UNIQUE LAYOUT for two in this premium VW campervan with a supersized bathroom
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- čas přidán 9. 04. 2024
- Peter Vaughan road tests the Rolling Homes Darwin, a luxurious and bespoke two-berth conversion based on the long-wheelbase Volkswagen Crafter. It has a well-equipped kitchen, a lounge that turns into single beds or a double, and a superb rear washroom with separate shower - all in a layout design that you won't find elsewhere.
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◼️ REVIEWED BY: Peter Vaughan, Group Motorhome Road Test Editor for MMM magazine and What Motorhome magazine Editor. Peter has been writing about motorhomes since the age of 14, has a love of touring France and is mad about old Italian sports cars.
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You’re right Peter, it’s a lovely van but with all the upgrades it becomes massively overpriced.
Look at models such as Auto-Sleepers M-Star (watched our video?) and you'll see that - sadly - that's the cost of this type of 'van in 2024. I wish it wasn't but costs have shot up!
I think you had your rose tinted lenses in there, not seeing £100k and I’d want the rear view out the back doors in a panel van. We’re all different thankfully.
I use them all the time, reverse up to a nice view and doze off looking at it, rear windows are vital!!
"If you've come back covered in sand what could be better" (than rear entry)?
An outside shower.
£123,347 and you still have to faff about building your bed every night.
Not if you use the singles...
Eye-watering price for what you get. It doesn't come across as luxurious as the IH 680 volkswagon alternative. For me, I would choose the latter. Great presentation as ever.
The furniture beats IH's (with its simple doors overlaid on cabinets) but other than that it's horses for courses... Both are super luxury campers
Thanks Peter. Great review, as always.
Glad you enjoyed it
Over a hundred grand and no LED headlights, they're having a laugh 😂
I don't think I've ever tested a campervan that had LED headlights as standard
@@MotorhomeCampervan Correct, almost always an extra cost
Big like❤
£650.00 option for a microwave 😂
Awesome van but 100k nearly!!!😱😬 Absolutely ridiculous money!!!🙄 Great video tho & a lovely van but not at that money & its all getting out of hand now with these prices on anything that's like a campervan!!😬👍🏻
I agree that prices have risen sharply but look how your supermarket shop has shot up...
@MotorhomeCampervan Oh yes I completely agree but nearly 100k & its just a van conversion all be it an awesome one!!😬👌🏻👍🏻
@@MotorhomeCampervanit is called corporate greed. Nothing else. Stuff became more expensive because diesel and electricity became more expensive. Diesel is back to normal price. What is the excuse now for prices not going back down? Greed and bs
I would be sitting in the passenger swivel seat, so no front heating would be a deal breaker, why not have a vent ? Weird
I believe Rolling Homes are looking to address the issue
What a palava to set up the bed
Not really and better than some where seats convert to beds. Most will probably use the instant singles
Much more versatile vans on the market while being shorter. Wildax, Vantage, iH, and comfort come to mind. Cannot understand why the underseat bases are not hinged.
I thought thag until I saw they were used to make the double. Bit of a faff.
Very nice….but where on earth does £100 k come from!!
£65k for a panel van, high-end furniture handbuilt (not the usual cheap doors), lots of spec, skilled labour...
Others charge similar prices.
Ah that is way too dear!
been thinking about this for a long time, I understand this thing with sliding doors on the side. you enter even though there is a car on the side. but there would be an option for the rear door as on the Hymer. that you can fold down half and have it as a work bench for craftsmen, seat, etc., and the upper one as a roof or open if the bed is there.
Lovely idea - like a Range Rover - but none of the van manufacturers offer anything like it and it would be VERY expensive to engineer for a low volume production run
I think the price is hitting higher than the product. A lot of things that need improving, where's the splashguard for the hobs? I'm sure at that price, you'd be expecting some protection for your upholstery and seating. What Rolling Homes have done is great but sadly, like many conversions, they have gone for minimal over useable. I'd have expected a keener price of £90,000, as I do not see it as a place two people could live for extended periods of time.
Thanks for another great review, you are always the go to for excellence in Motor Home reviews.
Sadly, you'll struggle to find any good quality LWB MAN/Crafter camper that isn't well over £100k now.
Thanks for watching - and for commenting - and glad you enjoy the reviews
Another belting video, thanks ever so much for your candid reviews! How do you think this compares with the significantly cheaper Wildax Altair which looks very very similar?
The Altair is a bit different in terms of layout. I found the Darwin much more comfortable and I love the quality of RH's cabinetwork
I think this is one of the poorest layouts I've seen in a van, a big bathroom and compromised bed options. To cap it off, having the potential for a kettleful of water, for my morning cuppa, boiling 18" above my head!
Sleep the other way around then?
@@MotorhomeCampervan so he can burn his feet instead 😂
Maybe wait for a second hand one to appear and snap it up, plus save a bit of money too.
I thought the view of the benches either side of the door rather reminiscent of a 1950's railway carriage to be honest. And when it came to hauling out the four boards from under the bench to make up the bed, l was wondering where the electrically operated slide out mechanism was , which this van should have at the outrageous price this is being offered at!
100k and you still have to mess about with multiple panels of plywood before you can get into bed. Almost £1000 for a tiny solar panel. Are they having a laugh? And as for lithium batteries should be standard by now these days.
Lithium batteries are almost never standard.
There's no "messing about" if you use the single beds
Oh, that's OK then. Spend that sort of money and restrict yourself to just using the single bed. @@MotorhomeCampervan
£100k + and you'd have to make the bed up every night or run around the outside of the van to go to the loo! Why no table by the Captain's chairs? Undeniable great quality but poorly thought out. For a van that length I'd be looking for a fixed bed and a seating area with somewhere to put my cup of tea. Lovely looking shower room though.
Why would you have to go outside to get to the loo? Access is easy with the single beds and barely any harder with the double
@@MotorhomeCampervan Barely any harder? Here's an idea, put the shower and toilet in the middle and the bed at the back. Being different doesnt mean better. Why would you want to climb over your partner to get to the washroom? Why would you only have the two front seats to sit in (and without a table) when the beds made up? And in a van that length? Sorry, great workmanship poorly thought out imo
@dereksmith3208 you need to watch the video again as you're not understanding how the double bed works. Peter clearly shows how easy it is to get to the bathroom when the double bed is made up, there's no climbing over people involved.
@@freeley34 I have watched it and compared to others, it's a faff. The layout doesn't work well
Why should you put up with "Barely any harder" for £100k+ ? I'm sure the quality is superb. The layout needs thought
Please look at VW’s own Grand California it’s cheaper and I know which I would want. Personal choice of course.
Very personal. Many find the Grand California too utilitarian and sparse inside. If I was looking for that type of layout I think I'd prefer the Knaus
The IH 680 N has far more ergonomic usable space, at least you don't have to clamber over each other to use the bathroom at night, and I believe it's a lot cheaper too.
You don't have to clamber over anyone here - you sleep lengthways
@@MotorhomeCampervan You do if that bed is made into a double
@@omega19uk No, you just slide off the end of the bed into the washroom. It's not an issue, I tried it
£500 extra for an electric step 😂 Makes the Yucon 7.0 4x4 190 Bhp Auto Mercedes Sprinter look like a bargain.
I wonder how much that van would cost juat as a basic working van? Furthermore, for that £123,000 price tag i would have expected LED headlights not lights with halogen bulbs!
Look on the VW website's configurator - over £65k, I reckon, for the empty van!
If you want LED headlights just spec them.
Yes it’s expensive but it looks sheer quality to my eyes. I also like the layout but then again there is only me so it only needs to be 1 berth ….. unless I get lucky 😅
Sheer quality - spot on!
Have you looked at the Globe Traveller Falcon? Similar but all but useless to anyone bar single travellers ?
@@Christopher-sj2sc Globe-Traveller quality is top notch. There are a couple of layouts for the Falcon. I quite like the 2XS but it might be a bit 'Marmite'. Theur Voyager Z has more universal appeal - have you seen my video on that?
It’s over 100 grand for a van it’s ridiculous
There are plenty that cost the same or more....
Pretty much standard for the money they asking
I love a Crafter, but for that money you could get a much higher spec base van (led lamps and 4 Motion) and get a superior layout.
Superior layout? Surely, each layout is designed for different buyers. Some folk hate fixed beds...
Better than an M Star?
That's down to personal preference, regarding the layout and base vehicle. I prefer driving the Crafter, while the M-Star's fixed windows are an issue for me
I'm left with this feeling that a second-hand Crafter with a fitted shed and a camping mat would save £100,000 off this one?!
That doesn't sound very comfortable or safe, and would have zero resale value
@@MotorhomeCampervan 😎😀
I don't know what the owners of Rolling Homes would do with all the money. It'd be a lot more than they need for sure. I mean there is a limit to how many Teslas you can buy your kids or the number of apartments in London overlooking he Thames that you could live in...
I think maybe you she look at the cost of panel vans (£65k here) and the cost of components, then the considerable hours of labour. Profits are nothing like what you're thinking...
...and, it's a "no" from me!
Would you care to explain?
£650 for a microwave!!! Would be interesting to know what the actual mark up for the company is on this van if the base vehicle is 65k that means the conversion was just under 60k… I know it’s well made but come on even with batteries and electrical work you’ve got to be talking a 40k profit…
I think you're forgetting the hours of labour, running costs of a factory, marketing, etc.
Rivals are a similar price and none of these small conversion companies are making millions
It's trying to be a motorhome, but at twice the price. With all the compromises of both. You can see It's been built by a kitch fitter rather than a campervanner. Can't see the value or the market for this
Twice the price? A motorhome of same quality on the same base vehicle wouldn't be much less and van conversions are always more expensive to build.
Rolling Homes has many years experience in campervan manufacture, I think that's what shows here! But you can please some folk some of the time... there's loads of choice out there and we aim to cover it all.
Poor layout and 50 thou over priced. Or more. ?
Do you live in the 1990s? I'm guessing you haven't tried buying a new Crafter PV for £50k.
See above. The empty panel van is probably £65k or more before Rolling Homes does anything with it
Hopeless layout, sorry.
Why? Maybe not to your taste but it's spacious and comfortable with a superb washroom. And it's not just a copy of everything else
@@MotorhomeCampervan The front is cluttered and narrow (see 13:40 ) and the back is blind (see 20:08 ), and once the bed is made no one has access to the bathroom anyway. And once in bed, the windows are too high to see out of.
@@G-ra-ha-m Access is easy with the bed made. Not an issue at all. I stayed in it!
Very poor layout and wasted space for such a large van.
No garage space. Wasted cab area.
If you have a double bed you can’t shower or used the kitchen without clambering over the bed without disturbing ..your partner
Why after so many negative comments about this van are you so strongly defending it?
You’ve shown some truly excellent vehicles over the years, but this one is a dud.
You almost sound like a sales rep, surely you don’t have a financial interest in it, so why can’t you accept that it’s not well received.
If your reviews don’t appear independent and honest, people won’t trust them.
Agreed
I am a completely independent reviewer and have been for almost 40 years. That's why so many folk respect my opinions.
I have actually lived in this vehicle, whereas most of those commenting probably haven't even seen it. As with any 'van, it won't suite everyone, but as a superbly built two-berth with a good kitchen and great washroom (on the best base vehicle), it's certainly not a "dud". I'm not sure why you would have such a strong opinion?
Also, I think it's refreshing to see something different, rather than another fixed bed layout like all the others...
@@MotorhomeCampervan Did you live in it on your own? It would work as a single camper but two people maybe going to bed at different times. Maybe not
@@dereksmith3208 Why not? There are are the cab seats to sit in if your partner is in bed and the kitchen is accessible
The cab seats with no heating and no table! It's simple, there are better designed campers, particularly for £100k +
Nothing unique about the layout, seen it many times before.
Where? Shire Conversions did something similar perhaps a decade ago but there is nothing else like this currently on the market
2021 Thor Tellaro for one
@@tanyajackson1659 Not sold in the UK or Europe.
@@MotorhomeCampervan that may be, but still not unique.
Wasted space and inefficient layout for such a large van for just two people.
Cab area without a table.
No garage, you would have to put bikes on the back making it even longer!
Difficult to use shower or kitchen without disturbing partner in double bed arrangement.
Claustrophobic lounge reminiscent of an old Northern Line tube train with a few seats replaced by kitchen units.
Definitely not for me.
Maybe not your cup of tea but a cab table is easily added, not everyone has bikes, absolutely no issue in using the shower or kitchen with the bed made, lounge is spacious (certainly not claustrophobic). Obviously not for you but nice to see something different to the typical fixed bed layouts.