Hillside Dalbury

Berths: 2/3 Travel seats: 4 Base vehicle: Nissan NV200 Gross weight: 2,000kg Payload: 400kg

For some, even a VW T6 campervan is a bit too big. For others the price of that dream Volkswagen campervan – even if it’s a new conversion on a secondhand panel van – is too high. Welcome, then, to the Nissan NV200.

This latest motorhome review is brought to you by the experts at What Motorhome magazine. To read more motorhome reviews, click here.

This is the sort of vehicle that will easily slide down city streets, into car parks and, maybe, even into your domestic garage. Better still, we’ve achieved nearly 55mpg from one of these.

The power unit is a 1.5-litre dCi diesel producing either 90PS or 110PS (with six speeds). Or there’s perhaps the best-known version – the all-electric Dalbury E.

The electric model has the same elevating roof and side kitchen conversion as its more conventional brother but, outside, the styling is a little more svelte with a flap for the electric lead where the diesel model gets a standard grille. Driving it is like no other campervan, as the instant acceleration – in near silence – soon induces a Cheshire cat expression.

The big question with any electric vehicle is range. Driven carefully, away from motorways, you might coax 600 miles from a diesel NV200 before worrying about where the next BP or Shell sign might be. The electric version will only cover about a tenth of that distance on a full charge. The bonus, though, is that a recharge is either free or costs pennies, whereas a tankful of Derv will be the best part of 70 quid. Then there’s the eco argument, too…

Of course, the downsides of ditching diesel will be too great for most of us right now, but the Dalbury E does give a glimpse of what the campervan of the future may be like. And, in the meantime, you can still buy the standard version and enjoy one of the most compact and affordable of all mainstream models.

Like many a VW conversion, the Dalbury has an RIB seat/bed unit that folds down easily into a 1.80m by 1.04m double bed. There’s an easy-to-use pop-up roof with an optional kiddy bed, and the kitchen runs right along the offside.

The galley and its location look completely conventional, but there are two neat breaks with the norm. Firstly, the furniture stays at worktop height for its full length, thus increasing the impression of space and creating more preparation space at mealtimes and a useful bedside table at night.

Secondly, the two-burner hob is only revealed when a small top-loading locker above it slides into the cab.

There’s a 39-litre front-loading compressor fridge, and tambour doors provide easy access into all the cupboards. You also get a swivel passenger cab seat and more useful storage behind the rear bench.

Diesel-fired heating is an option and an upgrade from Accenta to Tekna spec on the base vehicle brings with it alloy wheels, colour-coded bumpers, cruise control, a passenger airbag, air-conditioning and sat-nav.

If you enjoyed this review, you can read the full version and more in the June 2017 issue of What Motorhome magazine.

You can get a digital version of this latest issue of What Motorhome magazine here.