Option RV Distinction

WHAT WE LIKED

• Foot rest doors for the dinette storage
• Rear external storage bin
• Mesh rack between drawbar rails

NOT SO MUCH

• No shelf behind the bed
• Colour scheme
• 12V fuses hard to access

I recently decided it was time to take a little tour around the Sunshine Coast hinterland and visit the so-called Three Ms: Maleny, Montville and Mapleton.

This beautiful part of the world includes national parks, waterfalls, plenty of scenic views, bookshops and a good assortment of cafes, especially the Devonshire tea variety.

To assist me on my planned journey, Brad Pendleton and his team from Caravan World in Woombye, Queensland, were kind enough to loan me one of their Option RV Distinction caravans and even better, something to tow it with!

The Distinction was a 6.1m (20ft) tandem axle van, weighing in with an ATM of 2800kg and Tare of 2300kg. But I was surprised to see the rig hitched up to a Mercedes Benz ML 300. I am more than used to handling a Merc in the motorhome world, but I did wonder how it would fare in the tug department.

As it turns out, the Mercedes towed very well, which isn’t surprising when I found out that the ML 300’s 150kW/500Nm, 3.0-litre turbodiesel donk drives through a seven-speed auto ’box with a maximum towing capacity of 3500kg.

Although it looked a little small behind the Distinction, it was no shrinking violet in regards to performance, especially on the winding hills up to Montville. With a weight distribution hitch fitted, the ML 300 was a very smooth tower, indeed.

STICKING TO CONVENTION

The Option RV Distinction is a new rig for Caravan World. It’s built conventionally on a DuraGal chassis with 6in rails, a 2in riser, and drawbar rails running back to the suspension mounts.

The suspension is a load sharing tandem axle setup with greasable shackle leaf springs, shock absorbers and 15in alloy wheels, and having the crossmembers made of punched steel H-frame helps save some weight.

The mesh rack between the drawbar rails is good for stashing hoses and idle weight distribution bars. Two alloy checkerplate battery boxes are also attached to the front offside rails.

The two 95 litre water tanks are fitted between the chassis rails fore and aft of the axles.

The Distinction’s timber frame comes with insulation, alloy cladding, tinted acrylic hopper windows and a Camec security door.

Rather than a conventional front boot, tunnel storage is fitted, along with a large rear offside bin and a small nearside space for the external entertainment unit.

FAMILIAR FEEL

The Distinction’s layout featured a rear door entry, full-width rear bathroom, offside dinette, nearside kitchen and front bedroom.

Like many current van designs, this one features a burnt orange timber look, which would not be to everyone’s taste. The black marble laminate for the benchtops is fairly conventional, but the red marble for the splashback is a little different.

Although their front panels are timber, the rest of the drawers are made from lightweight, but strong, aluminium panel. All the windows come with net and full curtains.

With a surprising amount of cupboard and drawer storage, the angled kitchen comes with the usual items including Swift four-burner cooktop,  grill and oven, stainless steel sink/ drainer, and a microwave.

A Dometic 150 litre fridge and full height double-sided wire basket pantry sit on the opposite side.

A comfortable dinette with tri-fold table fits into the space between the fridge and the bathroom. Upholstered in black leather, it comes with fixed wall cushions and hinged foot rests, so diners can sit back in comfort.

A hinged TV bracket and aerial connection for the Saturn antenna are located near the entry on the kitchen wall, and for those with electronic gadgets that require charging, 240V and 12V sockets are wall-mounted nearby.

One very clever idea here is the access to the under-seat storage. Foot rests often mean there isn’t any extra space, but in this case the foot rests act as locker doors.

And although the dinette window isn’t particularly large, a big marine-style hatch allows plenty of natural light.

For those who like to spend time away from it all, the Distinction comes fully fitted with low consumption LED lighting. In addition, solar panels can be used to keep the batteries charged – the regulator is located in an overhead locker by the entry door, along with the hot water switch, water tank gauges and the AM/FM radio/CD player.

REST EASY

Up front, the island bed comes complete with a comfy, innerspring mattress measuring 1.85x1.52m (6ft 1in x 5ft) and sits on a posture slat base. Part of the normal underbed storage is taken up by the tunnel boot.

Wardrobes, cabinets and overhead lockers are around the bed, while diagonal cupboards are fitted into the foot-of-bed corners.

Down the back, the bathroom features a nearside corner shower cubicle, offside Thetford cassette toilet and an impressive-looking vanity, including washbasin, wall mirror, cupboards and drawers.

There’s also space for a top-loading Lemair washing machine.

Both the shower cubicle and toilet have fan ventilation hatches and there’s also a window above the loo.

VERDICT

The Option RV Distinction hooked up to a Mercedes ML 300 proved a top combo for my travels in the Sunshine Coast hinterland. Although the Distinction does have the fairly familiar front bedroom/rear bathroom layout that seems so in vogue these days, it has enough features to make it look a little different.

Apart from a couple of minor issues, both the kitchen and dinette feature stylish and practical designs, and the van should suit long term touring couples very nicely. 

OPTION RV DISTINCTION

Overall length: 8.3m (27ft 2in)
External body length: 6.1m (20ft)
External width: 2.41m (7ft 11in)
Internal height: 1.96m (6ft 5in)
Travel height: 3.0m (9ft 10in)
Tare: 2300kg
ATM: 2800kg
Frame: Timber
Chassis: DuraGal
Suspension: Tandem axle load sharing
Cooktop: Swift four-burner
Fridge: Dometic RM7851 150 litre
Microwave: LG
Shower: separate cubicle
Toilet: Thetford cassette
Lighting: 12V/LED
Gas: 2 x 9kg
Fresh water: 2 x 95 litre
Price as shown: $59,990 (tow-away, Qld)
Supplied by: Caravan World, Woombye, Qld