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A rear garage, which can also be used as a changing and storage space, and a multifunctional living area as a TV lounge, sofa area or bedroom. The mark Challenger has a special novelty ready for the new season.
The French brand Challenger has a reputation for being particularly innovative, with a wealth of ideas mainly related to unusual interior designs. For the new season, the manufacturer, which belongs to the French Trigano Group, has created a layout for a partially integrated vehicle with the Challenger 240, which comes up with innovative detailed solutions. No quirky, gimmicky ideas, but practical implementations that make it seven meters long camper transform into a multivariable semi-integrated.
Versatile space
The curious person will discover the most noticeable change from the outside: on the driver's side in the rear area - next to the usual portal on the other side - there is a second body door. It allows direct access to a floor-to-ceiling and vehicle-wide room that can be used as a rear garage, changing room or other storage space for bulky items. A wall unit as a spacious, open shelf and another fold-out hanging shelf ensure the necessary order.
As the inventor of the accessible rear garage, Challenger cannot be celebrated. Carado had already presented this practical detail in a concept vehicle in 2019. The I449 study, however, was a 40 centimeter longer, fully integrated vehicle with a wider rear area. And because two bicycles could also be stowed "upright" in their own device, the extra compartment could be used as a garage and, thanks to an additional seat, as a comfortable changing room.
Variable with sliding and swiveling
In terms of functionality, the slightly narrower chamber in the shorter Challenger 240 fulfills the same purpose: convenient access through the rear door and use as a "wet room", whether when returning from the beach with damp swimwear or wet clothes after a surprising summer thunderstorm. Conveniently, a sliding door also gives access to a compact bathroom-toilet room, which can be transformed into a usable shower in no time thanks to a swiveling washbasin. On the way, when two bikes are already lashed in the back room, there is no more space to change.
While the unique Carado had no prospect of realization, the Challenger 240 will go into series production at the end of August after the Caravan Salon. And it offers a second highlight: a 1,60-meter-wide sofa that is attached lengthways to the driver's side and can be formed into a U-shaped all-round seating group with the two swivel armchairs in the driver's cab and two modular, easy-to-convert side seats up to seven people can get together in good company.
Two tables in one
The two stools can also be converted into a footstool for a cozy evening watching TV for two. Across from the sofa is a wide sideboard from which a 32-inch flat-screen TV can be conjured up. When lowered, the square table top serves as a coffee table, can be enlarged to double its size by means of four fold-out parts and then becomes a dining table.
Since there are no fixed beds on board, the multifunctional living area is transformed into a bedroom with an electrically lowerable fold-down bed, which is 1,60 meters wide. An eye-catching glass rack creates a visual separation from the kitchen, which is furnished with a 140-liter refrigerator and two-burner stove including a sink.
Price
The Challenger 240 is offered exclusively on the basis of the Ford Transit and, properly equipped, is in the price list at prices from 61.000 euros.
Place without end
The French brand presents another novelty with the new slim-line models S194 (5,99 meters long) and S217 (6,59 meters). In the smaller of the two semi-integrated models, which are only 2,10 meters wide, the double bed built across the rear is designed as a “butterfly bed” that can be folded up in the middle from the front and back. If necessary, this increases the storage space in the rear garage for bulky items and also enables access from the interior.
The rest is divided according to the classic pattern: four-seater seating area with half dinette, behind it the kitchen and a bathroom with a swiveling washbasin. The base price for the Challenger 240 on a Ford Transit basis is 48.490 euros. The 60 centimeter longer S217, in which two longitudinal single beds instead of the transverse bed form the bedroom in the rear compartment, starts at around 51.000 euros.