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Elddis Autoquest CV60 campervan
Sections:

Key Features

Model Year 2020
Class High top
Base Vehicle Fiat Ducato
Price From (£) 40,229
Length (m) 5.99
Berths 2
Belted Seats 2
Main Layout Rear Lounge
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At a glance

Berths: 2 Travel seats: 2 Base vehicle: Fiat Ducato Gross weight: 3,500kg Payload: 600kg

Full review

When it comes to bargain-priced coachbuilt motorhomes, Elddis has always had the market pretty well sewn up with its traditional Autoquest range. However, the company’s efforts in the panel van conversion market have been sporadic in the past and sometimes less convincing. This all changed in 2018 when the British arm of the Erwin Hymer Group launched the CV20 and CV40 under both the Compass and Elddis brands (identically priced but with different interior trim and exterior graphics).

For the 2020 season, Elddis has introduced a third campervan, the CV60, which features an interesting take on the rear lounge layout. Like the other CV models, it’s keenly priced – you can have one parked on your drive for as little as £38,599. For a fully converted six-metre camper, this is seriously good value. So, where have corners been cut, or have they been cut at all?

Finished in the standard white paintwork (dark grey metallic is offered for £500 and contrasts well with the red graphics), the CV60 is a pretty understated campervan. You get colour-coded bumpers, and the test ’van also came with alloys, which are a £650 option that I’d be powerless to resist. The only other option on this example was the Lux Pack, which is a £1,218 option that includes the essential air-conditioning and passenger airbag, plus cruise control.

Standard fare includes the usual remote central locking, electric windows and electric (heated) mirrors, together with a six-speed manual gearbox. The engine isn’t the 120bhp entry-level unit, but the 140bhp 2.3-litre turbo-diesel, which meets the latest Euro 6d-Temp emissions standards. You can get the excellent new nine-speed automatic gearbox (a proper torque converter transmission, at last) as a £2,000 option, while the an auto’ paired to the 160bhp engine is £3,000. Given that the latter option is getting on for 10% of the cost of the ’van, it seems like better value to stick with 140 horsepower.

Inside the Elddis Autoquest CV60 campervan

Both front seats are mounted on swivel bases and can be easily rotated to face rearwards. And, once swivelled, there’s a useful section of worktop adjacent. A small step then leads down to the central walkway, with the washroom and kitchen mounted centrally. So far, all so normal… Above the cab there’s a handy storage shelf with controls for the Whale space heating and boiler adjacent to this. These units are both sited underneath the vehicle, with the CompleteHeat blown-air system boasting a 4.3kW power output and the boiler offering an eight-litre capacity. Even the 25-litre LPG tank is underslung, further increasing stowage space inside the camper.

Nowhere is this extra space more evident than in the rear lounge. First impressions are of a particularly roomy area and the wide walkway adds to this feeling. Windows are to three sides and a handy low-set dresser unit makes good use of the normally awkward space above the rear (nearside) wheelarch. A rooflight is overhead, so there’s plenty of natural light, while two LED reading lights and mood lighting above the four roof lockers can add more illumination when needed. The unusual aspect is the odd angle of the rear settee, which has a much wider base than normal. It’s like a cross between a day bed and a wide settee. It’s a great place to lounge about. Compared to the more common twin settee layout – which can feel a bit like a corridor in a doctor’s surgery – it seems far more luxurious.

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Elddis Autoquest CV60 campervan kitchen

Close to the lounge is a waist-height Thetford 90-litre compressor fridge, which is perfectly placed for easy beer-grabbing when you’re relaxing on the sofa-cum-day-bed. The rest of the kitchen kit is equally impressive and includes a Thetford Triplex cooker, complete with three gas burners, a grill and oven, and even electronic ignition. A circular sink – with a removable loose cover (which you’ll need to store away for safety when travelling) – and a separate tap are also inset into the worktop

For dining, you’d expect there to be an island leg table provision in the rear lounge area, but Elddis has resisted doing this and kept the cab as the sole dedicated dining area. A table leg secured (with hook-and-lock) fastenings to the cupboard behind the driver’s seat is supplied in place of a Fiamma pole-in-the-hole leg and it works better. The rectangular tabletop lives in the wardrobe when not in use and is the perfect size for a couple of diners. Best of all, you can keep it set up on site and get up early to make a brew without having to disturb your other half.

Opposite the kitchen is the washroom, which you’d expect to be all horrible flimsy white plastic at this price point. It isn’t. A durable plastic basin sits on a swooping section of worktop alongside a Thetford swivel bowl loo with electric flush. Overhead storage comprises a double mirror-doored cabinet with a couple of shelves. A flyscreened rooflight lets out the steam.

Elddis Autoquest CV60 campervan beds

It’s only at night-time that you realise how clever the design of the CV60 is. It takes 10 seconds to make up the bed – simply lift the base up a bit and slide it across the walkway until the backrest drops down. Two straps are sewn into the backrest so it automatically falls into place. The resulting bed is 1.88m (6ft 2in) long and 1.31m (4ft 3½in) wide at the head end, narrowing to just 0.96m (3ft 2in) at the foot. The best bit is that the bed doesn’t cover all the walkway. Equally, the split door and drawer arrangement of the cabinet opposite is fully accessible with the bed made up and the worktop forms a useful bedside cabinet. 

 

If you enjoyed this review, you can read the full version and more in the October 2018 issue of MMM magazine. You can get a digital version of this latest issue of MMM magazine here.

    

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Our verdict

This is a great addition to the Elddis campervan line-up and the novel lounge design works equally well as a fixed bed or as a comfy settee. The underslung appliances and tanks free up interior space for generous storage and it’s clear that a lot of thought has gone into this design. It’s a great price, too, so we’d expect these models to sell out early in the season...

Advantages

Great rear/settee bed layout
Underslung kit frees up internal space

Disadvantages

Plasticky tap in kitchen
Single shower drain point

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