There are a lot of new camper vans being introduced in the European market these days, with (seemingly) more converters than ever creating new ideas all the time. But there are also innovative ideas of other types of leisure products, with the increasingly blurred boundary between concept and normal production vehicles.
Words Andrea Cattaneo
Most RVs produced in Europe used to be homologated on just a few types of products, but those days now seem far away. By contrast, the Düsseldorf Caravan Salon showed a truly diverse range of products, especially in the camper van sector, where new models and new brands were born. Now, a considerable number of choices are offered to the public, with many differences in terms of size, layouts, mechanical base vehicles and prices. There has been a rediscovery of the compact camper van with a raised roof, similar to the Volkswagen California. For example, the Erwin Hymer Group introduced a new model with a new brand: the Crosscamp camper van. There are also sophisticated, luxury models using base vehicles like the Mercedes Sprinter, such as the Westfalia James Cook and the Frankia Yucon. The VisionVenture from Hymer was the only concept, but there was still plenty of news and other types of leisure vehicles at the show, including some really unique campers, like some of the models from Challenger and Chausson. In addition, there is now the search for alternative solutions to diesel engines, as witnessed by Dethleffs with its Globevan e-hybrid: could the electric motorhome soon become a reality?