Full review

This T-Line is built on Fiat’s standard Ducato chassis-cab and powered by the 130bhp motor. Auto fans can have the Comfort-Matic robotised transmission, while those who desire more urge can grab an extra 18 horses, with the 150 Multijet upgrade.?

The rest of the interior is conventional (Euro lounge ahead of L-shaped kitchen) with one important addition, and that’s a drop-down double bed above the lounge. The 740 is billed as a five-berth motorhome, but as the fifth travel seat is equipped with a lap-strap-only belt and is rearward-facing with no head restraint, it’s best seen as a four berth: four sleeping places in two double beds and four fully-belted seats, two in the cab, two in the dinette section of the lounge.

As I own one, navigating a Ducato is as familiar to me as pulling on my favourite slippers, and this one proved to be little different. Easy and comfortable to drive, the ‘Duc’ is a great proposition – especially in its latest form with Euro V+ motor that allows travel into low emissions zones and promises even better fuel economy. This one did low 20s mpg on test, but should improve as the engine covers more miles – expect 25+mpg, driven at UK legal speeds. Performance proved adequate in this lightly loaded example, but I would go for the 148-horsepower option if placing my moniker on an order form.

Drop the side seat’s backrest, press a button (protected by a key-operated switch) and the drop-down bed descends smoothly. There’s a ladder to gain access from the rear, but the agile among us (even me, it transpired!) can get into bed using a cab seat as a hop-up. The bed has two positions, the highest gives more headroom downstairs, but significantly less – claustrophobically – up top.? The bed is well-sized, long and has plenty of headroom. There’s an LED strip at the head and the overcab shelves are perfect for night-time gear.

Like the lounge, the kitchen follows the continental norm with an L-shaped space – big fridge/freezer opposite. UK motorhomers’ desires are assuaged above the fridge by a Smev oven/grill. It’s not the largest model from the firm, but it’s adequately sized and works well.

The expected L-shaped unit features a three-burner hob and rectangular stainless-steel sink in what is a quite compact space. Worktop is provided by a slab in the corner (really only useful for putting things down), the sink’s removable cover and the hob’s glass lid, and everything feels a tad tight. Storage, however, is reasonable, with two deep drawers, a decent-sized cupboard and shelved overhead locker. Above the oven, and above the control panels mounted here, there’s also a rather strange lipped shelf – seems like an afterthought, but it’s useful nonetheless.

To the offside, the shower is roomy, with good pigeonhole shelves for gel and washcloth. Opposite, the toilet is the now rather old-fashioned-looking Thetford C200 swivel-bowl loo – although it still works fine.

So to bed. And here, that’s the island double that’ll be the main reason to buy this motorhome. I loved using this bed and its bedroom. Ensconced with the doors slid shut it’s a cosy space, the bed is easy to access, generously sized (6ft 3in by 4ft 9in) and there’s plenty of room to get sat up and read or slurp a cuppa. And somewhere to put both book and mug down, too, with large side tables left and right.

When the time comes to move around the interior after dark, a switch at the foot of the mattress fires up a series of low-level blue pin-lamps, which light the way without burning your retinas. And with the bed in the raised position (and a proper garage available beneath) usage stays much the same, but with reduced headroom at the head of the bed, so sitting up fully is then a no-no.

This is an abridged version of the full review that appeared in the April 2015 issue of Which Motorhome.