Vango Kela 4 low review (campervan owner's perspective)
Founder of CamperBrain and campervan conversion researcher.
Vango Kela 4 low review (campervan owner’s perspective)
The Verdict
This is an absolutely outstanding product. We’ve used ours on 3 different trips now through various weather conditions, and we absolutely love it.
Most things about the Vango Kela are very positive, but there are a few niggly things that I’d change about it if I could. Read on to find out more.
Vango Kela driveaway awning
We actually bought ours second hand from a Facebook group for campervan owners. We paid £240 altogether including the interior carpet. The retail price would otherwise have been around £570 for the same thing, which to be honest, I think is absolutely worth it.
With everybody going campervan mad during the summer, especially during the Covid crisis, there may be bargains to be had on marketplaces such as Gumtree and Facebook groups. Make sure you keep an eye out for them!
What it looks like
How long to erect the Vango Kela?
Thanks to the AirBeam structure created by Vango, it’s actually very simple to erect.
Vango claim that it takes 8 minutes to erect.
Here is a timelapse of us putting it up:
I’ve never been much of a camper prior to purchasing a campervan and this tent, so putting up the Kela was a very new thing for me.
My first port of call would usually be to hit the internet and search for some instructions to see how to put the tent up. However, on my first attempt we were on a campsite on Dartmouth in Devon, and I had no internet available to help guide me with instructions.
This didn’t prove too much of a problem. It took much, much longer than I’d anticipated, and certainly longer than Vango claim it should take. It took me nearly an hour to put it up on the first attempt.
Second attempt took 30 minutes.
Then I had an “aha” moment and realised I still hadn’t watched an instruction video on how to erect it. I decided to follow the instructions on the third attempt, which took just 20 minutes from start to finish.
To clarify, erecting the Vango Kela involved the following:
- Getting the Kela bags out of the boot
- Taking all of the awning and goodies out of their respective bags (this is actually quite hard work since it packs away so tightly into its bag)
- Pegging down the groundsheet
- Blowing up the 2x AirBeams
- Connecting to the van via a driveway awning kit
- Pegging down all of the guy ropes
- Putting all of the bags, peg hammer, etc. back away tidily
So, to summarise, I don’t think Vango’s claim of 8 minutes is impossible. However, I do think you need to be absolutely flying to do it in under 10 minutes.Box Content
By the time I’m erecting the awning, I usually have some music on in the background and a beer in hand, so I’m happy enough with 20 minutes@
Is it easy to pack away?
The Vango Kela is easy enough to pack away. That doesn’t remove the dread that plagues you while it’s up though! Or is it just me that hates the thought of putting tents away?!
It takes us around 30 minutes on a good day to pack everything away back into the correct bags and into our Transporter.
If it’s raining and everything is soaking, add on an extra half an hour for the extra annoying bits that follow. For example, making sure the groundsheet isn’t touching our cloth rear RIB bed so it doesn’t dirty it. Stuff like that.
Here’s a timelapse of us taking the Vango Kela down – it takes roughly 30 mins.
Stowing away the Vango Kela in your campervan
When stowed away, the Vango Kela takes up the same amount of room as a large holdall.
You can see the Kela stowed away on the bottom shelf in the rear of our van above.
It weighs 18.40kg, so isn’t too heavy, but isn’t exactly trivial either.
How many people can sleep in the Vango Kela?
This was a hot topic during a recent visit to West Wales with some of our friends (a couple) who stayed in the Kela for 2 nights.
The official documentation for the Vango Kela says that it is 2 berth. I’d loosely agree with this, but caveat it and say it’s a very generous 2 berth.
We had a double blow up bed in there, and there was ample space for additional luggage and belongings alongside this within the living compartment.
I reckon at a push you could jam 5 or 6 boozey people in there for a night!
What you get with your purchase
Included in your purchase of the Vango Kela you’ll get:
- Vango Kela driveaway awning and carry bag
- Camping pegs
- Double-action pump and carry bag
- Vango groundsheet
Conclusion
To conclude this Vango Kela low review from a campervan owner’s perspective, I’d say this is the perfect driveaway awning.
It’s big enough without being too big.
It’s easy to erect.
It stows away to take up relatively little space.
It looks great.
It’s great quality from a reputable brand.
The only downside and this is a personal preference, is that the front entrance (with the porch covering) is 90 degrees to the front of the van. There is an entrance the faces the same way as the van, which we use all of the time, but it doesn’t have the porch covering, unfortunately.
We recommend this for couples and families alike. A wonderful product that's quick to put up and outstanding quality.
- Price
- Quality
- Easy to erect
- Quick to erect
- Stows away easily
- None
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Discussion (13)
Right then, this Kela 4 review is spot on, especially about picking one up second hand. I've always told my clients to look around a bit before splashing out, you can save a fortune. Fair enough, £570 for a brand new one isn't bad for what you get, but i've seen some cracking deals on Gumtree over the years. We used a similar inflatable driveaway on one of my earlier builds for a couple down in Kent, they were proper chuffed with the extra space it gave 'em. Saves me having to design in loads of fixed storage that ends up never getting used. Bit of a pain to pack down sometimes in the rain, but you can't have everything, can you. Good solid piece of kit for anyone converting a Transporter, definitely.
Yeah, fair point on Gumtree, there are some proper bargains to be had on there for second-hand Kela 4s. We'll add that as a specific place to look.
Good to hear the Vango Kela's worth it even at 570 quid retail. I'd be looking second hand too, fair to say.
Yeah, fair point on looking second-hand, that's definitely a good shout for a Kela. We'll add that to the article.
It's good to see someone else championing the Vango Kela, truth be told. We've had ours a fair few years now, longer than your three trips, and it's been rock solid through all sorts of weather. You were lucky to find one second hand for £240, that's a proper bargain. We paid closer to the retail price for ours back when.
It's interesting you found yours second hand for £240, we've been keeping an eye on Gumtree for ages for our Crafter trips to the Lakes.
Honestly, I've had zero luck finding a bargain for my Vivaro on Gumtree, seems like everyone's cottoned on to how good second-hand can be. Guess I'll have to keep saving for my 'lush' new awning if I ever want to dry off after a surf.
Cracking review, really good to see the second-hand option mentioned. I'm building my old LDV on a shoestring myself, so anything that saves a quid is a winner. Paying £240 for the Kela and carpet sounds like an absolute result, wish I'd thought to look on Facebook groups for a bargain like that, mind you. Definitely adding that to my list of places to check.
£240 for the Kela and carpet sounds like an absolute steal, fair play! I'm still weighing up awnings for my MWB Master build, maybe I need to proper dive into the second-hand market on Facebook for a quare deal like that.
Oh, it's so good to hear a positive review of the Kela 4 low. We've been umming and aahing about getting a driveaway awning for ages, especially with the kids getting older and needing their own space on trips. We've got a Boxer conversion, so similar sort of setup to what you'd connect it to. I'm always a bit wary of buying big kit like this second hand, so it's good you had such a good experience finding yours for £240, that's a proper bargain compared to new isn't it. Our two are 8 and 11, and trying to get them dressed in the van without kicking each other is a nightmare, bless them. We usually just wing it with a tarp, but I think you've convinced me that a full awning would make school holiday trips so much easier. Just wish I had the energy to hunt down a second hand one!
It's good to see a proper review of the Kela 4 Low, as it's one we looked at for our LWB Sprinter when we first converted it three years ago. We ended up going with a different make in the end, mainly because we needed something a bit bigger for long-term living and remote work setup. Honestly, the idea of getting one second hand, like you did for £240, sounds like an absolute steal. We struggled to find good second-hand options in Edinburgh at the time, and the retail price for a new one, around £570, felt a bit much when we were still figuring out our full-time needs. For what it's worth, the Vango does look very easy to put up, which is a massive plus when you're moving between spots often. We've had a few struggles with our current one in windy Scottish weather, so the robustness of the Kela sounds appealing. Maybe i'll keep an eye out for a bargain for next summer.
Oh, this Vango Kela sounds absolutely lovely, and so handy for a bit of extra space. We've often thought about getting an awning for our Hymer, especially when we're stopped for a longer stay, but Brian always says it's just another thing to put up and take down. I do remember looking at some, and goodness, the prices! You mentioning paying £240 for yours second-hand, with the carpet even, really caught my eye. That's a clever find, and a big saving compared to the retail price of £570 the article mentions. We find that it really pays to hunt around for those sorts of bargains, whether it's for kit or even just little bits and bobs for the van. It sounds like you've had some proper good trips with it too, which is the main thing really.
Quick one - how easy was it to find a second-hand Kela like you did for £240? I'm just looking at getting a Transit and trying to budget.