WELLHOUSE LEISURE
Few companies have promoted electric campervans as much as Wellhouse Leisure, although Director, David Elliott, reports that sales have yet to take off. “I thought we would be further ahead with electric campervans by now,” he says, but the company’s latest product could begin to change that.
Based on the EC35 van from Chinese maker, DFSK, Wellhouse’s new Piccolo camper should be available by the time you read this, with a projected price of between £40k and £45k. That should make it the most affordable EV camper on the market, but then it’s based on the cheapest electric van currently on sale.
It will be a two-berth conversion with only two travel seats, while a poptop will provide standing room. The camper will include solar panels and a lithium leisure battery as standard but, for cost reasons, Wellhouse is planning to offer a choice of power for cooking and heating – electric, gas or even diesel. The layout will include a side bench on one side, facing a galley on the other.
Looking like the Japanese compact panel vans of a couple of decades ago, the DFSK is just 4.50m long and a very slim 1.68m wide. It is already one of the best-selling vans in China and has a 39kWh battery and a claimed range of 166 miles. Its maximum speed is 62mph. Despite its dated appearance, it comes with features such as Apple CarPlay and a reversing camera, as well as an eight-year warranty on the battery.
In addition to the Piccolo, Wellhouse Leisure continues to offer fully electric versions of its Toyota Proace Matino 3 and the Vauxhall Vivaro Elite. These vans are basically the same vehicle with different branding and, in 75kWh form, they have a 205-mile range. With a side kitchen layout, they compete directly with VW T6.1 campervans but David says demand for the electric derivatives has been stymied by a £20k premium compared with a 180PS diesel automatic model. In EV form, prices start at around £77k.