Hy-King Caravans

[Deleted]

Hi all,


My names Marty and I'm a new member here and would like to start of by saying hi. I tryed my luck on other fourms but didnt have much luck, so sone kind chap said i should try here .

I recently purchased my first caravan, the brand of van is Hy-King.


Have any of you fellow members heard or know of the Hy-King brand? I can't find any information on the brand at all, all I know is that they were built in the Melbourne area during the 70s


They seem to of good build quality, and have a distinctive appearance compared to many other vans of that time period. I  would really like to know some more about the brand, if anyone knows much about it and willing to share that would be great.Attachment DeletedAttachment Deleted


Thanks HyKing

[Deleted]

Hello Hy King and welcome,
You're right,it was built in the late 70s,weren't around for long,only a couple or more years from memory.
They were made in size from 10 ft to 18ft,and not all with the front overhang which either had beds on the larger models,or kitchen bench on the shorter.
Looks like yours is in good nick too!
Hope this helps,
Cheers
hughdeani

[atefooterz]

G`Day and welcome Hy King, all i could find is past adds for pop up versions & some chat they were made in the Clayton area. Our siter (mother) site has this thread about them,Good luck
vintagecaravans.proboards.com/thread/9075

[Deleted]

Thank you for the replys, yes mine is 14 foot and has the kitchen in the front, any information is helpful.

I will have a look at that site and see what I can dig up.

Thanks Hyking

[Deleted]

Atefooterz, that funny because that hy king caravan with the green stripe is the van that I bought recently.I painted the stripe orange and changed the hub caps to a more old style look.

Thank you for sharing that link, its strange how things happen.

Thanks Hyking

[Mustang]

Welcome Hyking
Think I'll start a book writing down caravan brands, here is another I never heard of, good luck, post some pics!!

[D.Shuggski]

Hello folks, amazing the things you find during a late night google search! I always wondered if our van was a bit of a freak, in nearly 10 years of travels across Australia we never saw another Hy-King.

My parents purchased one of the later 1970s design Hy-King caravans in late 1985, similar to the OP's picture but our was the longer version with 4 bunk beds in the front notched section, entry door behind the axle and a 6 seat couch around the rear. We made several trips with it, including two across the continent to Sydney, in 1986 & 1988 respectively, plus many journeys to WA's south coast, and up to Ningaloo. We stopped using it when my brother and I outgrew the upper bunks and sadly it has sat in my parent's backyard quietly rotting away since 1992.

I have not given it a close inspection in many many years, but I was wondering if it would be something worth salvaging? Or is there simply not much interest in this type of van? Are there people who undertake rebuilds of 'post-classic' caravans and would the fittings used by Hy-King have been fairly standard for the time? (ie would spare parts be traceable?) If I get a chance I will try and track down some old pictures and upload them, seeing as there are next to no Hy-King photos out there!

[Mustang]

Oct 25, 2016 0:37:17 GMT 10 D.Shuggski said:

Hello folks, amazing the things you find during a late night google search! I always wondered if our van was a bit of a freak, in nearly 10 years of travels across Australia we never saw another Hy-King.

My parents purchased one of the later 1970s design Hy-King caravans in late 1985, similar to the OP's picture but our was the longer version with 4 bunk beds in the front notched section, entry door behind the axle and a 6 seat couch around the rear. We made several trips with it, including two across the continent to Sydney, in 1986 & 1988 respectively, plus many journeys to WA's south coast, and up to Ningaloo. We stopped using it when my brother and I outgrew the upper bunks and sadly it has sat in my parent's backyard quietly rotting away since 1992.

I have not given it a close inspection in many many years, but I was wondering if it would be something worth salvaging? Or is there simply not much interest in this type of van? Are there people who undertake rebuilds of 'post-classic' caravans and would the fittings used by Hy-King have been fairly standard for the time? (ie would spare parts be traceable?) If I get a chance I will try and track down some old pictures and upload them, seeing as there are next to no Hy-King photos out there!

Hi,
If I had a van with family history I would certainly be restoring it.
Mostly neglected vans suffer water ingress. This being the case you generally have a full resto on your hands, some window hardware is available along with rubber seals & of course a mirad of sealants & paints.

[D.Shuggski]

Thanks for the prompt response Mustang! I will see if I can give it a more thorough lookover next time I'm at their place. I found a link on this site to a magazine review from 1977 of the 16' model we had, most interesting!