Westliner Caravans (Bayswater, WA)

[Don Ricardo]

WESTLINER CARAVANS

506 Guildford Road, Bayswater, WA

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Photos of a Westliner 10 ft 6 in van posted on Instagram by Mama's Caravan Project:











Swan cutouts in the overhead cupboards:



Westliner logo and nameplate from another caravan, also posted by Mama's Caravan Project:


(Photo source: darksta.com/mamas_caravan/4549615999 )

According to the owner, the caravan was built in 1967, but we don't know how that date was arrived at.

Forum member Aza has indicated that the swan cut outs on the overhead cupboards were a feature of Westliner caravans, and one way of identifying them.

It's incredible that new manufacturers and brandnames of caravans in the vintage era keep turning up, despite the fact that we have now been researching Australian caravan history for 14+ years. Many of the new brandnames currently coming to light, like Westliner, have their origin in Western Australia. It indicates that WA continued to have its own flourishing independent caravan industry into the late 60's, and indeed later (think Baravan). However, probably because of distance, the industry in WA operated in relative isolation, and not many WA built vans appear to have found their way to the eastern states.

Don Ricardo

[Don Ricardo]

Evening all,

This Westliner caravan demonstrates that Western Australian caravan manufacturers developed some very different styles to caravans built in other states.

The caravan was rescued by forum member Aza and the photos posted on his Just Retro Caravans Facebook page. I’m being a bit cheeky posting the photos here because the van is post-Vintage era. It has 1972+ Ford Falcon station wagon/utility tail lights, so I’m guessing its from around the mid 70’s.  But I’m posting the photos because I reckon its an unusual and rather stylish caravan.












(Source: Just Retro Carvans FB, February 2020)

Don Ricardo

[Don Ricardo]

Another example of a Westliner caravan which shows the characteristic painted decoration on the side which was a feature of their mid-60’s caravans:









Note the cut out black swans between the cupboards in the photo below, which was also a Westliner decorative feature:












(Source unknown, July 2019)

Don Ricardo