Adria Compact SLS

Berths: 3 Travel seats: 4 Base vehicle: Fiat Ducato Gross weight: 3300kg Payload: 621kg

Complete with its length-extending slide-out, Adria’s Compact SLS ticks the radical box nicely. It ticks the compact box perfectly, too, as it comes in at just under the six-metre mark. But does it work? And is it useful?

From the front it’s a standard-looking low-profile. The rear is home to a substantial locker door that hints at decent stowage space, and the whole blends nicely with the Fiat base, sitting on the wide-track Camper version of the Ducato chassis.

The front end provides an entirely standard layout, with a half-dinette and amidships kitchen and washroom, but the bedroom and the clever bit is in the rear.

The Compact SLS is not only short on length, but also on girth – its pleasantly slim width making for easier driving and parking.

The presence of a potentially heavy slide-out in the tail gave me concerns, but handling was great and the conversion had no tendency to sound like the engine room of the Titanic. Progress was smooth, relaxed and the 130bhp motor proved perfect for the job.

Once pitched, it’s simple to to deploy the star of the show. Hit the auxiliary supply button on the touch-sensitive control panel, then press and hold a switch to see the slide-out move aft. The whole thing feels well-engineered and it operated flawlessly during the test.

It takes just under one-and-a-half minutes for the operation and, as the slide-out slides, so the heads of the twin beds flatten. Add an infill on each side and you’re done. Now, you have two singles that are generous and very comfortable. A double can be made by adding an infill, which closes the gap and supports an access ladder. At the beds’ head there are reading lamps and a couple of magazine pockets.

There’s no space for a rooflight here (and outside there’s an awning-style blind that protects the roof of the slide-out – and the join to the main body – from the elements). Instead, Adria has installed a plexiglass panel with lighting that mimics a starry sky. A tad quirky, but a neat (romantic?) touch.

I wasn’t keen on the window in the rear wall. It’s that oft-found problem: the potential to damage the blind and flyscreen as your pillows come into contact. There’s also a lack of lighting around the foot of the bed(s), but any ceiling lamps here would have to be flush to clear the path of the slide-out.

The third berth in the lounge is made in the time-honoured fashion, from a lowered table and side seat (with slide-out squab). This bed is narrow at the foot and short, thanks to the presence of a wardrobe behind the side seat. However, if you need a third bed, this single will prove useful, as long as the occupant is not too tall.

I was impressed with the quality of the upholstery; the seat coverings are very smartly executed. Above, a large sunroof lets in plenty of natural light and Adria has installed reading spots in the cab.

As ever with half-dinette designs, the seating is quite upright and the cab seats are the best in the house – a pair of comfy armchairs that are also the best to dine from. The wall-hung table is not too heavy, a good size, and its slide-out and pop-up extension is easy to use.

All three burners in the kitchen are easy to get at and much easier to use than three-burner designs that have one ring in a corner. Combining the sink with the hob also allows it to be used as a dish drainer as the right-hand end is open, allowing water to drain away.

There’s no oven present. There’s not too much locker space, with two decent drawers below and a trio of lockers above, but there are three lockers over the lounge and cupboards set into the sides of the forward and side-facing seats, so overall stowage is not bad at all. The 102-litre fridge is stylish.

The washroom showering area is incorporated into most of the room but, once enclosed by its rigid screens, works as a fully separate cubicle. The only real disadvantage is the need to undress outside the room.

Other facilities in here are impressive, with good lighting, a large acreage of mirror and big, sensibly shelved storage cupboards. The lower section of the mirror flips down to reveal a large, but quite shallow bowl, served by a designer-style mixer tap. A well-sited swivel-bowl loo completes what are good-looking, nicely designed ablutions.

The external locker door gives access to a good-sized space that just about qualifies as a proper garage, as my tape measure says the door is just – by a squeak – one metre high, thus possibly allowing full-sized bikes indoors, and a swift gander underneath discovers a waste tank that’s not only insulated, but heated by the Combi system. 

If you liked this review, you can read the full version, which appeared in the October 2016 issue of MMM magazine, by simply clicking here to buy a copy.

Easy to deploy, the slide-out allows spacious and comfortable beds, while bringing the vehicle in at under the magic six-metre mark when closed.