This popular German brand now offers campervans
Dethleffs Globetrail Classic 640 ER
A WORLD premiere in 2023, Dethleffs’ first campervan under its own brand name is now coming to the UK. Over the past 17 years, more than 55,000 campervans have been designed, developed and built for a number of other marques at the company’s Isny factory, but only now is there a camper wearing the ‘D’ logo.
In Germany, there’s a Ford-based model, while Erwin Hymer Group’s first fruits of its heavily publicised new relationship with VW has resulted in the Globetrail Performance based on the Crafter. Here, to start with at least, we’ll only see the Sevel-based ’vans – that’s the Citroën Jumper (known as Relay here) and the Fiat Ducato, in 5.99m and 6.36m lengths. We’re promised that the full range of these will be available in the UK, but, as the line-up is quite extensive, you may struggle to see the version you want at a dealer near you.
As well as the different layouts, you can choose between Globetrail Classic – described as “for beginners” – and Globetrail Advantage, which is said to be “for individualists”. The model shown here is a Citroën-based Classic with the 640 ER floorplan.
So, this is the longest model but with an entry-level spec. Inside, you’ll find a conventional layout, with a half-dinette on a raised floor to level it up with the swivel cab seats. There’s a wall-mounted table with a swivel extension and the original Fiat overcab shelf is retained.
What really marks out Dethleffs’ offering, though, is the choice of different washroom designs. There are bathrooms with wooden doors or tambour doors, swing-wall designs to create semi-separate showering, or versions with a shower curtain, models that have a compact ablutions zone or one that extends into the aisle.
The 640 ER has the ‘Raumbad’ or roombath, so it’s the one with the biggest bathroom. Twin sliding tambour doors hide the toilet area when it’s not in use, while a carpet covers the central shower tray until it’s time to hose yourself down. To use the space you simply slide one door around to meet its opposite number, creating a washroom with lots of floor space and plenty of room to shower.
The downside, of course, is that when the washroom is in use, the fridge is obstructed and so is access through to the rear bedroom. But the washroom here has other pluses as well as its dimensions, including an opening window, fixed corner basin and shelves with the practical
