Panorama: wooden mobile

No more flying sparks, metallic screeching and the smell of burnt welding wire - if you come to Stefan Offenburger's garage, you will find yourself up to your ankles in sawdust and wood shavings and an aroma of resin and wood rises up your nose. Because Offenburger is not a mechanic, but a carpenter. And because he is also a passionate camper, he and his son Oliver built the first motorhome completely out of wood.

Environmentally conscious on vacation

The idea came to the two of them four years ago when the junior generation announced itself and the AMG driver suddenly thought a little more about sustainability. Not only that he suddenly began to feel something like a generation responsibility and therefore flirted with renewable raw materials. Above all, he wanted to offer his child a healthy vacation environment. "That's why we suddenly noticed the strong vapors from plastics, adhesives and paints from off-the-peg mobile homes," remembers Oliver: "I didn't want our offspring to crawl through." After all, who has already built hundreds of wooden houses, should such a hut be able to be put on wheels, the junior sums up the basic idea. Especially since, as an engineer, IT and marketing specialist, he wanted to provide advice and support.

The idea was obvious to father Stefan, but wood is a frowned upon building material among professionals in the caravan industry: Not only is it far too heavy, too expensive and too complex to work with. Most of all, it is considered to be prone to moisture and rot. That is why most motorhomes are made of foam-backed plastic and are lined with veneered pressboard, complain the Offenburger gentlemen.

weatherproof

But because they knew about the reservations, they allowed themselves a lot of lead time and experimented with the outer skin alone for two years. Because even if wooden boats can lie undamaged in the water, the hut on wheels was extremely susceptible to the weather. But after the Offenburgers developed their own coating based on boat paint and applied their two components in seven layers, even the heaviest rain could not harm the facade of their furniture. Even after a few weeks in the woods, the car looked like new.

The interior construction was easier there - only that the carpenter kept going through with the senior; "Here a flap, there a drawer, there a shelf - at some point I really had to slow down," admits Offenburger when his gaze wanders over the multi-layered paneling in beech, spruce or alder, brushing the natural wooden floor or entering caught in the wood-paneled bathroom.

Modern design

However, the two Offenburgers not only created pretty surfaces and lots of practical shelves, they also came up with a lot of other things. Because, for example, the side doors to the toilet and wash basin are opened to form a room divider, the wet room is twice as large when used as most of the competition.

Although the Offenburgers did not want to use any other material than wood, the wooden mobile should not look the same as a mountain hut on wheels. That's why they didn't just select a few modern marbled surfaces and save themselves any frills in their cuts. Above all, they have peppered the wooden mobile with high-tech. Therefore, in addition to standards such as an in-house energy supply, there are also gadgets such as a smart TV with Internet access, a hotspot and ambient lighting with many millions of colors. And of course, all features are networked with one another and can also be controlled via app if desired.

Wood needs to be looked after

As unusual as the wooden mobile looks and as sustainable as it may be, there is a catch, however: maintenance is a bit more complex. Wherever conventional motorhomes are swept out and wiped with a damp cloth, the wood needs an oiling every now and then and sometimes even a little fine-tuning. In return, however, it looks like new again and even deep blunders, for example in the kitchen worktop, can be made unseen. And with board thicknesses of more than three centimeters, the renovation can be repeated almost as often as you like: “This way the wooden mobile still looks like new after ten years,” enthuses the master carpenter.

The carpenter and his son have apparently hit the nail on the head. Because since they showed the wooden mobile for the first time in autumn after two years of planning and two years of construction, the interested parties have run into them. And these aren't just the usual camping suspects. Above all, the wooden mobile appeals to people who do not feel comfortable in the classic mobile homes with their sterile plastic furniture and who have therefore always been on holiday in a hotel, says Junior Oliver. He knows that from his own family. Because after his wife has always refused to go camping, she is now happy to be part of the party.

More are being planned

Too bad that the Offenburgers suddenly have comparatively little time. Because it shouldn't stop with the wooden first fruit. Father and son have long been in the process of converting the old carpentry shop and turning it into a mobile home manufacturer. And while a handful of employees there are working on the first small series of initially five cars together by May, father and son are already working on a slightly slimmed-down version, which not only increases the proud price of around 185.000 euros, but also reduces the weight should. Because at currently 4,5 tons you need a truck driver's license to go on a journey with the wooden mobile. "But if we leave out the alcove and install a few thinner boards, we should come under 3,5 tons," hopes Offenburger and then expects even more demand: he considers up to 50 vehicles a year for around 140.000 euros or more to be entirely realistic.

Wood as far as the eye can see and nowhere even a scrap of plastic - the Offenburg gentlemen were absolutely consistent in the construction. However, the developers have to disturb the substructure all the more. They don't let the MAN TGE, which they have chosen as the basis, come and have nothing wrong with the technology. After all, the 2,0 liter diesel has 177 hp, the double clutch increases comfort and the all-wheel drive guarantees an extended radius of action and an unlimited season. But the amount of plastic in the cockpit must be a thorn in the side of wood lovers, and even the cleanest diesel does not really fit in with the idea of ​​sustainability. But the Offenburgers have also taken care of that. Of course, MAN will not carve an individual dashboard for you, and a wooden steering wheel from a vintage car dealer would not be of much benefit. But the wooden mobile is designed in such a way that the body can be screwed onto a new chassis at any time, says the senior: As soon as MAN can demonstrate a range that is halfway suitable for everyday use for the electric TGE, the Offenburgers move and simply take all their household items with them.