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Words by Peter Vaughan

It has long been the big German brands that have combined fixed bed layouts with slimmer (2.20m-wide or less) low-profile bodywork. Here, though, is a new Gallic competitor in the sector, offering single bed and island bed floorplans as well as a sub-six-metre model for those seeking a truly compact coachbuilt.

Inside, this baby of Rapido’s new C Series range doesn’t have the expected transverse rear bed of most opponents, though, but a French bed. It, therefore, marks the return of this type of bedroom to the Rapido range as well as the reintroduction of a really petite coachbuilt.

While it is indisputably the smallest motorhome in the line-up, the C56 still looks and feels like a Rapido. On the outside that means Novatech construction with polyester roof, floor and walls, plus Styrofoam insulation and flush, framed windows.

There’s a new (simple and rather neat) design to the rear panel and long-standing features of the brand, too, such as central locking that includes the habitation door and skirts made of aluminium.

Above the cab, the latest Skyview sunroof is glass, not plastic, and surely must be one of the largest on the market.

Inside, there’s still a choice of furniture style, despite this being the company’s new entry-level range. Shown is Bellagio, featuring a light wood tone with chrome trim strips, while the alternative is Nacarat, which contrasts dark wood with gloss white for a bolder design.

There’s a whole host of extra equipment for right-hand drive models, too. Included as standard are a heated waste tank, external shower, removable carpets, an oven/grill, a second leisure battery and, on the Fiat Ducato cab, Traction+, Hill Descent Control, piano black fascia trim, chrome-ringed instruments and even a leather steering wheel with radio controls.

Also, the Truma Combi is upgraded to the 6kW version, running not only from diesel but 230V power, too. And, yes, I did say diesel, not gas – this is the lesser-known version of the Combi that makes so much sense as it overcomes the problems of exchanging cylinders abroad and reduces the need to carry a lot of gas.

All this and the C56 still starts at well under £60k, which sounds competitive. Add the Select Pack for just £1,790 (it includes more than twice that value of kit) and you’ll also have a Kenwood multimedia system, cruise control, ESC with ASR and Roll Over Mitigation, height-adjustable cab seats, cab blinds and a door with two-point locking and a fixed window.

Inside the Rapido C56 motorhome

There’s an electric step for easy access and, once inside, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how spacious the C56 feels for such a small motorhome. That’s down to a number of factors – the pale furniture, the generous lighting and the twin sunroofs over cab and lounge, plus the fact that the bedroom is more of an integral part of the living space than in rival transverse bed layouts.

Up front, the lounge has an L-settee with a very easy to use fold-down panel to convert it to a half-dinette (complete with height-adjustable headrests) for two rear passengers. The cushion even stays strapped to the seat base as it folds.

Then, that same principle is used for the backless jump seat that pops up by the door. It may not look especially comfortable, but it feels sturdy and adds a fifth place at the table, should you have visitors. It’s also perfect as a footrest when reclining in the swivelled driver’s seat.

Rapido was the originator of fixed tables that fold in half and it’s easy to see why others have copied the idea – you have a generous tabletop (850mm by 670mm) for dining (or perhaps board games). When halved in size, the table is much less dominant and still ever in situ for coffee cups or wine glasses.

Lighting includes an LED strip and an Art Deco reading light (with USB) over the sofa, four spots around the central, wind-up rooflight and ambient lighting over the top lockers and overcab shelves. And, for once, reading in the cab chairs has not been forgotten – touch-to-switch lamps are here on either side.

Then, there’s a rear speaker over the lounge (and another in the bedroom), while coat hooks are fitted by the door. All the details seem well thought through, apart from, perhaps, the double step in the lounge floor – why isn’t the cab level carried through around the table, instead of dropping by a pointless 55mm?

The kitchen in the Rapido C56 motorhome

Of course, a motorhome of this size with a fixed bed is never going to have a kitchen grand enough to suit budding Nigella Lawsons, but adopt a more realistic viewpoint and what Rapido has managed to incorporate into the space is impressive.

For a start, it all looks rather smart, with more LED strip and ambient illumination, as well as lights built into the cooker hood.

The hob, from Can, might only have two rings but this new style of gas-on-glass cooker looks contemporary and Rapido has long been one of the best imported brands when it comes to incorporating ovens for British buyers.

Here, it’s a Can combined oven/grill mounted under the sink and sandwiched between the galley’s two drawers. The top one offers recesses for cutlery and both are electrically locked by a single switch so they don’t slide open while driving.

The fridge is an electric-only compressor type. It has a decent capacity (90 litres) and, of course, you just switch it on and forget it (unlike standard three-way models). With twin leisure batteries on board you won’t have to worry about the current it uses, either, although closing the fridge door is a tad awkward when the carpets are fitted.

Worktop is somewhat limited but there’s just enough room for a toaster next to the sink (with a chrome-covered three-pin socket conveniently adjacent), while an extension piece slots in by the door to give you a bit of serving space (providing this as a loose, not hinged, panel means light/step switches and grab handle can still be sited here). Of course, the table is close by if you need more room.

The top lockers are a generous size and the doors push to open, then rise swiftly on gas struts.

The recess in the kitchen splashback seemed more ornamental than useful, but the tiny shelf above the fridge (with an elasticated retainer strap) could suit condiments, etc.

Opposite, there’s a large drawer underneath the bed that could house bottles and cereal packets. However, the best feature is definitely the slide-out pantry unit for tins and packets, which is located underneath the TV station.

The television bracket slides out from here and can face the lounge or be rotated for watching the late-night film in bed.

The bedroom in the Rapido C56 motorhome

One of the reasons French beds fell out of favour is that they are often oddly shaped, with a cut-off corner at the foot that can see one unhappy sleeper with a cold leg dangling out of bed. You won't see an island bed in a six-metre motorhome, though, so Rapido has come up with an alternative in order to give you a proper rectangular-shaped mattress.

Under the end of the bed is a slide-out panel, supported by a folding leg, onto which a cheese-shaped cushion fits (and zips to the main mattress so it doesn’t go walkabouts in the night). The mattress is still narrower at the foot but the difference is so marginal that you won’t notice.

Nor should you be overly upset that the wardrobe overhangs the mattress, unless you’ve gone to sleep with clown shoes on (there’s 340mm ’twixt mattress and furniture). What you will appreciate is that there’s room to sit up in bed, and his and hers reading lights are fitted, as well as a double USB and a 12V socket.

With four travel seats aboard the C56, you might also envisage using it for more than two people and, here, Rapido reverts to adapting the lounge rather than having a button to press and a bed appearing magically from above (for a drop-down you’ll have to go up to Rapido’s 6 Series).

I’d already spotted the two extra cushions neatly secured in the underbed storage space, but 40 years of motorhoming experience wasn’t enough to work out what to do next without the handbook. Once you’ve done it a few times it might become second nature.

More important than the relative complexity of this bed-making is that it does, for once, result in a properly usable bed. You might even accommodate two youngsters here as the cushions measure 1.22m across at their widest. Do note, however, that the bed does block the habitation door when made up.

The washroom in the Rapido C56 motorhome

Also slightly restricted is access to the washroom once you’ve added that corner extension panel to the main bed – whether that’s an issue is something you can only really try yourself; the door opening reduces to around 280mm (less by the handle).

Inside the washroom, the layout places the basin by the entrance and the bench-style cassette loo right against the back wall. There’s plenty of shoulder room when seated and miles of legroom, while three mirrors enhance the impression of space and a roof vent caters for ventilation.

When showering, bifold doors both fore and aft section off the central section of washroom to create a reasonable-sized cubicle. There’s nowhere to place your shampoo, though, except on the floor.

Oddly, too, Rapido hasn’t fitted its usual elasticated straps in the washroom cabinets, although the open shelves under the washbasin have fiddle rails to keep their contents in place. There’s a folding drying rail in the roof, too.

With a low-level fixed bed, of course, there’s no bike-devouring garage in this model (look to the C55 for that), but there’s still a useful space under the mattress (only partly taken up by a Combi boiler and twin batteries).

Accessed from inside by folding the bed base in half or from outside (on the nearside) via a 60cm by 55cm hatch, internal height here is 64cm, while the shape is irregular as the gas locker intrudes into the area. It holds just one 13kg cylinder but that should last an age as it’s only required for cooking, not the heating or the fridge.

Finally, it was time to head away from our host’s (Wokingham Motorhomes) pretty rural location and sample Rapido’s new baby on the road.

It’s a familiar Fiat at heart, with firm ride, easy gearshift and sharp steering. Even on its diddiest ’van, Rapido hasn’t saved money with the smallest engine; it has made the 140bhp unit standard (and this should be more than adequate).

The automatic gearbox is available at £2,660, alloy wheels for £410 but, more unusually, so is a Safety Pack (emergency braking system, lane departure warning, high beam recognition and rain and dusk sensors), priced at £890.

I’d take the C56 as it comes, though, and revel in its compact, easy-driving nature. Saving 18cm in width and 80cm in length compared with the smallest of Rapido’s 6 Series low-profiles really does make this model feel at home in town and on country back roads.

And, surely, exploring new out-of-the-way places is what motorhoming is all about?