Horizon Banksia

WE LIKED:
>> Kitchen bench with good storage
>> 240V & 12V sockets inside and out
>> Window behind kitchen bench

NOT SO MUCH:
>> Cheap radio/CD player in the cab
>> No external bins, so no-where drip-proof for water and drainage hoses

Navigating the Horizon Banksia around another corner in the Ballina hinterland of NSW, brought home the fact that driving large van-based conversions is definitely an enjoyable activity.

Often, the vans have the same size engine as their larger coach-built cousins but carry much less weight, which makes them much more responsive to the right foot and provides better handling characteristics.

While this isn’t everyone’s prime consideration when choosing a motorhome, I like driving and anyone who’s going to spend more than a few hours on the road should definitely keep it in mind.

The Banksia uses a Fiat Ducato as its base vehicle and while most Ducato motorhomes come with the 3.0-litre (132kW) turbodiesel, Horizon proprietor Clayton Kearney decided to try out the smaller 2.3-litre (109kW/350Nm) engine to see how it was received.

When I heard this, I too was keen to see how the smaller motor performed, especially in tandem with the six-speed automated manual gearbox.

Quite well, it turned out.

European vehicle manufacturers seem to have their turbodiesel technology well and truly sorted, even with all the emission requirements. Although not quite as quick underfoot as the larger engine, the 2.3-litre donk is certainly willing enough.

It didn’t affect the AMT gearbox too much – it had the usual hesitation at low revs but was otherwise a relatively smooth performer.

If your driving style is a little cruisier than mine, then the smaller engine should certainly deliver the goods and the tyres fitted are designed for non-commercial driving so the ride quality is going to be better.

EYE-CATCHING COLOUR

One of the attractions of the Banksia is its metallic Profondo Red (burgundy) colour. It’s an option, but certainly one I’d be considering. Another metallic colour that seems to be exclusive to Horizon is burnt orange, which is another retina scorcher that bucks the trend.

Horizon buys its vans without windows and fits Seitz windows, including on the sliding door and directly behind the sliding door. I like this arrangement because it improves the natural light in the middle of the van but this window can be easily damaged by opening the sliding door too quickly.

The exterior of the motorhome provides access to the usual items like gas cylinder bin, Dometic cassette toilet door, Truma hot water heater and a coloured-coordinated awning – which might sound like an extra expense but it reduces the profile of the awning considerably.

There’s no external bin but opening the rear doors of the van provides access to the substantial under-bed storage area in the rear. Part of this is taken up by the hot water heater on the nearside and the gas bin on the offside.

The only problem with this arrangement is that there really isn’t anywhere for storing dripping hoses, so a plastic bin of some sort is definitely required.

POPULAR LAYOUT

In van-based conversions, internal space restrictions means there’s only a limited number of practical layouts that can be used. The Banksia’s is one of the more popular ones, with a bed across the rear, nearside kitchen, mid-offside bathroom and a front lounge/dining area which incorporates the Ducato factory-fitted swivelling cab seats.

Air-conditioning is another option – according to Clayton, quite a few of his customers don’t want air-con because given the way they camp, many without 240V mains power, a roof-mounted unit just adds extra weight.

Across the rear, the east-west bed measures 1.8 x 1.30m (6ft x 4ft 3in) and comes with an optional innerspring mattress. Taller people will have to look at a north-south alternative like a Horizon Melaleuca or Grevillea.

There’s good crossflow ventilation in the area, as well as plenty of storage. In addition to the under-bed space which is also accessible from the inside, there are overhead lockers all around and LED reading lights fitted to both sides of the bed.

Large van conversions usually have relatively compact bathrooms and the Banksia is true to form with a variable height shower hose, corner wash basin, small wall mirror and Dometic cassette toilet.

Until recently, Dometic marketed a vacuum flush toilet but that’s now been replaced with a standard cassette with Dometic’s SOG system, which has a vapour extraction unit with a vent on the cassette door.

Between the bathroom and the bed in the rear, a full-height, two-door cupboard offers hanging space above and open storage below.

KITCHEN CATERING

The kitchen, which is fitted with a three-burner cooktop, stainless steel sink with drainer, a 136 litre fridge and a Sharp Carousel microwave, will handle more than basic catering.

Kitchen storage space is quite generous with five good-sized drawers and working space isn’t too bad either, with a nominal amount of area plus a hinged extension at the front.

There are no overhead lockers but they would really crowd the space anyway. Instead, the wall is used very effectively as a switch and gauge panel, a pelmet storage shelf and a mounting point for a flatscreen TV.

Horizon has fully utilised the swivelling cab seats, with the driver’s seat meshing well with the table and dinette seat directly behind. A setup like this is always going to be a bit fiddly to use effectively but it’s a very good compromise, especially as the table can be moved back and forth along a wall-mounted metal rail.

Both 240V and 12V sockets have been wall-mounted under the table and a false floor has been built around the cab seats and the dinette. That means shorter people won’t have their legs dangling when sitting in the cab seats and additional storage is created with three drawers in the false floor.

One of the issues with large van conversions is that both the sliding and rear doors offer plenty of opportunity for insects to enter the van, but Horizon has come up with a good cure in the optional side and rear door screens fitted to our review Banksia. They’re attached by Velcro around the van door frames and having zippered doors for easy access.

VERDICT

There’s no doubt Horizon has worked on a continuous improvement program over the last few years because, while not bringing out radically new models, quite a few small and not-so-small refinements have been introduced.

For a single person or couple, who are not particularly tall, the Banksia has much to offer. It has all of the basic features you need in a motorhome, in a relatively small Fiat Ducato package that makes it both easy to drive and manoeuvre.

HORIZON MOTORHOMES BANKSIA

Base Vehicle: Fiat Ducato 150 Multijet ELWB
Engine: 2.3L turbodiesel
Power/torque: 109kW at 3600rpm/350Nm at 1500rpm     
Gearbox: Six speed AMT auto
Brakes: Disc all round
Tare weight (full fuel & water): 2933kg
GVM: 4005kg
Licence: Car
Passengers: two
External length: 6.363m (20ft 10in)
External width: 2.05m (6ft 9in)
External height: 2.63m (8ft 8in)
Internal height: 1.90m (6ft 3in)
Rear bed size: 1.85 x 1.3m
Cooktop: Dometic three-burner
Fridge: Waeco 12V 136 litre
Microwave: Sharp Carousel
Lighting: 12V LED
Batteries: 200Ah
Solar panels: Optional
Air-conditioner: Optional
Heater: Optional
Toilet: Dometic SOG cassette
Shower: Flexible hose, variable height
Hot water heater: Truma 14 litre
Water tank: 150 litre
Grey tank: 55 litre
Gas cylinders: 2 x 4kg
Price: $106,728 (on road NSW) 
Supplied by: Ballina Campervan and Motorhome Centre, Ballina, NSW