Coachman Avventura 545 motorhome

Now on Fiat and with interior style from the Lusso caravan range

Coachman caravans have been around for almost 40 years but it’s still quite a fresh face in the world of motorhomes. It only entered the market in 2022 with its first Travel Master, a premium Mercedes-Benz motorhome that majored on winterisation and insulation thanks to being built in Sweden at the parent company, Kabe.

Next, Coachman reached even further upmarket to compete with Carthago in the supersized A-class sector with the 200-grand, tag-axle Imperial, before introducing the slightly more compact Sportivo, still keeping the range entirely built on the three-pointed star.

Its latest model, quietly launched at the NEC show in February, however, breaks the mould. While still manufactured at the Kabe plant at Tenhult, this is the first Coachman to be based on the more mainstream Fiat Ducato, as well as being the first to take interior design cues from a British-built Coachman caravan, the company’s top-of-the-range Lusso. It’s also the first Coachman motorhome to eschew the Travel Master name.
 

So, here’s the Avventura – yes, with a double ‘v’. Externally, it’s still very clearly a Coachman vehicle with the unusual humped roofline and a roof that overlaps the side walls for greater resistance to water ingress issues, but this is a bespoke body not an Anglicised Kabe (another first). It has smart framed habitation windows, running board-style steps into the cab and a fully moulded rear panel with ‘frowning’ tail lights. It sits on a 4.5-tonne, single-rear-axle Al-Ko chassis and comes with Fiat’s top 180hp motor and the eight-speed automatic transmission as standard.

As such, it’s clear that this is still a motorhome at the luxury end of the market but, as other UK marques seem to offer higher and higher priced models, the £104,995 (plus £1,500 on-the-road charges) launch price tag here starts to look very reasonable. After all, this is still nearly eight metres of fully equipped motorhome.

The exterior

The heavy chassis means that there’s around a tonne of payload in this vehicle, so you’ll have no problem taking advantage of the large rear garage with twin loading doors. This space comes with adjustable lashing points, two 230V sockets and a 12V socket, too.
 

Other outside features include a low-mounted gas locker (easier to load) with room for two cylinders side by side. External shower and gas barbecue points are also fitted.

The interior

Inside, Coachman Lusso caravan owners will feel at home with the décor and it’s clear that this is a specific USP – aiming at brand devotees that want to give up towing. The Avventura is also more directly aimed at other top-end British motorhomes as it has thinner body walls than the existing Kabe-based models and, without their underfloor heating and inboard tanks, it doesn’t have quite the same uniquely Scandinavian appetite for winter touring. It does have Alde’s ‘wet’ central heating system, though.
 

What it also has is a spacious island bed layout (an Avventura 565 with twin beds is also planned). Up front, the lounge has side settees, a fold-in-half table and contrasting leather trim for the swivel cab seats. There’s step down from the cab into the lounge, then another step up to the rear as you enter the en suite bedroom. It’s a good-sized seating area and one that adapts for travel, with two foldaway Aguti passenger seats.
 

In the kitchen, it’s a surprise to see just a two-burner hob in a model developed solely for the UK but there is a fitted microwave (up high), as well as the Thetford oven/grill (down low). No less than seven drawers ensure good galley storage, while opposite is the 142-litre fridge/freezer.
 

Towards the stern, the shower is on the offside (note the considerable wheelarch intrusion) with the roomy toilet area opposite. Sliding doors close off the bedroom which is possibly the Avventura’s most appealing zone, looking as plush as any mobile boudoir you’re likely to find.

So far, Coachman motorhomes have appeared to target top European brands but this new Avventura looks more of a challenger for the best of British. Sure to appeal to existing Coachman caravan owners looking to swap to a motorhome.