GAME CHANGER

Paul Owen discovers all is not what it seems at first glance in Zion’s latest luxury motorhome. It’s better.

On first glance of the Niesmann and Bischoff ismove 6.9E class A motorhome, it’s easy to think that a lot of essential equipment has gone AWOL. The $285,000 designer motorhome appears to lack a fridge, shower, reversing camera, forward-facing travel seats, a kitchen bench, and a drop-down bed above the front lounge. However, don’t sweat about these apparent omissions, for these features will all reveal themselves upon further examination.

The clever packaging allows everything to be hidden away when not required, creating extra living room within a motorhome that is less than seven metres long.

First up, a hidden two-step ladder pops out from beneath the windowless rightside door as you unlock it, permitting an easy entry. In the cabin, touch screens abound, as every mechanical switch has been banished in favour of small electronic controls that illuminate with a swipe of your hand before operating them with a fingertip. Above your head is the hidden drop-down bed, so well integrated into the ceiling that you don’t see it at first.

Further back, you’ll find the opposing kitchen and washroom areas. The former disguises the 130L fridge as the middle compartment of a set of drawers and sliding it out you instantly see everything that’s stored in there at a glance.

At first, the only food preparation space is the rectangular wooden chopping board that covers the sink; however, this can be shifted over to be mounted inside a pull-out metal frame alongside the entry door. Further bench space can be created by sliding out the glass bench covering the two gas hobs.

If you need a microwave, the ismove isn’t going to suit you. For those who can make do with just a couple of burners and small oven/grille, this kitchen is as funky and aesthetically pleasing as they come. Accompanied by a power-operated vertical set of shelves that rises and falls on cue, it all folds away like a Swiss Army knife in seconds, leaving an unbroken line of sight through starboard side of the cabin from bow to stern.

The ismove has plenty of water capacity held between its double floors, with 200L of fresh water and a tank capable of storing 130L of greywater – reservoir sizes that hint at an ability to camp without supporting infrastructure for a week or more. Find out more at zionmotorhomes.co.nz