Full review

WITH the flagship Allegro motorhome range dropped for 2011 and the Suite a little too avant-garde for many tastes, the wholly revamped Welcome motorhome line-up carries a heavy weight of responsibility for this go-ahead French brand in the coming year.

And while there are five motorhome models to choose from, the only real difference between each is in bedroom configuration. And the 78 EB is the only one to break away from established formats.

As an island bed model you might wonder what’s innovative at all about this motorhome. The answer lies in the ‘EB’ or Easy Bed suffix.

In Chausson-speak Easy Bed is a ‘fixed’ bed that can raised or lowered by a variation of up to 35cm. In some models it’s done manually, here further up the range you need not stress yourself with a winding handle, just extending a digit on a switch for a few seconds will do the job. And what a difference it makes...

In its lowest position the Welcome’s island bed looks and feels very, umm, welcoming.

Access is easy, there are reading lights, a fabric-trimmed headboard and, unusually, there’s a roof vent with extractor fan for those steamy nights in Spain.

It’s as good an island bed format as you’re likely to find for the money. Press that switch (which could be more conveniently sited), however, and the bedroom looks totally different.

This is now a garage-style high bed, albeit with decent (810mm) headroom ’twixt mattress and ceiling. Those little corner steps suddenly have a purpose, too, but if you’re not too vertically challenged, bed access is still on the right side of mountain climbing!

The purpose of raising the bed is not to give you night-time vertigo, though, but to create a garage below, something rare in this class (and unique as a now-you-see-it-now-you-don’t choice). And this is a proper garage. With a large door on our offside and a smaller hatch opposite you can easily reach your gear, but more importantly the capacity here is so vast that you’ll need to invest in racks and storage boxes to make the best use of it. Not only does the space run the full width of the vehicle but it extends forward under the island bed too.

You’ll almost certainly need to upgrade to the 4-tonne chassis, though – standard payload is just 341kg.

That garage hangs out a long way behind the rear wheels so some care may be needed in loading, but driving the Welcome empty revealed a lively and taut handling vehicle, as we’ve come to almost take for granted with the combination of Fiat wide-track chassis and 130 Multijet engine.

Where the Welcome stands out is for the spacious feel in the driver’s quarters, a result of almost the whole cab roof being an opening window – with a second sunroof behind! These weren’t the source of conversion noise but there were some minor rattles on the road, though not excessive.

The huge glazed section of roof in the front of the 78 also makes for a spacious impression in what is actually quite a small lounge.

With a step down from the cab to the living area, the rear L-settee and single seat also seem a bit high and upright. The scatter cushions help, but those who are short in the leg are unlikely to be comfy anywhere but the cab seats – and sat there your knees bang against the table’s sliding mechanism.

The lounge is not without its good points, though. We loved the subdued mood lighting and the LED striplights, the rear seat is well-designed for passenger-carrying, and this fabric (one of several options) felt expensive to the touch.

And although the Welcome has a door between the kitchen/diner and the en suite bedroom, the glazed section in the door makes it much less divisive than the solid door used in the cheaper Flash.

If you come through the door from the toilet while your other half is cooking you’ll still need to be careful not to jog them (or worse, still spill something hot) but otherwise the Chausson chef should have little to complain about.

The offset hob (pushed into the corner) frees up valuable worktop space, while storage is very well thought out with lots of large drawers (and even a bin recessed into the counter top).

We liked the hidden positive-locking handles on the upper cupboards too, while you can’t beat a fridge of 175 litres capacity – though it doesn’t have AES operation, sadly. What it does have for the UK is an oven above.

That just leaves the washroom arrangements, which feel as if they belong in a much more expensive vehicle. The shower cubicle is of virtually domestic standard, while the toilet area opposite has rich woodwork and a shiny stainless steel basin. It all looks very plush – and should prove every bit as good in use.

This new motorhome First Sight review was first published in Which Motorhome magazine.