Swift Rio 320

Price from: £44,400 Berths: 2 Travel seats: 2 Base vehicle: Fiat Ducato Camper Gross weight: 3,500kg

This new compact coachbuilt from Swift comes with a full-sized rear tailgate and van conversion proportions, as well as the company’s new SMART construction.

Recently, the domination of the motorhome market by coachbuilts has come under threat, with many favouring van conversions instead. To counter this trend, manufacturers are producing compact coachbuilts, scarcely larger than their panel van-based rivals, but offering more space (thanks to squarer sides) and better insulation.

To watch the video of this exciting new compact coachbuilt motorhome, click here

To improve resistance to water ingress, many converters are also using sophisticated, wood-free, construction – leisure vehicles are becoming increasingly innovative, and competition is intense.

Noting these trends, major British manufacturer, Swift, has launched the two-model Rio range.

Both the two-berth, two travel seat 320 and four-berth, four-seater 340 measure 6.40-metres long – only slightly more than Fiat’s Ducato XLWB panel van, and fractionally wider at 2.26m. Both are competitively priced and are comprehensively equipped. So, how do they differ from their rivals?

The answer is at the rear – both Rios have full-sized tailgates, plus the normal nearside habitation door. And with it, the Swift Rio range introduces an exciting new level of practicality and versatility, equipping it to compete head-on with the best in both compact coachbuilts and panel van conversions.

The test Rio 320 certainly looked a winner. Built on the revised Fiat Ducato chassis-cab, the Swift body widens only imperceptibly behind the cab.

Not only is the Rio smart – its construction is SMART: Strong, Modern, Aerodynamic, Resilient, Tested – and signifies that Swift has joined the many manufacturers leaving traditional wooden-framed coachbuilding behind, moving to impervious polyurethane structures.

You can learn more about SMART construction here

Swift provides a six-year bodyshell integrity warranty, extended for the first owner to 10 years (subject to regular checks).


TAILGATING
Though a big, solid GRP structure, the Rio’s tailgate rises easily on gas struts. At 2.24m (7ft 4in), the handle’s a bit high, but a strap reduces this to a moderate 1.97m (6ft 5½in).

Two nice features are that when it’s open two LED spots in the tailgate operate as downlighters, and the electric step is automatically deployed when the motorhome is remotely unlocked – retracting when the engine is fired.

One modification we’re promised for production is siting the retractable step 50mm further aft. Here, it was rather shallow, front-to-back, for safe exit, especially as the motorhome floor is quite high, at 76cm (2ft 6in) off the ground.

MODERN AND UNFUSSY
The habitation door forms part of the remote central locking system (as does the tailgate) and allows easy access via a recessed step. It has a darkened window, a bin, a horizontal grab bar and a full flyscreen – and a door stay prevents any collision with the cab door. Inside, the layout is similar to many van conversions – swivelling cab seats forming a small front lounge, wardrobe then washroom on the offside, with linear kitchen unit opposite and, beyond, twin inward-facing settees.

FRESHENED-UP FIAT
The new Fiat cab has a new, smoother radio/Bluetooth unit in the fascia, but it’s still unrelieved charcoal plastic throughout. The main difference is the replacement of the central laptop store at low-level by a bulky double drinks holder.

The captain’s style seats are extremely comfortable and fully adjustable.

With solid rear panels becoming the norm in modern motorhomes, good rear vision in the internal mirror through a large back window made a pleasant change – and better still, the moulding above the tailgate is ready for a (optional) rear-view camera.

The test Rio had the 130bhp, 2.3-litre unit and bowled along happily, despite being brand, spanking new.
 
The long wheelbase, coupled with a short overhang and Fiat’s low-and-wide Camper chassis provides good stability, with no turbulence problems when passing lorries on the motorway.

PERFECT FOR SPRAWLING
For a couple, the Rio offers generous, comfortable seating, in two separate areas. The front lounge, slightly raised above the main floor, but with ample foot-room, comprises the swivelled cab seats with a small, pole-mounted table and a useful storage unit on the offside.

Its work surface has two mains sockets and an aerial point for a small TV, shelves above (these need lips to stop items sliding off in transit) and a cupboard below. The cab area makes an excellent secondary lounge.

At the rear, two 6ft settees are perfect for sprawling and watching the wall-mounted TV. Well, nearly perfect – the two scatter cushions are too small to provide support and comfort when leaning against the tailgate, and disappear into the gap ’twixt this and the settee. The settee cushions are very comfortable, though possibly slightly high, at 56cm (22in), limiting knee-room below the free-standing table.

EQUIPPED TO IMPRESS
You’d perhaps expect a British motorhome’s kitchen to outclass its continental competitors and the Rio 320 doesn’t disappoint, providing everything required for culinary excellence. The cooker has three auto-ignition gas burners and a mains hotplate (all at the same level for easy sliding of pans), plus an oven and separate grill – with that automatically - deployed heatshield.
A microwave, sensibly situated above the sink, rather than the cooker, is at 1.60m (5ft 3in) and beneath the sink is a 103-litre AES Dometic fridge with removable freezer.
The moulded sink is new – large, round, with chromed swivelling tap and a small integral drainer and there’s also a separate draining tray and chopping board.
There’s plenty of work surface, plus a lift-up flap by the hob.

COMPACT ABLUTIONS
Motorhome design always requires compromise – here it’s evident in the relatively small size of the washroom. The shower tray forms the whole floor. Opposite the door is a moulded washbasin unit with surface alongside; although deep, it’s narrow, and even so, the unit restricts elbow-room when ‘enthroned’.
The mixer tap doubles as the showerhead and the door is protected by a curtain.

EASY BED-MAKING
A strength of the classic rear lounge layout is the ease of bed-making. Maybe it lacks the immediacy of a fixed bed, but there’s nothing arduous about removing a couple of backrest cushions to the cab – all that’s required in the Rio for two single beds, the nearside with a six-foot mattress, the offside an inch longer.
The settee cushions are split, their smaller sections adjacent to the ? washroom/kitchen sitting on fixed, non-extending bases. For a double bed, simply draw the main settee bases towards each other and use the two backrest cushions to infill the centre, giving a quickly-made transverse double measuring 1.94m by 1.40m (6ft 4in by 4ft 7in).

PLENTY OF EQUIPMENT
Even in standard trim, the Rio is well-equipped, especially considering the price. It is winterised to Grade 3 standard. The external water tanks (90 litres fresh, and a rather petite 60 litres of waste) are insulated and heated and the gas heating can be used on the move, thanks to a Truma crash-sensing regulator.

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This new compact coachbuilt from Swift comes with a full-sized rear tailgate and van conversion proportions, as well as the company’s new SMART construction. Could it be one of the stars of the NEC show as well as the 2015 season?