Marquis County Devon - Practical Motorhome

Verdict

There’s no denying that the Devon is a well-made ’van, but we can’t help feel that more needs to be offered inside, given its price tag. And we keep coming back to that 200kg payload – the £1295 chassis upgrade to 3500kg is almost essential for two adults to tour in comfort.

Pros

Handsome; well made; compact dimensions make it easy to drive in town

Cons

Small standard payload; chassis upgrade is more or less essential; short on standard kit

Living

Both of the Devon’s cab seats swivel to create a spacious lounge area at the front of the ’van; the addition of the large, freestanding table (also ideal for al fresco eating) quickly turns it into a suitable space for six to dine in comfort. There’s also a small table that can be slotted into a bracket at the cab end of the nearside sofa.

The sofas themselves are  also comfortable, thanks in part to the addition of four shaped bolster cushions which, when positioned at either end of the seats, allow you to lean up against the wardrobe, fridge  or cab chairs to relax. There’s also a small, fold-down extension to the front of the fridge unit – ideal for holding  a laptop or larger TV (there  is also an aerial socket here).

Our testers appreciated the inclusion of the small, drop-down TV – which has Freeview built in, and a DVD player – which folds down over the passenger cab seat, and is viewable from both sofas. It runs on 12V; we found that the 100Ah leisure battery had plenty of power left even after we’d watched a film. The sound  is rather tinny, though.

A new upholstery fabric, launched at the NEC Show in February, replaces that which was fitted in our test ’van;  the latest ‘Gatsby’ colours  are fitted as standard, with  the ‘Leya’ range available  as a no-cost option.

Kitchen

The Devon’s kitchen is well appointed and offers lots  of workspace, thanks in part to the extendable unit that pulls out above the fridge. While this unit is useful, it does impede access to the table.

One other niggle was the location of the dedicated crockery locker, which is situated above the nearside lounge sofa.

That aside, the rest of the kitchen is well thought out.  The Spinflo oven is full size,  and has an electric hob ring alongside its three gas ones.

Storage space throughout the kitchen area is excellent; there are two transparent-fronted lockers up above – both with lips to stop tins from falling  out when they’re opened  – a dedicated cutlery drawer, and a large, double-sized cupboard below the sink. There’s also space below the oven to store pots and pans. Above the sink is a Brabantia kitchen-roll holder; however, there’s no waste bin provided.

The standard-fit microwave is located at a sensible height above the 86-litre Dometic fridge. Unfortunately, the fridge doesn’t come with automatic energy selection.

Our testers liked the inclusion of a drinks cabinet below the microwave; it came fitted with four crystal wine glasses. There is, however, no dedicated provision for the storage of wine bottles.

Washroom

Key to the Devon’s washroom is Auto-Sleepers’ trademark swing-wall shower unit. This allows you to create a separate cubicle by swinging the whole wash-basin unit across to  meet another plastic door;  the resulting cubicle is roomy.

There are three plugholes  in the washroom floor, which allow for quick, easy draining of shower water, but you’re still likely to get wet feet if you want to use the basin after someone’s had a shower.

The swivel Thetford toilet is flushed electrically, and has a separate flush tank. There’s  no window in the washroom, but there is a rooflight and two large electric units. A blown-air heating vent provides warmth.

There’s an array of quality furnishings including a loo-roll holder, toothbrush-mug holder, hooks and a towel ring on the door. There’s also a very useful Brabantia pull-out airer that runs the entire length of the washroom.

Beds

The Devon’s spacious double bed is created by extending the slatted bed bases underneath the sofas to  meet in the middle; the sofa cushions are then laid flat to fill out the space.

To get the flattest sleeping surface  you need to reverse the base cushions so that the knee rolls are to the outer edges of the bed, but you can still feel them when lying down.

The gas heating controls – located on the space heater beneath the wardrobe – are within easy reach of the bed, allowing you to easily warm the ’van without having to  get up. The gas hot water  controls are located by the accommodation door (as are the electric heating controls).

All the windows, including those in the cab, have concertina blinds. The curtains on the lounge windows aren’t just decorative, either; they pull across to block out light and provide extra insulation.

Storage

We’ve already mentioned the limitations on payload, but if you can work within these parameters, storage is good. The Devon provides an impressive amount of storage space for a ’van shorter than six metres.

The main storage area is underneath the nearside sofa; this can be accessed either externally, internally by lifting the seat up, or internally via a locker door in the front of the seat. There is also some space underneath the offside sofa,  an area which also houses  the gas-bottle locker.

There are five lockers above the lounge area, all with positive-locking catches; the space in both nearside lockers  is slightly compromised by  the recessed awning, and  one of these also contains the dedicated crockery rack. All  the other lockers, however, are roomy and feel sturdily built. Aside from the main locker  over the cab, there are also two smaller versions to either side.

Clothing storage space comes courtesy of the half-length wardrobe in front of the washroom; it has an automatic light and there’s a drawer beneath, too. Both table units store away within the wardrobe when not in use; dedicated clips keep them in place.
Washroom storage is limited to a small, mirrored vanity unit and a tiny shelf behind the swing-out wall.