Anyone familiar with Avida’s Esperance range will know that there are a considerable number of layouts available, many with a slide-out on the offside. There are a few though, without a slide-out. That means either a Luton bed or one that has to be made up every night or, in the case of this Esperance B7944, a layout with an elevating bed that’s an integral part of the design.

Like all the Esperance range the B7944 is built on an Iveco Daily 50C17 cab-chassis. That means it has a 3.0-litre, 125kW/400Nm turbo-diesel and a six-speed Agile – Iveco-speak for automated manual – gearbox. For entertainment, the radio/CD player is a classy unit with Bluetooth, USB, and 3.5mm socket connections.

CONSTRUCTION

In keeping with most Avida motorhomes, the B7944 is built using a fully-welded metal frame for the walls, floor and  roof. That frame has a foam sheet filler which Avida claims will act as insulation and road noise reducer. The walls are laminated together with backing panels and an outer fibreglass skin. The floor panel has a ply timber sheet above and metal sheeting below for underfloor protection. Additionally, the front Luton peak/cab surround and rear wall is fully moulded fibreglass. EPDM rubber is used as the roof’s outer covering.

Like much of the Avida range, the Esperance has Hehr windows and door. Except the bathroom slider, all the windows are multi-louvre style, which give plenty of ventilation, can be left open in the rain and have glass which scratches less easily than acrylic. The door is fitted with a non security screen.

Along with the gas cylinder bin, there are two bins on the offside; one is large enough for a generator. On the opposite side, in front of the rear entry door, are two bins: one for the two house batteries  (on a non-sliding tray) and one for the electrics. It’s similar to the battery bin but with space for things like the power cord. A mid-wall compartment by the door contains a flat-screen TV, speakers and power point. The drop-down door serves as a picnic table.

The 50C17 Daily has a 4495kg GVM which, given the tare weight of 3822kg, provides a load capacity in excess of 600kg.

INSIDE

The B7944 layout is slightly different to the slide-out variants. For a start the door is to the rear but in front of the full-width rear bathroom. Taking up the mid-station area are the café-style dinette on the nearside and the kitchen bench opposite. That leaves the entire front section for the lounge/bedroom. The seating consists of the two swivelled cab seats and a sideways-facing lounge on the offside, while the bedroom is formed by the elevating bed above.

Various shades of beige and brown, along with a white ceiling, make up the internal colours. I wondered about ceiling heights with the elevating bed. While the main area measures 2.0m (6ft 6in), the under-bed height – with pillows removed – is 1.92m (6ft 3in) which will mean a bit of ducking your head if you’re personally ‘over height’.

TECHNOLOGY

A Truma Aventa remote-controlled air-conditioner is centrally fitted in the ceiling. At the other end of the temperate scale, the Webasto diesel-fired heater keeps things warm. Except for some socket locations the 240V and 12V electrics are reasonably well set up.

There’s a central control panel handily located by the entry door. The 12V batteries are rated at 100 AH each and are charged by either the mains unit or the vehicle charger. Solar panels are an option. LED lighting is used throughout and consists of bright ceiling lights along with very effective low-level concealed strip lighting. The latter also does duty as the bed reading lights but the switch is not handy when lying in bed.

SITTING BACK

Clearly the emphasis in this layout is relaxation space. Up-front, both cab seats swivel around but it would be nice if Iveco and/or motorhome manufacturers came up with a solution for the raised handbrake, which makes spinning the driver’s seat a fiddly process.

In several Esperance layouts watching TV is awkward, but not here. The lounge faces a low cabinet along the nearside wall out of which a good-sized flat-screen TV slides up. When reversed, the driver’s seat can also be used for this purpose but not  so much the passenger pew. With the bed above, overhead lockers are not an option but around the driver’s cab there are two centrally-located roller shutter lockers and two ample compartments either side.

One of the benefits of this layout is that it allows for a café-style dinette separate from the lounge to give more seating area. A tri-fold table sits between the seats and instead of the more usual small cupboard under the table there is a very handy open shelf. In addition, there are small compartments at the end of each seat which would be useful for items such as battery chargers, if there happened to be a 240V power point nearby. There is a 12V socket on the back of the rear seat panel but no 240V or 5V USB slots.

SLEEPING HOURS

The electrically-powered elevating bed has a distinct advantage over a lounge area that converts into a bed. With the flick of a switch it can be lowered into position. All that needs to be done to  place the bed at an easily accessible height is to remove the lounge seat back and put it on the floor. One of the benefits of the lounge/TV layout is that if the bed is made up with the pillows on the offside, then watching TV in bed is easy. Like with many elevating beds reading lights aren’t fitted but the mood lighting should suffice.

CLEANING UP

An interesting feature about what appears to be a full-width rear bathroom is that it isn’t. That’s mostly because a narrow wardrobe/cupboard has been squeezed in the nearside corner. It’s a bit of a compromise because it provides hanging space and shelving but the latter requires a long arm to reach. There is still space for the shower cubicle, Dometic cassette toilet, top-loading washing machine and a vanity cabinet. There are also a couple of overhead lockers, shelving and towel rails on the wall all without it feeling too cramped.

CATERING

This particular kitchen could almost be called the wire basket kitchen. At the forward end of the bench there’s one set of baskets and at the rear there are three. On rough roads, they might have to be loaded carefully so that the contents didn’t bounce out. Between the wire baskets there is a conventional kitchen. It has a 150-litre three-way fridge and a microwave oven above, along with a  stainless-steel sink/drainer and a four-burner cooktop with grill and oven. That leaves space for three good-sized drawers and two overhead lockers, one with an extra shelf. While the light switches, Webasto heater, elevating bed and hot water switches are on the panel under the sink, the 240V power is set high on the side of the overhead locker.

ON THE ROAD

Taking a run up on the roads around Shoalhaven Heads, the Esperance proved to be a reasonably sprightly performer. The 3.0-litre turbo-diesel delivered the goods and there were a few kilometres on the clock which seemed to have loosened up the six-speed AMT gearbox to fluid operation. There was the usual engine noise when driving along. That was slightly less than normal, I suspect, because of the entry door being located at the rear.

VERDICT

This is a great layout if living space is desired but not by using a slide-out. Although when lowered the bed closes off the front of the motorhome, everything else – kitchen, bathroom and dinette – is still accessible, at least by the sleeper on the rear side of the bed. This layout might not be for everyone but I quite liked the arrangement. I thought it more practical than some Esperance slide-out layouts. If an island bed is not a top requirement, then it’s something of a winner.

Category: Reviews
Written: Thu 01 May 2014
Printed: May, 2014
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