By Chris Ashton

 

Is it a caravan or is it a boat? It’s the Transformis Inspire, a hybrid of the two – maybe slightly more boat than caravan at this stage, but perhaps the closest thing yet to a successful merger.

It’s the brainchild of Queenslander Claudia Moffat, who says she tried for years to find a ready-made product that suited her, before giving up and building it herself.  The final product borrows design elements from both expandable boats and slide-out caravan modules.

“In 2007 my then four year old son and I travelled around Australia for nine months in our custom-built motorhome,” Claudia says.  “On the road we saw many rigs and I realised that everyone wants to have a car, a house and a boat.”

“I did see trailerable houseboats, but the biggest issue was weight and with that a limited amount of towing vehicles available. They also seemed very small inside.”

A trained mechanical engineer, Claudia put her mind to creating an alternative.

She hired a professional boat builder to construct the hull, then sought out backpackers to help her do the rest in exchange for food and accommodation.

“It worked a treat, I had more applications then I could handle, so I was able to pick the right people with some trade experience including electricians and builders.”

 

For the full feature, see Issue 19 of ROAM