Full review

The Auto-Sleeper Corinium RB motorhome is the same size as its siblings, which is some 7.70m long, 2.32m wide (with the mirrors tucked in) and 2.90m tall (thanks to the satellite dome). This is a big beast, a true luxury tourer, but that also means it has an unwieldy 2.16m overhang from the rear wheel. When driving around, especially through towns, you will spend a lot of time checking the wing mirrors to see exactly where that big back end is going. Reversing is helped hugely by the rear view camera.

There are no clumsy cylinders with the Corinium, so you’re spared the back-breaking effort of changing them over. Instead, there’s a 25-litre tank of LPG to service your cooking and heating needs. Now, look up and you’ll see the satellite TV dome on the roof. There are satellite and regular TV points inside, next to the kitchen and in the bedroom.

Once inside, the Corinium’s driving position is high, but perfectly fine for anyone under six foot. The cab windows are both electric, as are the wing mirrors. Both driver and passenger get airbags as standard, and an actual ciggy lighter as well as a standard 12V socket. The standard entertainment unit offers DAB radio with Bluetooth connectivity.

Both driver and passenger seats rotate around to face into the lounge, which, along with the bedroom, is one of the key attractions, consisting of facing bench seats. The windows on either side let in plenty of light and have proper curtains on rails, so they look good. In this low-profile version, there’s a skylight, two large storage pockets and a big flat area for just heaping stuff in when you’re parked up. Both bench seats lift up and there’s much-needed storage underneath.

The bed parts simply pull out and the cushions fold down to make a second bed measuring 2.22m long by 1.20m wide. There’s also another skylight above here which adds more natural light.

Around the lounge are four lockers finished in stylish dark wood and cream. There is mood lighting above them and two spotlights under each side. There are no fewer than 11 separate switches for the lights here, which, combined with an astonishing nine switches in the bedroom, means there are 20 light switches overall.

Carefully slotted in between lounge and kitchen is a super-neat slide-out panel that houses a large table. With fold-out legs, rather than a central column, it offers rock-steady stability. There’s also enough room for four to eat without taking turns – for two people it’s perfect. The ceiling height is a spacious 1.92m at the entrance to the cab, rising to 1.95m in the lounge and throughout. The floor is, of course, all one level.

There is plenty of kitchen work surface and, in fact, you get more preparation space than in the other Corinium layouts. There’s also a long shelf over the table slide-out – on the wall is a USB charging point, a 12V socket, two 230V sockets, plus a satellite/TV point. Above these is the Truma heating control.

The sink isn’t huge but it does come with a plate rack and draining tray. There are three small lockers above the sink: one has cup and glass-holders, the other a fitted plate rack. Under the kitchen surface is a cutlery drawer and one large cupboard for pans. The fridge isn’t particularly big, at 109 litres, though it does have automatic power selection. The real star of the kitchen is the Thetford Caprice Mark III cooker with separate oven and grill, electric hotplate and three gas rings. Above this is a microwave. An extractor fan completes the picture for what is a very accomplished kitchen.

The all-in-one bathroom is just big enough to get in and sit down on the Thetford electric-flushing swivel cassette loo, but showering would be an awkward experience. The overall space is just 90cm deep and 94cm wide. You do get a towel rail and a fair-sized square basin, but instead of a cabinet there are two metal-grill toiletry holders. On the floor, wooden slats keep you off a potentially wet and slippery surface, but it’s good to see that there are two draining holes.

The rear island bed is framed by two chests of drawers, two corner cabinets and overhead lockers. You can get around both sides when the bed is down, while the bed also slides back to provide a comfortable environment for daytime relaxing. There are 12V, 230V and satellite/TV sockets and connections next to the corner cupboard. The bed itself is 1.93m at the longest point, but it curves from the sides after 1.63m. It is quite high off the floor; the front end of the bed lifts up to reveal lots of storage, with an area recessed into the floor. Large windows on either side and a big skylight means there is plenty of natural light in here and under the corner wall units are 230V and USB sockets on either side, plus plenty of space to put cups of tea, books or electronica.

If you enjoyed this review, you can read the full version and more in the December 2016/January 2017 issue of What Motorhome magazine. You can get a digital version of this latest issue of What Motorhome magazine here.