Full review
£16,049
• MTPLM 1430kg
• MIRO 1277kg
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A great lightweight caravan for families. This has an end-shower room and two dining areas. It has AL-KO ATC too
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Review first appeared in Go Caravan magazine, October 2011 |
If you can’t decide whether to buy a caravan with a fixed double bed or an extra dining area, how about one that gives you the best of both worlds? And this one has ATC, too…
The Sport 544 is one of a new breed of lighter caravans from the Swift Group for 2012 – but its layout is already a proven success.
Swift last year launched a derivative of a caravan with an end shower room – replacing the bed in a Charisma 550 with a U-shaped dining area that converts to a double bed. They called it the Charisma 545. Instantly, this converted the classic fixed bed, end-washroom layout from a caravan which would chiefly appeal to couples, to a true family caravan with flexibility. The best of both worlds, surely.
Now Swift’s design team has built on this concept by producing the Eccles Sport 544 – with a more sporty image than the Charisma, and 50kg lighter. The get-up-and-tow appeal is enhanced by an important item of specification, new to Swift for 2012 – the ATC stability control system.
The result is far from a Swift Charisma by another name. This is a Sterling brand, as distinct from a Swift – and its woodwork is the pale shade of the Sterling range, making it feel far more spacious than its 5.6m length.
We love the 544’s central dining area. It creates not just a space for eating. The seating has big rounded corners – so it’s a place to relax in and get cosy.
When you convert the dining area to a double bed, the 544 looks identical to a fixed double bed model. You can leave the bed in position all day, if you wish – but it’s a pity not to take advantage of that lovely dining area.
We’d have liked to see an additional power point in the dining room. There is, though, a socket thoughtfully positioned next to the mirror and shelf that’s in a recess to the rear of the wardrobe. Perfect for a hairdryer.
But this little alcove is far from perfect, to our eyes. The whole wall area below the shelf is occupied by the table for the lounge, which clips onto a slightly crude-looking wooden frame when it’s not in use. And when it’s removed for use, you are left looking at that crude-looking frame. It looks out of kilter with the refined look of the rest of the caravan.
The wardrobe doors hinge back almost flat to the exterior, so people can still walk among the corridor when the wardrobe doors are open. Two usefully deep shelves hide on the right-hand side of the wardrobe, although these would be difficult to access if the rail is fully occupied by clothes. Below the hanging area is a shelf, with a large space for shoes. We know weight-saving has been a keynote in the design of this range, but a shelf in this area would have doubled its capacity, creating enough space for eight pairs of shoes instead of four.
The shower room is larger than you’d expect in a caravan of this size. The shower is rectangular and the floor space in the toilet-basin areas is more than sufficient for dressing. Two cupboards and quantities of shelving take care of the shampoo-type necessities amply.
VERDICT
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Great layout for couples and families, in a lightweight overall package |
TOWMATCH INFO
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Weight (MTPLM): 1430kg |
To tow this caravan at 85% you need a car kerbweight of 1682kg |
To tow this caravan at 100% you need a car kerbweight of 1430kg |
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