Murvi Pimento XL

Berths: 2 Travel seats: 2 Base vehicle: Ford Transit L3H2 panel van Gross weight: 3,500kg Payload: 340kg

Murvi’s Piccolo and Pimento twins are little brothers for the Morello. They maximise space with a wardrobe hanging over the foot of the double bed. While the Piccolo has a forward-facing RIB travel seat, the Pimento has an inward-facing settee.

This Pimento XL has all-wheel drive (AWD), although the ride height is the same.

You enter the standard Pimento through the sliding door or the offside rear door. That isn’t possible here, as the back door conceals a large storage area. But the side door is large, and there’s a retractable step.

To accommodate the propshaft, there’s a further, internal step, although the higher floor does remove any drop from the cab. A downside is decreased headroom, but this problem is not insurmountable, as Transits are available with the H3 (extra-high) roof.

Inside, this Pimento is beautifully finished with pale grey leatherette-clad walls, white cabinetwork, grey cupboard doors and tweedy upholstery. The cab is particularly well-organised ergonomically, apart from slightly awkward heating controls, although the centrally positioned handbrake makes seat swivelling more awkward.

The AWD Transit comes with the 123bhp motor as standard, but it is no ball of fire and if you want more urge the 153bhp motor is available. But the Transit never put a foot wrong on our challenging test route. The AWD was noisier on the road but that was mainly due to the lower ratio gearbox. We expected a consequent increase in fuel consumption but the result – 24.5mpg – was acceptable. We also found driving this heavy vehicle uphill over damp, rough grass surprisingly easy.

The Pimento’s large, sideways-facing settee allowed us to enjoy the view. The settee is great for two, might seat three at a pinch, but the overhanging wardrobe reduces the usable length of the seat: Murvi provides a bedding storage bag to fit the gap.

There’s a smaller table which (with a little difficulty) clamps to the passenger seat base. This Pimento didn’t have a television but one could be mounted on the wardrobe wall or sit on the end of the kitchen unit, above mains, 12V and aerial sockets. There are two extra audio speakers and lighting is superb.

You can turn the settee to face the front to form a cosy dinette, although then access to the kitchen is a squeeze.

The Murvi kitchen puts many a large coachbuilt to shame. The company offers a wide range of options within it, although choice is wider if you go for that extra-high roof option.   The test ’van had a three-burner hob but no oven or grill below. Work surface is extensive and contains a large, stainless-steel sink with an integral drainer.

Kitchen storage is excellent, with four overhead lockers, plus three larger, shelved lower cupboards, but currently there’s nowhere dedicated for cutlery. There’s an overhead fan skylight to remove cooking smells.

The practical washroom is strongly made. The vanity unit has a large and robust GRP washbasin of Murvi’s own design and the swivelling mixer tap doubles as the showerhead.  There are two overhead cupboards, a large, shelved cupboard in the vanity unit and a top-accessed storage ‘bin’ alongside the toilet. A nylon shower curtain protects the fittings efficiently. The bi-fold door opens inwards and clips back against the wall, but Murvi says it can fit an outward-opening door.

To make the bed, you lug the base forward towards the sliding door, then flatten the seat with a rock ’n’ roll action. The rear portion, under the wardrobe, simply pulls out to the centre of the ’van.

The backrest for this section fills in the remainder of the bed, with two slim cushions which live along the offside wall. The resulting double bed is large, but ultra-tall people could extend their beds onto the swivelled cab seats. The extended bed is very close to the internal step, but for a front lounge van conversion, it’s an excellent arrangement.

With AWD payload reduces to 340kg – still acceptable for a two-passenger campervan. Actual storage space is impressive. The XL’s USP, its rear store, can carry a tremendous amount, with the vertical support rails allowing flexible positioning of the three large shelves.

 Inside, a dainty curtain conceals a slim overcab shelf that holds the main tabletop. There’s still vast storage in the settee base. The wardrobe has a respectable hanging drop of 76cm.

The Murvi Pimento XL comes well-equipped with a vast options list. Gas is stored under the ’van in a 25-litre  tank and the 75-litre fresh water tank, inboard at the nearside corner, is handily located for inspection and cleaning, while the 45-litre external waste tank and all external pipes are fully insulated. The Webasto Dual Top Evo8 heater provides a prodigious output and is extremely quiet.

This is an abridged version of the full review appearing in the June 2016 issue of What Motorhome. Buy it now.

A great addition to the Murvi line-up with useful external storage - so rare in a van conversion.