Sunlight Cliff 540 campervan

Berths: 2/3 Travel seats: 4 Base vehicle: Fiat Ducato Gross weight: 3,300kg Payload: 505kg

Sunlight has built its name on producing sturdy, good quality coachbuilts at sensible prices. Manufactured alongside its sister brand, Carado, at the Capron factory, together they claim leadership in their sector on the German market. Neither marque has made that sort of mark (sorry) on the UK scene, however.

The oddly named Cliff is all-new for 2018 and it establishes Dethleffs’ entry-level brand in previously uncharted waters. Unsurprisingly, therefore, the Germans have presented no surprises with the designs. You can have a 5.4m or six-metre model with a transverse rear double bed (540 and 600), a 6.36m ’van with fixed single beds (640) or a 6m model with double bunks in the stern (601); all proven sellers across the Continent. 

Here’s a vehicle not significantly bigger than a long-wheelbase VW T6 or Ford Transit Custom and yet it appears much more commodious inside. On the road it also seems more stable than the (rare as a motorhome) SWB Ducato, with the same planted feel as the longer versions. But the loss of over half-a-metre of bodywork also makes this a much more manoeuvrable motorhome in town – or when your videographer asks you to turn around in the entrance to a field for ‘just one more run.’

The standard engine across the Cliff range is the 115bhp, 2-litre turbo diesel.

At almost £2k, the Chassis Pack adds 5% to the Cliff’s price but who would buy a motorhome today without cab air-con and a passenger airbag? And the pack also includes electric mirrors, cruise control, radio pre-wiring and speakers, height adjustment for the passenger seat and a 120-litre diesel tank. Incredibly, that last item means you should be able to drive from Dover to Aberdeen on a tankful. And you won’t ever need to add AdBlue, because the Fiat is unique in its class in not requiring it.

What you don’t get in the spec is any form of radio or any audible warning to stop you making expensive reversing errors; both are likely to be popular dealer-fit accessories. The standard kit list does include ESP, ASR and hill holder, though, and you can make your Cliff prettier with alloys or metallic paint. Lowdhams says it will also be ordering all its stock with colour-coded bumpers.

Everything from the electric step to cab armrests, from the kitchen worktop extension to cab blinds is contained in the ‘Basic Pack’ at £1,230 extra.

In this day and age we’d have liked to see an Isofix option, especially in the 540 which is ideally sized for daily driver duties.

The galley is pretty typical, even if its flip-up worktop extension is rather diddy. The combined sink/hob unit from Dometic looks smart, though, and comes with ignition for the cooker. And there’s a raised worktop over the wardrobe with 12V and 230V sockets adjacent, so there is somewhere practical for your electric kettle.

In the washroom, you can swivel the tap and get your head over the fixed, corner basin. There’s good storage behind the mirror, with everything held in place by fiddle rails. There’s no shortage of legroom on the throne and hooks and a hanging rail take care of towels and wet clothes. Best of all, though, there’s no necessity to fight off a clingy shower curtain as it’s only there to protect the wooden furniture on the back wall (and, perhaps, the loo).

Perfection then? Well, almost, as long as you’re not too tall. Headroom in parts here is only 5ft 9in (with about five extra inches in the centre of the roof vent).

The rear bed impresses, too. Although it narrows fractionally on the nearside, the mattress is thick and very comfy. And, if its 6ft length disappoints, then note that recesses at the head and foot of the bed extend the space to a maximum of 6ft 4in.

A mains socket and heater outlet are fitted back here and the rear doors’ windows open for ventilation (in addition to the small rooflight). At 925mm (36½in) off the floor, access to the bed would be awkward were it not for Sunlight providing a folding plastic step.

Also of the folding variety is the bed base and this is one of the neatest of its ilk. Simply stack the centre mattress section to the offside and the middle of the bed base hinges up and clips into place. A removable board at the front of the under-bed space allows longer items to be carried and four lashing rings are recessed into the floor. Even with the bed in situ, the locker here measures 1.19m by 0.64m by 0.74m high – plenty for outdoor chairs, etc.

Under the sides of the bed are the (fully winterised) 100-litre fresh water tank and the gas locker, plus a large cupboard – although that may be hard to access if you load up the central ‘boot’ area.

If you enjoyed this review, you can read the full version and more in the December 2017 issue of MMM magazine.

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

The 5.4-metre fixed bed van conversion sector offers much less choice than the 6m one and, here, the Sunlight Cliff takes a familiar path but does it in fine fashion. Fridge location, neat lighting and clever bathroom design are particular highs and quality is good but table storage needs more thought and do check out the headroom in the washroom.