeps four and contains large, heated holding
tanks. Dry camping capabilities facilitate long camping trips
– it’s one of this unit’s best selling features.
The 10’2” has a propane capacity of 40 pounds, and
a sliding propane tray is a distinctive feature. The unit’s
dry weight is approximately 3,000 pounds.
The interior is noticeably roomier than others in its category,
boasting headroom of 6’5” and a floor area of 120
square feet. Special Edition extras include a large, mirrored
double door. This process is an in-house, aftermarket treatment
that adheres the mirror to the door of the Norcold 6.3 cubic-foot,
three-way fridge. The same mirrored treatment has been applied
to the sliding door of the bathroom at the entrance. Cabinets
are framed with thick plywood for extra strength, and the doors
are imported Brazilian lyptus hardwood, as is trim on kitchen
counters and the multi-directional, sliding dinette table. All
cabinet openings are finished with the same trim to prevent
snagging, and drawers are framed with plywood, for strength
and durability. (Page
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We loaded our gear into the truck camper with ease. Stepping
up onto Northern Lite’s unique rear bumper with steps,
we chose to hang all of our foul weather gear in the curbside
wardrobe situated directly to the right of the door. This placement
provided us with handy access; the area was deep and large enough
in which to hang and stow our extra items.
In the rear washroom immediately on the left, across from the
wardrobe, there’s a full fibreglass shower with an overhead
vent and integrated fibreglass toilet with a freshwater tank.
The full-length, mirrored, sliding oak door, privatizes the
bathroom and adds to the palatial appearance of the interior.
Inside the full-size bathroom, a floor-to-ceiling shower compartment
is simple to maintain. The galley area serves up a three-burner
Atwood stove top, wide double sinks, Dometic in-cupboard microwave,
handy pull-out pantry shelf, plus a power range hood with an
oven and double sinks. The three-way switch bunk lights are
thoughtfully placed – ideal for reading in bed.
Conveniently, double propane tanks slide out from the curbside
of the unit. The propane, outside barbecue, complete with stand,
is stowed in the rear basement area.
In the centre of the SE sits the dinette, hence the name, CD
Special Edition. The face-to-face, large, central area comes
with a multidirectional, removable table. There were overhead
cabinets and drawers on either side, in which to store my belongings.
The user friendly design allows a
number of options besides the sleeping/seating/storage configuration.
Under the table is enough space to hold 7.7 cubic feet of articles
when it’s not in use. In addition, there are overhead,
swing-out cupboards above the galley and dinette, and cupboard
drawers on either side allow enormous quantities of storage
space. Chuck Baker, the plant’s foreman, told us that
Northern Lite stopped putting piston hinges on these storage
bins because owners wanted to store pillows in them, and hinges
hampered how wide the doors would open.
The dedicated sleeping area of this truck camper contains a
north-south bed with a full-spring, queen-size mattress. Ideal
at 60 x 80 inches, it takes regular, queen-size, fitted sheets.
The bedspread, pillow and shams are solid luxury in an attractive,
ultra-suede tan color, co-coordinating with other appointments
in the unit.
Beside the pull-out LCD TV entertainment area, a single wardrobe
accommodates additional hanging storage. A privacy drape is
spring-loaded at the base of the bed. There’s also a curtain
over the window underneath the bunk. Running down the aisle,
interior, removable carpet covers stylish, one-piece linoleum
flooring. Curbside in the sleeping area is the pull-out LCD
TV with an antenna that’s spring-mounted. It turns easily
for viewing from the dinette area. A CD/DVD player is standard.
What a bonus it was when we found the LCD TV was easily visible
from the queen bed and sleeping dinette. Another pleasant surprise
– the dinette area mattress was so comfortable. Northern
Lite did its homework finding the best foam possible to stuff
in the dinette cushions.
The 10’2” SEs are equipped with Northern Lite’s
impressive list of standard equipment, which is part of a promo
package containing a group of options. Most popular requests
for extras in this package are the roof rack and ladder, outside
shower, DSI hot water heater, monitor panel, oven, additional
cable ready battery box, battery disconnect switch (standard
in the SE), and a rear bumper with a step. Only the 10’2”
SE CD we tested has the roof air-conditioner as a standard feature.
An option that came in handy was the Onan Microlite 2500, which
sits inside the rear bumper.
Among notable finishing touches are: an awning over the back
door; a 10-foot side awning; a rain cover over the furnace vent;
and thermal-pane, acrylic Dometic windows made by Seitz Windows.
Screens and blinds are built right into the window frame; they’re
spring-loaded on a coil, so they roll right back. Pull-down
shades and adjustable screens, along with strategic window placement,
is ideal for cross ventilation. Also thermal-paned is the Dometic
skylight installed overhead the queenside bed. This skylight
opens like a hatch in a boat. We found that just by adjusting
the screen, we enjoyed fresh air without the bugs.
When the camper was off the truck and on its jacks, it was stable
and did not rock. The ease of which to take the camper off the
truck is aided by use of a remote-control device wired in the
outside driver’s side compartment at the rear of the unit.
Northern Lite has included two bumper-type extensions on the
bow, to aid with the positioning process when mounting the camper
back onto the truck.
Our test unit was one of three Special Edition models out of
13 Northern Lite manufacturers, to fit imported and domestic
3/4- to one-ton trucks. Donkin informed us that the company
would be introducing its new 9’6” Queen Classic
Special Edition to prospective buyers at upcoming RV shows.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Northern lite cd special edition
Overall width ....98”
Overall length ...207”
Overall floor length .120”
Overall height 97”
Interior Headroom .6’5”
Dinette Bed ....42 x 72”
Table Size ...30 x 38”
Mattress size ...60 X 80”
Fresh Water .36 gal
Gray Water .40 gal
Hot water tank .6 US gal
Propane gas capacity ...40 lbs
Approximate dry weight ...3,000 lbs
Price as tested: ..$40,965 (Page
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