Generic 55 litre 12v fridges

[dhr29 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dhr29]

Hi, has anyone had any experience good or bad with these stainless steel 55 litre fridges that seem to be poping up on ebay and Overlander magazine they come with a 1year warranty and look ok but I haven't seen one in the flesh yet.

[dhr29 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dhr29]

Well lots of lookers but no answers.
Didn't have look at any of the cheapies but had a look at the Waeco and Engel 40s.
There seems no comarision between the two the Engel looks to be far superior and at only two hundred bucks more I'm going for the Engel.
Actually the best price I have on an Engel is $1000 verses $884 so it's only $116 no contest.
I know a lot of people are very happy with there Waecos I'm not bagging them I just think the Engel is a better quality unit.
As a friend once said the most expensive option is the cheapest option because you only have to pay once thats why we buy Prados I suppose.

[Addy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Addy]

Evakool are worth a look, my brother and oldies have one with trouble free operation. That is the path i am looking at soon.

[speedcomm Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close speedcomm]

Now people lets see your plastic fridge in 17 or so years time, I have an oooold 29 litre Engel, other than its awful 80s paint colour it is a brilliant piece of gear, will still freeze a bottle of water solid when cranked, reliable as the 60 series cruiser it was bought new with in 1984. ( not my 60 series )

[clifton Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close clifton]

Hi Guys,
I also have one of the first 29Litre Engels it has been across to WA from QLD/NSW three times, once when most of the nullabore was dirt, Alice Springs, Fink River etc.etc. bouncing around in an old 16TS Reno Owe and also before there was bitumen, I will say no more, however I do like the Trailblazer it is about the Standard up here in FNQ but they are Bloody Huge.

[dhr29 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dhr29]

Bought an Engel 40l today for $999.00 Amazon outdoors, best price I could find all I need is a Prado to put it in! :?

[LiveFreeAndRoam Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close LiveFreeAndRoam]

Bought an Engel 40l today for $999.00 Amazon outdoors, best price I could find all I need is a Prado to put it in! :?

The best advertised price I've seen was $1,199. Did you have to haggle or was that the advertised price? Like you I'm shopping around before I take delivery of the Prado in Jan/Feb. A fridge is on the wishlist.

LFaR.

[dhr29 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dhr29]

I shopped around and knew what the best price was and told the guy in the shop that he just came out with that price and we bought it no haggling.
I don't think we can name shops here but if you think of a large rainforest named after the river that flows through in south amercica it will give you a clue otherwise I can email it to you.

Dave

[LiveFreeAndRoam Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close LiveFreeAndRoam]

I shopped around and knew what the best price was and told the guy in the shop that he just came out with that price and we bought it no haggling.
I don't think we can name shops here but if you think of a large rainforest named after the river that flows through in south amercica it will give you a clue otherwise I can email it to you.

Dave

Just like "are you smarter than a 5th grader?"

Got it, and no brain-cells were damaged in the process

Thanks,
LFaR.

[craig Member Find all posts View Profile Close craig]

You guys with the crusty old Engels it is good that they still work after 17 years, but have a look how much current they draw, you will find that they draw upwards of 5 amps which is fine when the car is running but what about when you stop for a couple of days and camp and your battery goes flat, even deep cycle batteries don't like being completely drained all the time. Then to get a battery up to 100% charge you need a decent regulator or solar with a decent regulator, as your alternator will only charge to about 70-80% of the battery capacity. What is the price of a new deep cycle battery?

My 60lt waeco might not last for that long but it won't flatten my battery all the way down unless I allow it, it also runs at a lot lower current draw and it is fitted with a gas that is readily available not like the old fridges which could be running R12 or R22, which you can't get any more

[Damien Parker Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Damien Parker]

R12 you cannot buy.

R22 is still available, i think its slated for global reductions around 2015 and removal from market shortly after. The goal posts keep getting moved with it though so i could be wrong... Never widely used in refrigeration, more so Air conditioning applications.

I would have thought that most fridges would have been running on R134a...



But i digress.



I have been thinking about enquiring to see whats required to become a warranty repair agent for Waeco and Engle. I could do all the repairs here in my shed at home. Could be a good little business.

[Justo Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Justo]

The Engel 40L Current draw is DC 0.5 - 2.5 Amps. The older units do draw more thats true. They are good prices guys, I noticed Engeland has them for $1150 inc the transit bag (valued at $165) which is pretty damn good.
http://www.engeland.com.au/productcl...&itemnid=94249[/code]

[dhr29 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dhr29]

I think I'll rather buy a new battery than a new fridge.
All the dealers I spoke to said that problems with Waecos were not uncommon but problems with Engels were rare or unheard of that's why I bought an Engel40l for $999.00.
You can argue current draw and battery life all you like I just want a nice cold beer at the end of the day. 8)

[borgy Member Find all posts View Profile Close borgy]

Hi all

FYI - Found this useful link on reviewing a few Portable fridges -
http://home.iprimus.com.au/rfh/portablefridges.html

Cheers
Borgy

[hoppy Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close hoppy]

I'd be interested to know if anybody has a National Luna fridge/freezer. The ones that seem to be advertised a lot lately.

Are they any good? Engel make a similar fridge/freezer but it is $200 cheaper.