Avida Leura 2020 Review

Avida’s entry-level compact Leura motorhome has been on the market since 2014 and recently the Emu Plains- based motorhome and caravan manufacturer recently gave its smallest motorhome an interior refresh.

The changes include a new, larger Thetford AES fridge (with 138-litre capacity) that's in a new location on the nearside ahead of the entry door. There’s also the extra-cost option of a 150-litre Thetford compressor fridge.

Some cabinetry has been redesigned to suit the new, larger standard (or optional) fridge, while old offside fridge location has been refitted with new kitchen drawers and storage that includes soft-close drawers.

Cabinet handles are also new and all timber colours replaced with a white ‘timber’ colour except the kitchen cabinet face frames and ends. A number of different colour options are available for the doors and drawer fronts.

Fiat Ducato base

The Avida Leura B6712 (its full name) uses the now-familiar Fiat Ducato as its base platform, and with the torquey 2.3-litre turbo-diesel under the bonnet, the Leura gets along very well.

The six-speed automated manual is, as ever, an acquired taste. It can be slow to engage gears during shifting and there's often a delay when applying throttle on take-offs.

The dash is functional and has plenty of storage compartments yet the Ducato is starting to feel its age in both its design and the brittle plastics used. Sure, it's a commercial vehicle -- you’d hardly expect prestige car interior quality -- but more recent motorhome platforms like the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter feel more refined and luxurious.

At least with this compact fit-out the Leura doesn;t feel as bulky as some larger motorhomes do when driving around in the city or trying to park.

Fibreglass composite body

Avida does the second-tier manufacture of the motorhome fit-out on the rear of the Fiat cab-chassis. The sandwich panel walls and roof are capped off by full-length guttering and a one-piece fibreglass moulded panel caps off the rear of the motorhome.

External features include a Fiamma wind-out awning and a large external locker on the nearside wall (which can also be accessed inside by lifting the nearside dinette seating base). There isn’t much in the way of outside dining facilities though; no fold down picnic table, external outputs for power or TV and, of course no external barbeque.

Appealing interior

The fit-out is easy to access, either from the centre aisle at the front cabin or the nearside access door.

At first it feels as though something is missing here. There’s no bed! Of course, that’s the party trick in this compact motorhome - the bed is suspended above the dinette area and is powered down quickly via a rocker switch in the control panel above the entry door.

All that’s required is to remove the dinette seat backrest cushions and you’re good to go to lower the east-west bed. The fly-mesh shutter windows and thick pelmet curtains are also a nice touch here.

However, the Leura’s biggest compromise is its bed arrangement. Basically, you can’t have a meal while your partner has a kip - you’ll need the same real estate in the motorhome to do so.

The Ducato’s swivel captain chairs do offer a solution for dining, albeit a partial one without the use of a table. There’s also the issue of access to the bathroom,; while it's only a hop, skip and a jump away in this compact fit-out, you will need to hop, skip and jump over the bed to get to it.

With the bed raised in its stored position, headroom is also a problem if you’re tall with just 1.74m to play with.

Odd-shaped dinette

The dinette seats are an odd shape -- one end is deeper than the other on both sides, which leads to one having a sumptuous leaned-back seat, and on the other end, a perch.

It’s a bit unusual but not a bad way to allow a fair bit of walkway access and seating comfort options. The table is adjustable every which way, so you’re bound to find a position which suits.

Storage is not exactly enormous in the Leura -- the bed mounting position puts paid to any ceiling lockers being fitted -- but you're certainly better off than in most van-based motorhomes.

There's a wardrobe and lower cupboard space between the living area and bathroom on the nearside, while opposite a bench top reveals a small storage cubby. Above that sits the 24in LED TV/DVD.

Big bathroom

The bathroom is big for a compact motorhome. The shower enclosure is big enough to swing the longest ponytail without interruption and the vanity and cassette toilet area also offer a good amount of elbow room.

The kitchen bench is deep enough but there isn’t much food prep space here if you’re also using the sink drain and gas cooker. Clearing the cooktop glass cover and sink drain so you can prepare everything first is one way to get around this -- but at least the dinette table is big enough to use as a kitchen bench while you’re cooking.

Provided you’re not expecting to store several months’ provisions or crockery for a party of 12, there's sufficient kitchen storage space. One locker above the cooker and one below the bench accompanied by three drawers is the bulk of it. Then you also have a neat open shelf on the kitchen side wall (where there’s a neat grey splashback too).

There’s also some storage up front, with a deep and tall open locker on each wall at the front of the fitout and two narrower open lockers on the bulkhead.

Basic electricals

There isn’t much electronic trickery going on in this motorhome - aside from a TV, fridge, microwave and hot water (and lights. of course) that’s pretty much it.

Yes, there's a 12v/240v electronic control panel (to monitor the house battery and fresh and grey water tanks), but the 100Ah house battery can only be charged by the vehicle or by the 16amp 240v charger.

The beauty of this motorhome is that if you become sold on the lifestyle, you can always invest in more gear such as better off-the-grid camping facility with some solar (for which the Leura is pre-wired) or air-conditioning later on.

Summing up

The Avida Leura is an attractive RV that covers all the basics for a fairly low buy-in price (for a motorhome at least).

While it could do with more storage, perhaps a more convenient layout and the Fiat base is getting on a bit, this appears to be a good starting point for the motorhome lifestyle.

2020 Avida Leura motorhome

Base vehicle: Fiat Ducato Maxi
GVM: 4400kg
Licence: Car
Occupants:Two seatbelts, two berth
Engine: 2.3-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel
Power/torque: 130kW/400Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automated manual
Wheels: 16in steel
Brakes: Discs, ABS and ESP
Travel length: 6714mm
External body width: 2320 mm
Travel height: 2890mm
Rear bed size: 1440mm x 2000mm
Cooktop: Two burner gas stove with rangehood
Fridge: Thetford 138L AES 12/240v/gas
Microwave: Camec
Lighting: 12V LED
Battery: 100Ah
Solar: Opt
Air-conditioner:Opt
Fresh water: 124L
Grey water: 100L
Gas: 2 x 4kg
Price:  $114,835 (plus on-road costs)
Supplied by: Avida RV, Emu Plains, NSW