Full review

ALMOST as small as a van conversion, with parkability and manoeuvrability to match, the new-for-2010 Globebus T15 answers many needs.

It has comfort and features more usually seen in much larger motorhomes, and finish quality of high standard, too.

In family holiday terms, because this motorhome is only just over six metres in length, it’s practical to use for days out; it doesn’t have to be confined to the campsite, even in the narrow-lanes of areas such as Cornwall and Devon.

Although there are belted seats for four, it sleeps only two (in a lovely transverse over-garage bed) – so a tent for the kids comes, too. And when you go out for the day in the motorhome, your tent is your pitch-base for chairs, barbecues and other necessary holiday accoutrements.

And the garage is there to ensure  a tent, perhaps, and all that other stuff is amply accommodated when you’re on the move.

For a couple, the combination of the Globebus T15’s compact nature and high quality is about as good as it gets.

We’re at Lowdham Leisure World near Nottingham for this evaluation and our test unit has been up-specced by Lowdham to demonstrate options.

Its base price including delivery of £46,314 grows by £1,585 if you opt for the 2.3-litre engine rather than the standard 2.2-litre version.

The rest of the difference between the base specification price and the £50,118 for our test vehicle is accounted for by a package of items including rear corner steadies, radio wiring and sound pack, extractor fan (go for that, if you can; it’s a great advantage) and a control panel over the door that looks far more nautical than motorhome; it’s really quite stunning.

Nice though some of those trimmings are, the standard Globebus T15 is an excellently equipped unit. Its dining area’s forward-facing sets are firmly comfortable (the cab seats swivel to enable four to dine).

Its kitchen isn’t big but it does carry a label that makes you think it’s a place for culinary creation: on a curved plinth just below the double-doored, head-height cupboard is a metal band bearing the words “Dethleffs Gourmet Center”.

If you forgive the spelling of centre, you can’t help but admire Dethleffs’ marketing! What you get, though, in the Gourmet Center, is a three-burner hob plus combined grill-oven and not much working space with the tops raised. Storage, though, is better.

You have four big drawers including a well-fitted, large cutlery drawer, plus a 175-litre tower fridge with separate freezer – so plenty of space for food and kitchen stuff overall.

Above the fridge is a tambour-doored cabinet containing a mounting point for a television; it’s watchable from the swivelled cab seats or the bed.

The bedroom gets a three-runged ladder that you clip into place on robust receptors on the edge of the bed and store in the garage or atop the bed during the day.

The mattress is finely upholstered in blue and cream fabric to match the living area. The same bright, appealing fabric is used to create four book-pockets mounted forward on the bed.

Even though this is a mere 6.28-metre motorhome it still manages to give you the luxury of a separate shower in the washroom. There are two sizeable towel rails are on the door – full marks to Dethleffs for providing adequate towel hanging equipment; something that’s so often lacking in washrooms.

Go Motorhome verdict:

Offering big-motorhome luxury in little over van conversion size, the T15’s versatility is impressive.

For young families complete with tent, the T15 is an ideal holiday vehicle because of its small size, day-out parkability and big garage for everyone’s cycles and much more.

The Globebus range sits at the starter line of the huge Dethleffs range that climbs up in size and price, offering multitudes of options along the way. Even at this budget end of the spectrum, standards of finish and equipment are high, as is typical of Dethleffs, and solid build quality is evident everywhere.

This review was first published in Go Motorhome magazine.