Full review

TWO decades ago one of the most popular layouts for families seeking short, light tourers had two-seater tables that made into bunk beds across the rear.

A tide of layout innovation submerged this classic layout – but now it’s back, in the form of Lunar’s newest Quasar, the 464.

The new 464 may draw on past experience for its basic design,  but there the link with the past ends. For this caravan packs in some features that are amazing for its length, weight and price.

First and probably most important is that it has a separate shower in its offside washroom.

Other distinguishing features include the lovely long window in the door, the hob has dual fuel, and the television points – at each end of the caravan – both have satellite connectivity.

The defining feature of the 464 is that it accommodates four in only 1240kg of caravan and offers flexibility of use. That’s because the lounge makes single beds as well as a double. As a result of this length there’s more room for dining and lounging here than in shorter-lounge caravans.

And the rear area can be the play zone, the breakfast room, the kids’ dining area. Many will argue that this layout makes better use of space than fixed bunks, because daytime function is so useful.


Much as Go Caravan’s test team raves about permanent beds in all their shapes, we find ourselves totally won over by the little 464’s adaptability.

Full marks so far, then. But does the kitchen match up to the expectations of what, by this time, is appearing to us to be a Tardis caravan? As we make coffee, our first kitchen task, we’re amazed at the amount of work surface – there’s more here than in many longer caravans.

When we start to experiment by moving around the section of work surface that covers the large circular sink we realise that this is a star of a kitchen. We love the facility of a mains hob with the three burners. And, although Quasars are in theory Lunar’s budget range, there’s no compromise in cooking equipment- you get a full oven and grill, plus a microwave.

Lower kitchen storage space is tight and the drawer is big enough only for cooking utensils. But forget the lack of cutlery space – that’s easily overcome by putting a fitted tray into one of the two drawers of the front centre unit.

It didn’t take us long to find a way around the lack of food space, too – determined as we were during this test to make this short-and-light-appeal caravan work well.

We’d buy a plastic storage box and use it under one of the front settees for food items. In a layout that gives you a total of four bed boxes, there’s still enough space for bedding.

Anything else negative to overcome? Well, actually, some would say ‘yes’. Wherever there are pull-up bunks there is frustration and fiddling and – a task you’d rather not have. That’s why caravanners like fixed bunks, but in this layout we consider that the bunk-fiddle is all worth it, to get this superb living area.

Verdict:

Light in weight, short in length, yet accommodating four without a squash and giving you a surprisingly big kitchen surface, the new 464 impressed us in so many ways.

The separate shower is right up there at the top of our importance list. We love the satellite TV points at both ends of the caravan. We love the fact that there’s plenty of space for adults to get in and out of both the seats at the rear table without sliding the table on its runner.

And, although we’d say this is a terrific caravan for a family of four, it’s also a successful couples’ layout, creating a permanent dining area at the rear.

See our VIDEO REVIEW of the Lunar Quasar 464 by clicking here.

For all the latest new caravan reviews, read Go Caravan magazine.