DISCOVERING SA FROM “HOME”

With tourism growing steadily in South Africa and major international sports events coming up soon, the demand from overseas visitors for motor homes built on special Sprinter chassis has taken off.

A minimal motor home typically contains beds, a table, and food preparation and storage areas. Larger models add full bathrooms, refrigerators, living areas, master bedrooms, etc. Some motor homes are very elaborate, with satellite TV and Internet access, even slide-out sections and awnings.

The advantages of motor homes include convenience and comfort as well as being able to prepare food oneself, which saves money. At the same time, a motor home certainly provides more organised living space and better protection from the elements than a tent. The disadvantages of RVs (recreational vehicles) include low fuel economy and, for the novice, the challenge of driving a motor home for the first time.

In classes of its own is the integrated motor home built on a chassis with an attached cab section, like the Sprinter chassis cab. Usually sleeping up to five or six people, Class C motor homes are intended for everything from brief leisure activities such as vacations and camping to full-time living in trailer parks and residential back yards. They can even be used as mobile offices on work or business sites with customised features such as extra desk space, an upgraded electrical system, a generator, and satellite Internet. But mostly they are RVs used as both a vehicle and a temporary travel home.

Europe features a number of top manufacturers who can build a variety of sophisticated Class C and other motor homes. Most homes are built onto and integrated with chassis cabs, the Sprinter-based motor home being the most familiar sight.

A variety of locally built motor homes are exhibited to overseas tourism operators. Some local manufacturers have licence agreements with foreign manufacturers and others have come up with their own designs. Having looked at the day mode and night plans of these motor homes (with all hidden berths exposed), they rate among the best in the world, including their quality.

Last year, more than nine million foreigners visited South Africa – 8.3 percent up on 2006 – and with major international sporting events coming up in 2009 and 2010 it should not be surprising that the Mercedes-Benz Commercial Vehicle division is anticipating an increasing demand for motor homes, up from current sales of between 20 and 40 units a month.

Motor homes based on the Sprinter CDI 313 and CDI 414, with their sophisticated braking and other safety features, are also popular in South Africa. Currently motor homes are based on the new range of NCV 3 Sprinters and especially the 315 CDI model. To meet the long-distance and rough terrain requirements of local motor home rental companies and individual owners it has come out with a standard, long wheelbase (LWB) and extra-long wheelbase version of the Sprinter chassis for use with the Sprinter 315, which offers 110 kW of output and 330 Nm of torque. To avert high toll-road fees it is equipped with single rear wheels.