On Test Wheelhome Skamper On 1.3-litre Fiat Fiorino HEAVEN .

On Test Wheelhome Skamper on 1.3-litre Fiat FiorinoHEAVEN’S ABOVE!Wheelhome Skamper on 1.3-litre Fiat FiorinoWheelhome’s MMM Award winning, rising roof,mini marvel offers big surprises upstairsLilliputian, that’s what I wasgoing to call the Skamper.Stretching the tape to just 3.86m, this really is a proper micro-camper. However, once its clever - Sky sleeper - risingroof is deployed, the interior isvery light, airy and roomy. Perhaps it’s not soLilliputian then? WHO’S WHO, AND WHAT’S WHATMMM Award-winning, Essex-based,Wheelhome has been building ‘wheeledhomes’ for decades, though these days thefirm specialises in garage-able campervans.Wheelhome’s principals use the products too,so understand how tightly focused and practicalthe design has to remain. Wheelhome has nodealer network - selling directly to the public.The Skamper is the latest design and the firston the Fiat Fiorino. The name Skamper is notborn of a typing error, but a contraction of thewords ‘sky’ (as in Sky Sleeper) and ‘camper.’Fiat’s Fiorino has been around in the UKsince 1977. Earliest versions had the 127 snout,later ones the Uno nose. Both had an oversizedbox body plonked on the back. It offered a lotof storage in a small footprint, but made noattempt at integration with the cab. The latestincarnation is a joint development with CitroënWords & picturesby Jonathan Lloyd1 General view ofinterior shows seatsin camping mode andcabinet run across therear of the vehicle2 Well-designed cabplaces all controlswithin easy reach. Verygood radio/CD/MP3player is standard1Skamper at Rutland WaterAT A GLANCE PRICE FROM: 25,904 OTR BERTHS: 2 LAYOUT: Reversed rear seatsand transverse cupboard run at inrear. Two single beds in rising roofextensions ECONOMY: 47mpg2(Nemo) and Peugeot (Bipper) and for the firsttime Fiorino has a fluid and integrated look.I was the first to test the prototype Skamperon behalf of MMM. Production models willdiffer slightly, so I’ll try to remember to point outchanges as we go.MODUS OPERANDIThe depths of winter, in windy Rutland, is notthe best time of year to put a summer campervan through its paces. That it acquitted itselfso well endorses the converter’s claim that,providing a hook-up is available, Skamperingcan be a three-season activity.Skamper quickly converts fromtransportation to living mode. Firstly, thefront seats have to be slid forward and theirbackrests angled towards the fascia. Nextthe rear-facing seats are unclipped andlowered into the spaces vacated by the frontseats. Time taken so far, around 20 seconds.Undo some exterior clips and the roof rises- electrically - at the touch of a button. Nowslide out the roof’s side trays and secure withover-centre clips. Job done. Time, around aminute: incredible.132 I MARCH 2010www.outandaboutlive.co.uk

Live-in Test reportMICRO MOTORINGwww.outandaboutlive.co.ukAlthough Rutland, and my native Fenland,are not mountainous, I did feel that theFiorino was as nimble as a mountain goat.Great fun to drive, it was very responsive andstuck to the road like glue. Of course, thewheel-at-each-corner format helped, and thesupple Pirelli Cinturato boots blessed it with acar-like ride.The engine proved well muted and - as itwasn’t spinning very fast at motorway cruisingspeeds - progress was eerily quiet. We’vemet Fiat’s ComfortMatic transmission before,but never when it has been mated to such amodestly sized engine. Briefly, ComfortMaticis a six-speed manual gearbox with automaticgear changing and clutch control, so the driveronly has two pedals to operate.On the road it performed very well andbalked at all my attempts to fool it into doingsomething wrong. The unit just beepedseverely, and the message ‘operation notadmissible’ flashed in the instrument nacelle.It didn’t go as far as ordering me to stand inthe naughty corner, though I did feel suitablyreprimanded! Seriously, when you attempt tochange gear too early - as well as telling thedriver off - it selects the most appropriate ratioto maintain safe progress.A new-ish feature is an Eco button, whichalters the shift pattern for maximum economyand minimum emissions.This engine/transmission duo performedvery well, and after I’d finished playing with theComfortMatic in manual mode, I just shovedit into automatic and let it get on with thejob. Interestingly, it appeared to suffer from agreater delay than the ComfortMatic-equippedDucato, when attempting a quick get-awayby burying the loud pedal in the Axminster.This was longer from a rolling start than froma standing one - say, when approaching abusy city roundabout. The delay was nowherenear as heart-stoppingly long as on the oldMercedes Sprintshift, but it was definitelythere. Gear changes themselves were alsoslightly slower than on ComfortMatic Ducatos.I quickly adapted my driving style to suitand wouldn’t ever buy a manual version.I’m minded to accept Fiat’s assertion thatComfortMatic-equipped Fiorino’s are moreeconomical that manual ones.Speaking of economy, the question mostMARCH 2010 I 133 A decade ago many would have beenpouring scorn on anything powered by such amodestly sized Derv-drinker. Today, however,they are as fast as a similar-sized petrol engineand accelerate as quickly. Almost all areturbocharged, intercooled and with commonrail fuel injection.Even so, it has taken the latest batch ofdevelopments to make smaller diesel enginesas civilised as their petrol-powered cousins- well, almost as civilised. They still don’t revquite as freely and have more of a bark attickover, and when under load. Modern dieselsdon’t smell like they used to though, andthe ‘trucker’s breakfast’ (puffs of blue/blacksmoke on start-up) has largely gone the wayof bread and dripping for tea.Is it me or has everyone forgotten how toround figures up or down? This 1.3-litre motor- at 1248cc - is, by my reckoning, closer to 1.2than 1.3 litres. Really, it’s a one-and-a-quarterlitre unit. Don’t worry, I’m unzipping my anoraknow, and promise to stop being so pedantic.Even if it doesn’t qualify for rounding up to 1.3litres, it ain’t short of much else.

On Test Wheelhome Skamper on 1.3-litre Fiat Fiorinofrequently asked by the constant stream ofadmirers (of the ‘van, not me) was, ‘whatdifference does the bulk of the rising roofmake to economy and performance?’It’s probably a small difference, butwithout trying an unconverted Fiorino, anddriving over the same course with the samecrosswinds, it is impossible to make anobjective comparison. What can be said isthat my achieved fuel consumption figureswere very close to the published ones for astandard van. Although one would wish it tobe as economical as possible, for the sake ofboth planet and purse, it’s almost pointlessknowing what that difference was, as onecan’t buy a Skamper motorcaravan without aSky View roof fitted.Mixed motoring, including some presson miles, produced a touring figure of47mpg. Despite strong crosswinds, the ‘vanconsistently managed an indicated 60mpg at56mph, and 52mpg at 70mph, on gradientfree East Anglian roads. Few motorcaravanscan come close to that.3LOAD LUGGING6Wheelhome is firmly of the opinion that to basea micro-camper on such a competent littleload lugger (of both folk and ‘stuff’), and notbe able to use it for same is illogical. Thus, therear-facing campervan seats can be reversed bydiscarding the seat boxes and re-locating themas forward facing rear passenger seats. Theseare complete with three-point inertia-reel beltsattached to the Fiat’s tested mounting points.Four belted seats, two sliding rear passengerdoors - what’s not to like? Well, only the factthat there were no rear headrests on thisprototype. These are in the pipeline though, andwill be mounted on a transverse bar, not on theseats themselves or the cupboards behind.The reason for this is because support forthe rear seat backrests will also be requiredif and when the rear cupboards are removedcompletely. Likely this use will be when othermembers of the family cotton on to the factthat you haven’t just bought a fully equippedmicro-camper van (and a comfy multi-doorpeople mover), but also a van to transport their‘stuff’ FOC! The far rear cabinetwork is actuallyin three separate sections, so one can justremove the minimum number to allow a load tobe accommodated.LIVINGThe Sky Sleeper roof is Wheelhome’s owndesign and its own GRP moulding. Thoughthis one was perfectly acceptable as it was,production models will be out-sourced to aGRP specialist who will ensure that the exteriorfinish is to automotive standards.The sharp-eyed will be able to see four securitycatches on the rear of the roof: productionmodels will only have two and they’ll be neater.Cleverly, the rear roof fabric is actually inthree sections to allow folding and unfolding3 Micro motorcaravanning doesn’t mean too muchcompromise for the cook. Slid out, top-openingcooler box is located on the left4 Dining mode features two individual tables5 Comfort station mode. The Porta Pottiremains accessible at night7134 I MARCH 20106 Three generations of Lloyds ready for the off7 Skamper at Chesterton in Cambridgeshirewww.outandaboutlive.co.uk

Live-in Test report45without strain. These sections are held togetherby magnetic strips. The roof canvas has aclear-glazed panel in the rear and a zippedsemi-circular mesh ventilator on each side.The rear camping seats are actuallymodified Fiat items mounted on Wheelhome’sown seat boxes. Adjusting the angle of thefront seat backrest also adjusts the backrestof the camping seat behind it.There’s oodles of legroom and, of course,both occupants have their own sliding accessdoor and adjacent window. Two very comfypews with a good view out.‘Tis surprising, but true, that all theresidential facilities are contained in a singlefull-width run of cupboards across theback. Designed and constructed in-house(using Wheelhome’s signature speckled greylaminate-covered lightweight board), it’s hardto see how a gram more functionality couldhave been built in. The unit itself featuresbottom and side-hinged doors and twosections that slide out on runners. Black ringpull-style handles operate positive-lockingcatches- hopefully ensuring that the contentsdo not become unwelcome missiles in theevent of a road accident.All bare metal is covered withwarm-to-the-touch, lightgrey insulating fabric. Aremovable whippededge carpet (withthe Wheelhomelegend) anddoublethickness lightblue curtainscompleted thetransition fromload bay tocosy camper.from Waeco’s TropiCool range. It’s also a toploader, so will keep the coolth in when openedand also offers easy storage andretrieval. It can also be unpluggedand taken to the beach - orwherever - for a picnic. Notin the middle of winterthough!Those wishingto use mainsequipment in the kitchen have two switched13A sockets on hand. Perfect for me; one forthe electric kettle and one for a fan heaterfilched from home. The latteris not the mostCOOKINGwww.outandaboutlive.co.ukLAYOUT PLAN OVERALLLENGTH: 3.86m (12ft 8in) OVERALLWIDTH: 1.72m (5ft 7.5in) Cook enjoysthe same sort ofequipment that’s foundin most motorcaravans,regardless of size. Micromotorcaravanning doesn’t meanhaving to compromise. Hob, sink and fridgeare all easily accessible. Actually it’s not afridge, but an electric-powered cooler/warmerMARCH 2010 I 135