Full review

Words and photos: Geneve Brand

The Orange Campers Trouvaille

As is often the way with family-run converters, Orange Campers started with a passion for campervanning. Company owner, Richard Tomlin, has been a campervanner for most of his life and has been building them for the last 25 years, establishing Orange Campers just over five years ago.

He had always been a big fan of the side kitchen layout and VW campers, as these vehicles are small and practical enough to use as a daily vehicle. However, if you have a growing family, like Richard, you may find you want something a tad bigger.

That’s where Richard felt that he’d spotted a gap in the market, which the Trouvaille is designed to fill. Based on the short-wheelbase Fiat Ducato, at 4.96m long, it’s only a little longer than a Volkswagen Transporter T6.1 SWB (4.90m), and, therefore, it still fits in a standard parking bay.

The dimensions

The Fiat Ducato is noticeably wider (2.05m versus 1.90m) and much less car park-friendly in height than a Volkswagen (2.35m versus around 2m). That difference is instantly perceivable when you step inside.

If you use your campervan as your daily driver and/or have children to ferry around, you may need five belted travel seats. In a VW, that usually involves a compromise as the only way a three-seater bench will fit is to install a slimmer side kitchen, which results in less storage space and, possibly, reduced kitchen facilities. Or, alternatively, you could have a double passenger seat in the cab, but those eliminate your walk-through and are awkward to rotate.

In the Trouvaille, though, the extra width of the Ducato allows space for a three-seater RIB travel seat (fitted with Isofix for two child seats), as well as a good kitchen alongside.

The kitchen

That starts with a family-friendly fridge, with a 90-litre capacity. It’s where you’d expect to find it in a side kitchen campervan, immediately behind the driver’s seat, and there’s sufficient room to swivel this, as well as the passenger seat.

Above the fridge, there’s a good-sized cutlery drawer with two compartments. Then, above that, as you might expect, there’s a Dometic stainless-steel combined hob and sink unit under dark glass lids. If two gas rings aren’t enough for your culinary needs, there’s the option to have a microwave or oven fitted in the cupboard adjacent to the fridge. As is common in campervans of this type, it’s cold water only at the sink – no boiler – although one is optionally available for £799. Or you could just boil a kettle…

Worktop space is sufficient, and it’s laminated, as is the splashback behind. There’s a wide choice of colours to choose from, too, (not just orange!), so you can customise your camper. Then, above the kitchen window, there’s a deep top cupboard that has plenty of space to house dinner plates, bowls, cups, etc.

The lower bed

Of course, another advantage of having the wider RIB bench is that it equates to a bigger bed. It measures 1.28m wide and 1.86m long. The bed system is really easy to operate and converts to a flat bed, too.

The mattress is in three sections and a lever allows firstly the seat squab to flip over, concealing the seatbelt buckles, then a bar is lifted to fold the backrest flat. Some people find the RIB bed too firm, but this is easily fixed with a mattress topper.

What I really like about the RIB system, though, is that the end section of the bed is on a rachet and can be positioned at whatever angle you like, so it’s ideal if you enjoy reclining in bed with a book in the evening.

Another advantage of this rachet system is that the rearmost mattress section can be positioned to create a shelf in the boot (ideal for storing bedding on during the day), or it can be positioned vertically to allow space for loading tall items.

Storage and lighting

Below the bed, there is a Porta Potti (accessed from a cupboard door at the front) and two 95Ah leisure batteries. And, while we’re on the subject of electrics, note that a 120W slim solar panel is fitted to the roof as standard (upgraded here to a 180W version). Orange Campers says that you can camp off-grid for several days, with the 12V fridge running.

Another cupboard door provides further storage under the seat/bed. To the right of these cupboards, a fire extinguisher is installed and you’ll also find the switch for the electric step here, as well as one 230V socket, one 12V and two USB ports, plus a wireless phone charging point.

A neat feature on the underside of the roof bed is a magnetic removable strip light (charged via micro-USB), which can also be attached at the back of the ’van. Acting as a lightsaber, it’s ideal for popping to the loo block after dark.

Come sleep time, there are Polyvision double-glazed opening windows all around, fitted with flyscreens and blinds. For the cab, this demo model also came with optional Remis blinds (£850).

The RIB seat has headrests that simply pull up and down to suit different passengers, but only those with long legs will be really comfy as it is mounted quite high off the floor.

For sitting around in the evening and playing a game of cards, lighting inside is decent, too. There are two LED downlighters above the sliding door and, opposite, above the kitchen, there’s an LED strip and a lollipop light. Then, there’s a reading light in the cab and another lollipop lamp at the back of the campervan, for bedtime use, as well as that lightsaber.

The roof bed

No doubt mum and dad will sleep on the downstairs bed, as kids love a roof bed. This is accessed via a metal ladder that clips to the kitchen side of the roof, blocking the hob and fridge. Unfortunately, there is not really anywhere suitable to store the ladder when it’s not in use. It’s too long to easily store in the boot, but Orange says that it’s working on a telescopic or folding version.

Similarly, whilst the roof bed is a decent size, at 1.80m long by 1.10m wide, the mattress is a little on the thin side and is not fitted with springs (just a carpeted board), so there is room for improvement here.

The pop-top itself is made in the UK, but is not from one of the well-known brands or safety tested, although we’re assured that it’s made using top-quality components. The canvas is available in pretty much any colour you like. It features a front window and two opening sections with flyscreens. Up top, there’s also one lollipop reading light fitted with two USB ports.

With the roof bed down, standing room below is 1.63m, so, if you’re a hobbit like me, you’ll still be able to make a brew in the kitchen without crouching – handy on rainy days when you’re stuck inside and the kids are using the upstairs as a den.

The dining area

If you like the idea of the Trouvaille and want to try one for yourself, you can hire it for £135 per night. In fact, we had a bit of a job booking this campervan for a road test because, when it’s not hired out to customers, Richard is often away in it with his wife and their two young boys. The plus side is that the design is frequently put to use by families, and that means it has been tweaked and refined over time to make it as user-friendly as possible.

One such aspect is the dining area. There is a table that clips to the side wall of the campervan, next to the rear bench, when not in use. To use it, the single leg simply folds down and a pair of clips on the edge of the table attach it to the kitchen unit. Then, there are two rail positions to choose from.

The first is next to the back seat, so the table can be used by two people sitting here, or as extra worktop space when cooking. The second rail is above the fridge, so the table can then be used in conjunction with the cab seats, perhaps as a workstation.

Unfortunately, though, the cab seats are rather high off the floor when swivelled, which leaves dangling legs.

A neat idea, however, is that the front section of the bench can also be deployed as if you were making the bed. This allows four folk to sit around the table to dine, albeit with limited access to the galley and no backrest for those facing forward. It’s not the largest table, but it is stable and there’s still enough room for four dinner plates to be set.

The spec

As anyone who has ever owned a small campervan will know, space is always at a premium, and how well a conversion works comes down to the details of its design. Whilst the larger Ducato base naturally provides more room for all your camping clobber, the design is also well thought out.

At the back of the camper is a wardrobe that is accessible whether the bed is up or down and, ahead of this, is another large cupboard with two shelves, plus a low-level locker behind a tambour door. Space in the boot is reasonable, too, with a deep cupboard making use of every inch around the wheelarch – ideal for your electric hook-up lead, etc. The fusebox is also concealed in the boot.

Another way of maximising space inside is to make use of the outside. Here, that starts with an underslung 25-litre LPG tank, which feeds the cooker, a Propex blown-air heater and an external barbecue point. There’s also an underslung 40-litre fresh water tank and 30-litre waste water tank.

Further toys outside include an outdoor shower, a Fiamma F45S wind-out awning with an LED strip light, and a reversing camera.

The base vehicle

I always found the previous generations of Fiat Ducato rather agricultural to drive. I certainly knew I was piloting a diesel van and had to resist the urge to use bus lanes!

The Trouvaille, of course, is based on the latest Series 8 Ducato, which is better, especially in terms of engine refinement. It comes with the 2.2-litre 140bhp motor and six-speed manual gearbox as standard.

This example also came in Fiat’s Business Edition trim (for £1,500 extra), which adds a number of toys that would often be expensive individual options, including automatic climate control, an electric parking brake (no handbrake lever to obstruct swivelling seats!), electrically folding and heated mirrors, keyless entry and ignition, a 7in digital instrument cluster and a 10in display screen for all the essentials like the reversing camera, DAB radio and Apple CarPlay/Android Auto.

However, despite the update and the extra kit, there’s no getting away from the fact that the Ducato still feels van-like compared to a VW T6.1 or Ford Transit Custom. Its extra width won’t always be welcome on Cornish country lanes, either.

And we have learnt that Fiat appears to be discontinuing the short-wheelbase version of the Ducato van in the UK, at least in the short term. Orange Campers still has some vans unconverted and is hoping to source more but, in response to this development, the company is launching a medium-wheelbase Fiat, the Trouvaille Classique (from £62,999). It is also developing a third version of the Trouvaille, called Actif, based on the Ford Transit Custom.

Motorhome supplied by Orange Campers
Tel: 07931 868529
orangecampers.co.uk

Insurance: £437.98
Tel: 0800 975 1307
shieldtotalinsurance.co.uk
For quote details: motorhome.ma/QuoteInfo