Verdict
The 2015 HymerCar Sierra Nevada’s interior will suit buyers with an active lifestyle. If you love the styling and have a passion for the great outdoors, this versatile and well-built two-berth high-top panel van conversion motorhome is worth saving up for.
Pros
Stylish two-berth van conversion
Good washroom
Fixed double bed
Plenty of storage
Cab with sports seats, DAB radio, Bluetooth
Rear door access
Room for table and folding chairs by rear doors
Cons
Only two gas rings for cooking
No oven or grill
Space-saving sink over the toilet
The challenge of persuading newcomers into the pastime has been made easier for motorhome manufacturers with the advent of the panel van conversion. You get the practicality and versatility of a campervan, allied to the internal capacity of a proper coachbuilt motorhome. And ’vans such as Hymer‘s new-for-2015 HymerCar Sierra Nevada add a dash of sporty style, tempting those used to a ‘premium’ car with smart colour schemes and natty alloy wheels.
The 2015 HymerCar Sierra Nevada’s interior will suit buyers with an active lifestyle
Living
Swing around those chairs and you have a compact but neatly designed lounge that seats three adults in comfort, four at a push. Typical of the neat details throughout this ’van are the small underfloor storage cubby and the table, which folds away completely against the wall, yet pops up to give room for four to dine, without being too much of a stretch from the forward captain’s chairs.
Kitchen
That longer wheelbase allows room for a decent kitchen without intruding into the big door opening, complete with full flyscreen and electric step beneath. And although it’s in the main corridor of the ’van, the galley feels pretty spacious, not to mention stylish, with its funky splashback, good-sized sink and chromed tap. Just don’t expect to do any Michelin-starred cooking, because there’s no oven or grill and only a two-burner hob – although a 108-litre fridge will keep your drinks cool.
Washroom
The Sierra Nevada’s wetroom is a surprise; squeezed in between the bed and the forward hanging wardrobe, it’s unexpectedly roomy despite its compact dimensions. That’s largely down to its space-saving design: there’s a drop-down sink above the electric-flush toilet, a tap that doubles up as a showerhead, a mirror and even a small cabinet. The 100-litre water tank should give enough water for a proper shower, too.
Beds
In the rear you’ll find a huge (1.92 x 1.4m; 6ft 4in x 4ft 7in), high-set fixed double bed in the nearside corner. With a thick mattress, padded headboard and sprung boards beneath it’s pretty comfortable, though there is the usual cutaway at the foot to ease access.
We’d like to have seen individual reading lights rather than a single strip-light, but it’s otherwise luxurious, even featuring a neat ‘dressing table’ with vanity mirror.
Storage
There are no complaints about the storage options in this ’van. There’s not one but two wardrobes – one up front and another in the offside-rear corner.
The kitchen features large drawers, and everywhere there are space-saving ideas such as the built-in stowage for a camping table and chairs in the back, or the elasticated pocket for your books in the rear wall.
But one of the highlights of this layout, and the reason the French bed sits so high, is the huge storage area beneath. Fold up half of the slatted base for access to lockers of various sizes along the nearside wall, and a usefully large – and long – area with tie-down points for bikes or canoes.
Technical Specifications
| Payload | 510 kg |
| MTPLM | 3500 kg |
| Shipping Length | 6.36 m |
| Width | 2.08 m |
| Engine Size | 2300 cc |