Swift Escape 644
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Description
PRICE AS TESTED £38,205 OPTIONS FITTED Comfort Pack – cab air-conditioning, electric entrance step with automatic retraction, flyscreen door, dual-fuel blown-air heating, windscreen blind (£995)
Key Features
Model Year
2013
Product Class
Overcab Coachbuilt
Product Model Base
Fiat Ducato
Price from (£)
£37210
Length (m)
6.30
Berths
4
Belted seats
4
Main Layout
Rear Lounge
Full Review
Time was when the best value in entry-level coachbuilts was to be had from Italian ’vans. Yes, they really were ‘cheap as chips’ (cheap as pasta?). And they often looked it – all very basic stuff, both inside and out.
Then the euro exchange rate shifted and that approach started to look rather expensive when expressed in pounds sterling. Now it was the British contingent entry-level motorhomes’ turn to look like bargains.
Swift joined the sector with its Escape brand. In fact, Escape raises the game as it belies its entry-level status with lots of desirable equipment and good quality, good-looking furniture.
Escape 644 is entirely conventional from the outside but it employs simpler – cheaper – methods of construction.
IN THE CAB
In the cab, things are less obvious: seats are trimmed to match the living area, there’s a the nice Fiat stereo and the doors are remotely locked.
Only the manually-adjusted mirrors seem a tad mean.
The Comfort Pack is a no-brainer as it provides air-con in the driving department, a windscreen blind, an autoretract- on-start-up step and Ultraheat mains power upgrade for the living area heating.
You get the 130 horsepower engine – a motor that will propel this motorhome with ease, in spite of its rather bulbous overcab.
Newcomers will be pleased to discover that the Ducato cab is comfy – even for long journeys, while steering, brakes, clutch and handling are all quite car-like.
So it’s very standard fare with regard to the base vehicle, but the living area layout is less predictable.
LAYOUT
At under six-and-a- half metres long, the 644 qualifies as a modern compact coachbuilt but manages to pack in two lounge-diners – the front one offering the essential two rear travel seats in this four berth ’van.
In the far rear, a bijou lounge offers a pair of sofas and comfortable seating for four.
Up front, and with the cab seats swivelled, there’s good seating for four too.
Sandwiched in between there’s a well-equipped kitchen and compact, but well-designed bathroom.
There are plenty of seating choices for all the residents, but not so much choice at mealtimes.
The single-leg table can be used front or rear, but it’s only big enough for two to dine.
A flip-up surface in the front lounge is a nice touch, but it’s only large enough for coffee cups.
KITCHEN
In the galley, there’s a three-burner and oven/grillequipped slot-in stove, big GRP sink with chopping board and removable drainer, and the latest black-fronted fridge
In fact, most of the good stuff also found in upmarket Swift motorhomes costing far more, though fridge capacity is not generous.
WASHROOM
The bathroom is rather retro, but in a good way, as the old idea of bench-type toilet with drop-down washbasin above has been resurrected, albeit with a stylish basin.
The only dodgy item in here is the nylon shower curtain that rather gets in the way and will probably cling annoyingly to your soapy body.
BEDS
Bedtime sees the lounge easily converted (pull-out slats, drop in backrests, add an infill) into a flat, comfortable double bed that’s difficult to fault.
The overcab double is typical of the type, with adequate comfort and enough headroom to accommodate two adults without fear of claustrophobia.
Then the euro exchange rate shifted and that approach started to look rather expensive when expressed in pounds sterling. Now it was the British contingent entry-level motorhomes’ turn to look like bargains.
Swift joined the sector with its Escape brand. In fact, Escape raises the game as it belies its entry-level status with lots of desirable equipment and good quality, good-looking furniture.
Escape 644 is entirely conventional from the outside but it employs simpler – cheaper – methods of construction.
IN THE CAB
In the cab, things are less obvious: seats are trimmed to match the living area, there’s a the nice Fiat stereo and the doors are remotely locked.
Only the manually-adjusted mirrors seem a tad mean.
The Comfort Pack is a no-brainer as it provides air-con in the driving department, a windscreen blind, an autoretract- on-start-up step and Ultraheat mains power upgrade for the living area heating.
You get the 130 horsepower engine – a motor that will propel this motorhome with ease, in spite of its rather bulbous overcab.
Newcomers will be pleased to discover that the Ducato cab is comfy – even for long journeys, while steering, brakes, clutch and handling are all quite car-like.
So it’s very standard fare with regard to the base vehicle, but the living area layout is less predictable.
LAYOUT
At under six-and-a- half metres long, the 644 qualifies as a modern compact coachbuilt but manages to pack in two lounge-diners – the front one offering the essential two rear travel seats in this four berth ’van.
In the far rear, a bijou lounge offers a pair of sofas and comfortable seating for four.
Up front, and with the cab seats swivelled, there’s good seating for four too.
Sandwiched in between there’s a well-equipped kitchen and compact, but well-designed bathroom.
There are plenty of seating choices for all the residents, but not so much choice at mealtimes.
The single-leg table can be used front or rear, but it’s only big enough for two to dine.
A flip-up surface in the front lounge is a nice touch, but it’s only large enough for coffee cups.
KITCHEN
In the galley, there’s a three-burner and oven/grillequipped slot-in stove, big GRP sink with chopping board and removable drainer, and the latest black-fronted fridge
In fact, most of the good stuff also found in upmarket Swift motorhomes costing far more, though fridge capacity is not generous.
WASHROOM
The bathroom is rather retro, but in a good way, as the old idea of bench-type toilet with drop-down washbasin above has been resurrected, albeit with a stylish basin.
The only dodgy item in here is the nylon shower curtain that rather gets in the way and will probably cling annoyingly to your soapy body.
BEDS
Bedtime sees the lounge easily converted (pull-out slats, drop in backrests, add an infill) into a flat, comfortable double bed that’s difficult to fault.
The overcab double is typical of the type, with adequate comfort and enough headroom to accommodate two adults without fear of claustrophobia.
Read the full version of this review in the March 2013 issue of Which Motorhome
Our Verdict
The layout might seem quirky but we’ve seen it before in the Elddis Autoquest 145. It successfully provides good living for four people in what is really quite a compact motorhome.
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Advantages
Versatile layout
Well-equipped kitchen
Cosy rear lounge
Easy-to-make comfy double bed
Disadvantages
Only one small table
Small fridge
Old-fashioned convector heater
Clingy shower curtain
