Trakka Escapade 2006 Review

By Malcolm Street

Bonjour mesdames and messieurs! That’s almost the limit of my French vocabulary, just in case you are wondering. But I wanted to give a little Français flavour to my introduction, mainly because this article is an introduction to the latest conversion out of the Trakka stable – the très chic Escapade motorcamper. This is a design based on a vehicle not seen in this country for quite some years: a Renault – the Trafic model to be precise. Vous comprenez?

SLEEK AND CHIC

I’ve mentioned this before and I’ll mention it again: as always, my information pack and briefing from Trakka’s Martin Poate was thorough and enthusiastic.

CW’s review Escapade was immaculately presented, sparkling and ready to roll. Other manufacturers and dealers note, s’il vous plaît.

To say the least the, Renault Trafic is très impressive on several counts, even without the Trakka conversion. Although it’s primarily designed as a delivery van, it certainly doesn’t look like one.

From the swept-back front to its nicely rounded rear end, it lacks the boxy appearance of a trade-orientated van. And, although the Trafic looks quite small from the outside, it has a very roomy interior.

The most impressive feature of the Trafic is its very potent turbodiesel motor. Forget any thoughts of sluggish diesel motors: the 1.9L diesel punches out an impressive 74kW of power and a maximum torque of 240Nm. Parisian delivery drivers must get around very quickly indeed!

Also interesting is the very slick six-speed gearbox. The stubby dash-mounted gearshift is a delight to use and even in fifth gear, the Trafic will still accelerate quite well. Although the Trafic is quite a speedy little van it does have plenty of stopping power with all-round disc brakes.

CARTE BLANCHE COMFORT

Apart from on-road performance, there’s one other factor that will be of interest to RVers – travelling comfort. Well, there are no worries there either: the driver and passenger seats are just like any good car seat, in fact better than some I have been in.

The Trafic’s suspension and general handling setup is, to say the least, most un-van-like. No fear of road mal de mer here at all. The radio requires a read of the manual beyond turning on but it does have the asset of remote controls on the steering wheel.

A few other features of the driver’s cab are also worth pointing out. It’s quite easy to get to and from the driver’s cab and the rear of the van, and there are plenty of storage compartments, including door pockets, under-dash trays on both sides and storage trays on top of the dash – the latter all underneath a very wide lip.

Renault makes several variants of the Trafic: the Air with air-conditioning (not really an option I’d have thought); the Comfort Pack with electric side windows and mirrors; and the Integral Pack with all of the above plus ABS and passenger side airbag.

Our Escapade came with everything. Incidentally, along with the cab air-conditioning comes a chilled glovebox which will accept a large water bottle – ideal for Aussie touring and very clever of the French to think of it!

Trakka has done its usual superb fit and finish job with the Escapade, and it’s interesting to see what has been achieved with a unit this size. Being a van, it has the usual side sliding door and opening rear doors, but Trakka has done something interesting with the windows.

The nearside and rear retain the standard Renault items, thus keeping the car/van look, but the offside is fitted with two Seitz hoppers, which says ‘motorhome’ or ‘motorcamper’, as Trakka like to call them.

The other item betraying the Escapade as a motorcamper is the Fiamma awning along the nearside.

BON APPETIT!

Inside, the Escapade layout is quite simple. In the rear is a U-shaped lounge which converts into a bed.

Behind the driver’s seat is a cabinet containing, among other items, a sink and fridge, and behind the passenger seat is a swing-out cabinet that houses the cooktop.

To be more specific, the offside kitchen area has a stainless steel sink with 12V pumped water and a smoked glass lid. Underneath are both a cutlery drawer and an IndelB 85L 12V fridge. As you’d expect, there isn’t a great deal of benchtop space, but there is a small hinged flap beside the sink.

Right behind the driver’s seat are the non-kitchen items: a small hanging wardrobe and a floor locker, underneath which is just large enough for a Porta Potti.

On the opposite side, the two-burner Origo cooktop is built into a cabinet that can be used inside the Escapade or unclipped and swung out to be used outside. Having this setup in a camper this size is a very practical idea and works well.

With the awning out, the cooktop can still be used if it is raining. The Origo uses denatured alcohol (methylated spirits to you and me) for fuel, so there are no gas lines. Underneath the cooktop is a small cupboard that can be used to store cooking items. It also has a hinged flap that, when used inside, fills the gap between both sides of the kitchen and makes for a reasonable benchtop area.

FAIT ACCOMPLI

For a van as small as the Trafic, the U-shaped lounge is surprisingly comfortable and two people will have no trouble relaxing.

A small swivel table, stored behind the driver’s seat, fits between the two side seats without difficulty. Under both side seats are substantial storage areas, accessed by lifting the sprung hinged tops.

The offside area is partly taken up by the house battery and the water heater, if fitted. Under the rear seat is a larger drawer which is accessible through the rear doors. The drawer does have two laminated lids, which are not really to do with the drawer but used for the filling the gap when making up the lounge into a double bed.

In fact the U-shaped lounge is ambidextrous and can be made up as either one double bed or two single beds – the nearside lounge being slightly longer at 5ft 8in (1.7m), than the offside lounge. When making up the double bed, the two side seat backs are used together to make up the centre cushion.

Overhead lockers above the driver’s cab and along the sides provide a deceptively good amount of storage. They are all quite deep, except the one above the sliding door, which is shallower to minimise hitting your head on the way in and out.

Of interest is the curved lower edge of the lockers doors which matches the curve of the lower edge of the rear door windows.

Lighting in the Escapade is all 12V and provided by two fluorescent fittings, one mounted in the roof and the other under the lockers above the kitchen plus two halogen reading lights in the rear.

A 100ah battery provides the ‘house’ supply and this can also be used for an emergency start of the Escapade. There’s a 240V powerpoint above the kitchen sink and another for the battery charger, which can be supplemented by optional roof-mounted solar panels.

All the cabinet work is built using lightweight Europly that is water resistant. The high roof is insulated and has velour lining. There’s also a large diameter Fiamma fan hatch to improve interior airflow on warm days.

Both the fresh and grey water tanks are built into the empty space in the sides of the Trafic, rather than underneath, thus not affecting the normal ground clearance at all.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The Escapade isn’t particularly large but it has been designed to fit at the affordable end of Trakka’s motorcamper/motorhome lineup – something that clearly appealed to that particular couple.

The Trafic van would be well suited to a design that featured swivelling seats in the front, but that would increase the price. What it is though, is a very versatile and well-built motorcamper that is very car-like to drive, stylish to look at and certainly compatible with both city and country driving.

Is this little piece of France, with its Australia conversion, going to create some interest? Mais oui, we would suggest.

For more information contact Trakka Motorcampers, 9 Beaumont Road, Mt Kuring-gai, NSW 2080, (02) 9472 9000; fax: (02) 9472 9090; web: www.trakka.com.au