Cub Campers Frontier 2021 review

Far and away, the Cub is the easiest-to-set-up forward-folding camper, and I’m constantly surprised that other manufacturers haven’t copied the concept yet. Most imported campers (potentially all, apart from the Opus which has pneumatic poles) require some level of pole adjustment to get the tent taut (on second thought, that is a lot of pole adjustment), Cub has engineered its frame, so that’s not needed. 

After unclipping the lid, when you wind in the winch, the roof is pulled over. Once the roof is over-centre, the winch continues to pull it into place, and all that’s left to do is push the rear tent bow out, tidy up the overhanging canvas weather flaps, and the tent is done.

Inside, the cushions for the wraparound lounge need arranging, and the straps holding the bed in place can be undone. It’s a very painless set-up.  

There’s one thing to note on pack-up, though. Largely, the process is straightforward. The same mechanisms that open the trailer up also help close it. However, it’s imperative that you close the door first. On most forward-fold campers, if you leave the door open, you’ll have to open the camper up again to close it, which is frustrating, but that’s all. 

On the Cub, which has a side-hinged rather than bottom-hinged door, if you forget, as I did, you’ll bend the gas strut over the top hinge. It’s $140 to replace one, so not overly problematic, but certainly far from ideal.

There are a few possible solutions to this, I believe. Most obvious is to copy the status quo and move the hinges to the bottom, although that means the camper will have a full canvas door, which is less elegant. Alternatively, Cub could move the hinges lower on the door so that the strut slides between it and the campers frame if you accidentally make the same mistake as I did. Or, just remember to close the door. 

So, in summation: remember to close the door before you start packing up the trailer. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

The second bed is easy to make: you simply push down the table and rearrange the cushions to suit. Because the cushions are all flat, there are no lumps in the bed, but some non-stick backing would prevent them from shifting too much when someone’s asleep on them. 

The Cub Frontier kitchen is excellent, although, on this test, it had come off its rails and was stuck in the storage space, so I wasn’t able to thoroughly inspect it. I did appreciate the integrated bottle opener, though, and felt it might have helped overcome my disappointment after I bent the gas strut on pack-up. But I didn’t have any beers with me – for shame. On further investigation, it turned out that an over-enthusiastic potential customer had pushed it off the rails while viewing it in the showroom, and no one had noticed until I tried to open it. 

I have used the Frontier’s kitchen before, though. It (usually) slides out from the back of the camper and is supported by a fold-down leg. A bench extension folds over, doubling the available space so you can use the stove and sink unobstructed. 12-volt water and gas are plumbed to the kitchen.

Forward of the main door is where the fridge is stored, and that’s accompanied by a large pull-out pantry drawer which I think is excellent. 

The Frontier Pack adds a second 100ah battery.

There are two upgrade packs available for the Cub Frontier. The first is the Xtreme Off Road pack, which adds 265/70R17 Goodyear Mud Terrain tyres, a DO35 hitch and driver-side utility outlets to the camper. The Frontier Pack adds a second 100ah battery and second 80-litre water tank, expanding its ability to free camp more freely. Other popular options include extra canvas attachments for the awning, a boat loader or a hot water and shower system.