Full review

WHEN Bailey designed its new Pursuits, the company based some of the models on layouts in the Orion range and some on those from the Olympus range.

The 530-4 has Olympus pedigree, picked for the Pursuit range for its popular fixed-bed layout.

Streamlined in spec, weight and price, the new 530 is 66kg lighter w Pursuit 530-4 than its Olympus predecessor and costs £2240 less. Yet it’s 7.38m long; that puts it well ahead, in space terms, of its more compact fixed-bed rivals of similar weight.

The ethos behind Pursuit is to create tourers for a new generation of caravanners; those who look to a caravan as a means to their pursuits, perhaps.

But we believe that already-committed caravanners will like Pursuits, too. That’s especially true of the 530-4, because this layout will find most of its buyers among couples for whom the luxury of a fixed bed is paramount, yet light weight is also important.

And, while the lounge seating is made from foam to help keep the weight down, happily, there’s no compromise in the mattress.

This is a full-fat, 18cm-deep sprung mattress. The Pursuit’s mattress was a feature we were to put to an unscheduled evaluation later during our test week.

Showering

With measurements of 70cm wide and 80cm deep, the 530’s shower will suit most dimensions. There’s a towelling area, 56cm deep, immediately in front of the shower, then the shower room widens, towards the door, increasing floor space to 1.10m deep.

And while we’re wielding the tape measure, we’ll detail the shelf space, which is equally impressive, at 1.35m across the rear and 85cm along the offside wall.

Two cabinets give ample space for the hide-away stuff. And two double towel hooks are in the ideal place alongside the shower. This shower room seems to go beyond what you might expect in a budget caravan, in dimensions and accommodation for necessities.

Only one thing defines this shower room as basic. That’s the absence of a carpet. Attractive though the wood-effect vinyl is, putting your feet on a cold floor is not pleasant. So Pursuit 530 owners will need to invest in a nice, soft bathroom mat.

Sleeping

It was in this area that the 530-4 got a more thorough test than had been originally planned.

Our Pursuit week coincided with a need for the youngest member of the Chapman team to accommodate himself at our test base at Ancaster. He had a meeting at our head office and there was a day-visit to London to consider.

“Now, I know we all get on well and we spend many happy times in one caravan, but when I’m getting into a shiny new suit and making sure I’m correctly preened for a meeting I need more space than than I get when I’m sharing a caravan with you lot,” the rugbyplayer- sized offspring declares.

“Do you think Bailey would mind me testing the bed in the 530?” We carefully rolled and folded Bailey’s fine cream bedcovers, sash and pillows and replaced them with a blanket and a sleeping bag, and Richard departed after dinner in the Barcelona alongside.

Our next encounter followed intervention, when we heard his iPhone alarm emitting shrill sounds well audible from inside the Barcelona, and there was no sign of it being switched off. This seemed to indicate he was still sleeping well when he should have been in the campsite’s shower and getting into that shiny suit.

“The mattress is lovely and comfy.” His verdict seemed to define the 530. Take a close look at this caravan if comfort is your priority yet you want a caravan for under £14,000.

Storage

Storage, too, seems way above budget station both in quantity and ease of accessibility. That’s especially true of the vast area under the bed.

The base supports itself securely on its gas-filled struts even with a duvet and pillows in place. It opens wide, so reaching in is easy. And there’s an exterior access hatch. Our test 530 was equipped with the optional Premium Pack.

A spare wheel, one of the items it includes, is secured under the bed, hidden by a well-fitting fabric cover, and wound down, should you ever need it, from within the caravan. (The £399 Premium Pack also gives you a hitch-head stabiliser, a microwave oven, a door flyscreen and a radio/CD unit.)

Dining

We’re happy to report that creating dining mode is an easy and quick process in the 530. A couple of years ago, dining tables were rarely comment-worthy but now, with tables stored under seating and beds in some caravans, tourers in which the table is instantly and effortlessly obtained for use get our praise.

The 530’s table sits against the offside wall, in a recess to the rear of the wardrobe, retained by two clips and a groove. The breakfast/snack table pulls out to a depth of 40cm from under the front windowsill.

It’s 3cm lower than the windowsill, so you don’t get the expanse of level surface that some caravans give you here, but the windowsill is a gigantic 42cm deep, so there’s ample space for your bread and salad bowl and mugs, keeping them out of the ways of the main plate area.

Lounging

By the time we were analysing the lounge the Truma Combi heating system had been switched on, in mains mode, in which is delivers 1.8kW of power, for some time and the 530 was delightfully warm.

We had set it to 20ºC in an outside temperature of 7ºC and it had taken less than 10 minutes to create a very habitable environment. The high-density foam upholstery, while undeniably not as firmly-supportive as sprung seating, is fine considering the price of the caravan.

Pursuits, though, have quite low backrests (28cm) so getting comfortable necessitates using the two scatter cushions and more (add two cushions to the Pursuit present list, then!). And there is enough length to stretch out.

Kitchen

With a total length of 1.5m the 530’s kitchen looks at first glance to be way out ahead of the 530’s budget status, in terms of size and therefore practicality.

And the closer we analysed it, the more we praised it, for workspace and ergonomic efficiency. Specifically, that’s about worktop space.

The distance between the hob and the fore end of the kitchen measures 53cm. That’s more than many caravans have in total. The important areas around the sink and triangular hob make the difference here; there’s space exactly where you need it. The microwave oven (part of the Premium Pack) is above the sink.

There’s a combination grill-oven (that’s one way in which Bailey has saved weight compared with a larger full oven and grill).

Kitchen storage, too, measures up to excellence considering the relatively compact size of the caravan. There’s a 33cm-wide cutlery drawer, and a 40cm-deep cabinet under the oven-grill.

The main kitchen cabinet is opposite, in the dresser, where there are two areas that measure 50x50cm; even though the wheel arch intrudes into the lower one, this is a good-sized cabinet. There’s also a locker above the dresser.

Towing

Given its 1377kg suitability for a wide range of vehicles, and the hitch-head stabiliser with which our test caravan was equipped, the 530’s tow appeal is impressive. Out on the road, its performance was as easy as single-axle towing gets.