Full review

THE class winner of our 2010 Budget Buy award comes under even closer scrutiny on a mountainous tour of the Vercors National Park in southern France.

For the 2010 model year, from a brand previously associated with well-priced, competent, but largely unremarkable motorhomes came two stand-out designs, the Welcome Suite and the Flash S2 that you see here.

Innovation had come to the fore at a time when many rivals were more interested in cutting production in line with reduced demand.

And in the UK, Chausson matched that design bravery with equally attention-grabbing pricing, seemingly in spite of the pound/euro exchange rate that has so battered the competitiveness of some imported vehicles.

Our test ’van was a left-hooker, but apart from that and the omission of a flyscreen on the habitation door (standard in the UK) and the lack of a high-level grill above the galley, this S2 is just as you’ll see it in your local dealer.

And yet here is a motorhome that by the simplest of ideas transforms the compact six-metre fixed bed floorplan, depending on which way you view it.

The clever bit is that the fixed bed is only about three quarters of the length it should be – the rest is added at night by simply flipping forward the backrest of the half-dinette bench. And by saving space with the bed Chausson have managed to include a full-width washroom of quite remarkable space and practicality.

French designers have introduced their novel thinking into a motorhome that meets the needs and demands of the times – it is affordable (from £34,843 on-the-road), it is compact (six metres long) and it is a true low-profile (keeping overall height down to just 2.71m).

That combination means that the Ducato chassis can really shine. With a small, light body like this and the 130 Multijet engine under the bonnet it would be a very hard-to-please driver that would pine for more.

The Chausson body hugs the cab with only the smallest of luton sections, the rear wheels filling the arches thanks to the wide track and the rear overhang kept to sensibly modest proportions.

The graphics are quite sparse, but at the same time modern, and the silver skirts add a bit of colour contrast. Only the black, unpainted front bumper hints at costs saved. The factory-fit bike rack mountings are an unexpected plus and the rear (UK) nearside external locker is a key feature.

With the wheelarch position preventing the inclusion of an external hatch into the (shortened) under-bed compartment, the tall corner locker takes over the role of exterior stowage. And this is a really versatile area.

Finally, there’s a shallow (180mm high) tunnel of storage space stretching under the floor, right across the full width of the ’van.


You’d probably expect a compact fixed bed motorhome to come with a half-dinette seating arrangement, and the Flash doesn’t disappoint.

But even here there’s a twist. Because the rear seat needs to fold flat at bedtime it’s not quite your average half-dinette bench; there’s an armrest on the gangway side and the backrest reclines through an infinite variety of angles.

There is a downside to the design, though, and that’s the lap only seatbelt on the outside seat. The wall-side seat has a three-point restraint attached to a substantial steel upright.

Nevertheless, this is a more comfortable lounge-diner than you’ll find in most rivals. The cab seats swivel easily and both have height adjustment, easily catering for drinks and snacks for four.

Lighting is adequate with the unusual rectangular lamp in the ceiling and stylish swivel reading light over the table. We couldn’t fathom Chausson’s decision to fit the wind-up sunroof-style vent so far back – if it were over the table it would lighten the living area no end. And the lack of any provision for mounting a flatscreen TV seems out of kilter with today’s market.

Opposite the table the small kitchen has an integral Smev hob and sink unit with three burners to cook on but no built-in ignition. As we’ve said, for the UK you can add a high-level grill to the standard spec but there’s no oven because there’s no room for one.

The fridge is a decent size and there’s a proper cutlery drawer with a tea-towel rail on the front. Worktop space looks sparse but actually is quite adequate once you discover the slide-out surface over the fridge.

With eye-level cupboards over the bed, kitchen, table and sideboard, you’ll not be short of space and each has a positive locking catch for safety. Don’t under-estimate the usefulness of the sideboard adjacent to the bed, either; it’s surprisingly capacious.

You may not be able to access its contents from outside but the under-bed area boasts a generous capacity to devour outdoor gear. Even the leisure battery is out of the way in an underfloor compartment.

When is a fixed bed not a fixed bed? When it’s in a Flash S2. Not the best motorhoming joke, but this has to be one of the greatest new ideas we’ve seen in a long time. You can leave duvet and pillows in situ and just tip the backrest of the rear seat forward to lie flat, thus completing the foot of the bed. Will you feel the join in the bed? No.

The S2’s bedroom beats most standard French bed designs. The person sleeping against the wall can (just) get out of bed without climbing over their partner, by shuffling down to the foot of the bed.

Has such a small motorhome ever had such superior washroom? Probably not, for whilst the swivel cassette toilet and corner basin unit are unremarkable, the size of the shower cubicle is on an American RV scale. With both shower doors unfolded the shower space measures almost 800mm square – there’s room for two!

Of course, nothing’s perfect and the towel and toilet roll fittings, though smart enough, did feel rather flimsy. Then there’s the toilet flush switch, inconveniently hidden behind the loo, and the sliding washroom door which needs something more secure than just a magnet to stop it sliding open on twisty roads.

To mention these negatives seems a bit hard on Chausson when the basics are so supremely right, so let’s finish by saying that we rather liked the contrasting coffee-coloured seat/lid on the toilet – unusual that.

A longer version of this review was published in the August 2010 issue of Which Motorhome magazine.