Full review

Words: Val Chapman  Photography: Richard Chapman

The Elddis Crusader Tempest

The Crusader range has a long history, first appearing in 1976 and always at the top of its game, with Alde heating and lots of spec. In 2008 the range entered the family caravanning arena with the launch of the Tempest. 

Its innovative initial layout, with bunks on the nearside, and a longitudinally aligned shower room on the offside, proved to be a trendsetter, copied by other manufacturers.

Today, Tempest continues to be at the forefront of family tourer layout innovation, now with a six-berth layout that creates a true family bedroom; it has bunks alongside a double bed. 

The shower room spans the width of the caravan forward of the bedroom, with doors to close it off from the bedroom and from the kitchen. 

Elddis initially launched this layout in its Avanté range as the 868 – and now here it is with enhanced spec, including Alde heating, in the new eight-foot-wide Crusader range.

The layout

It’s a layout with strong appeal to young families; tiny caravanners are sure to sleep when they know that parents are going to snuggle down in the same bedroom.

The Avanté 868 and Crusader Tempest don’t quite have the field to themselves; Swift saw the potential for this layout, too, and brought out the Challenger Grande 670 SE, with a similar layout and also with Alde heating.

At 1.8m long, the Tempest’s settees can be used as single beds (or made into a double bed that’s 2.12m long and 1.45m wide), so this layout offers flexibility. And, of course, the shower room has entrances from both the kitchen/lounge area and the bedroom.

So, an excellent family layout. Now for the details. We had a day at Preston Caravans & Motorhomes, at the village of Clifton, just north of Preston, to discover more about the Tempest.

The bedroom

First, the family bedroom. These are not just bunk beds. They are bunk pods, meaning that each has a curved frame that engenders seclusion – as well as style!

Each has a light and a curtain. And the ladder to reach the top bunk is fixed, so there is no need to store it during the day. 

The double bed has a tall headboard that is luxuriously upholstered in taupe-shade velvet-style fabric. Two small shelves are here for phones. A curtain tracks around the bed. 

Between the bed and the bunks sits a wardrobe with two rails, each providing 35cm of hanging width. Three lockers are above the bed and, of course, there is storage space under the base bunk, plus a large area under the bed. 

Even though the 40-litre water tank is here, there’s plenty of storage opportunity, and the base rises really easily on its two gas-filled hinges.

The washroom

A sliding door divides the bedroom from the two-part shower and toilet area. 

The shower has a feature that makes it perfect for young children; the position of the wheelarch means there is a raised area that makes a perfect seat for little ones to perch while a parent conducts the showering.

A hinged towel rail is mounted in the ceiling and there are two shelves for soap and shampoo.

The door of the toilet compartment opposite comes across the corridor to divide this area from the front sector of the Tempest.

Two double-doored wall cabinets and a third cabinet beneath the sink provide well-above-average storage accommodation. A tall towel warmer is a welcome luxury feature and there is plenty of shelf space in the washbasin area. So, luxury all the way in terms of the ablutions department. 

The décor 

And as we assimilated the luxury look in this area, we became aware that there’s something very Buccaneer about the Tempest. Buccaneers are, of course, made in the same factory as the Elddis ranges, in County Durham. They share the same smoothly curved front body line, and the same width, 2.45m.

That is key to the invention of the Tempest’s bedroom layout, which would not have been possible within the standard width of the previous generation of Crusaders.

And Crusaders are close to Buccaneers in terms of interior luxury looks. Lounge seating comfort invites close comparison, too. Yes, there’s a £6,800 difference in price between the Tempest and the six-berth Buccaneer, and, of course, Buccaneers have more equipment.

But the new Crusaders will win buyers’ votes if they prefer the pale shade of the Crusader cabinetry, which creates an airy feel, helped of course by the 1.4m-long rooflight.

Beautiful tactile velvet upholsters the four cushions, two in plain taupe and the two larger ones in a geometric-inspired design that uses fawn, brown and cream hues. Velvet edges the curtain ties and armrests, too. 

Storage

Storage, always an important factor in family caravan appeal, is in good supply in the lounge, with two drawers in the centre-front chest, and drop-down access to the under-seat areas, plus an exterior hatch to the one on the nearside. 

And there is a surprise: a wardrobe in the kitchen sector.

It’s alongside the fridge, and it’s the same width as the wardrobe in the bedroom, at 35cm. It has three drawers of the same width below. 

Drawers are a key component of the kitchen’s storage capability. There are four, 46cm wide, and with refined tilt catches. The 27cm-wide cabinet on the fore end of the kitchen contains two shelf spaces. The free-standing table has its own compartment within this cabinet. 

The kitchen

The fridge, on the nearside, is the biggest in the marketplace at 153 litres in capacity, and with a separate freezer. The microwave sits above, and there is a small locker below. 

Tilt-and-roll concealed catches are on the top locker doors. These doors are finished in matt taupe with a subtle abstract pattern of tiny rectangles in a paler shade. 

Kitchen surface space is practical enough for six-person meal-making with the 41cm by 28cm extension in position. And we love the generous size of the sink, 31cm by 50cm. 

The dining area

The centre-front dining arrangement deserves more than a passing comment. 

That’s down to the mechanism that, when you pull out the extension, rises it up to become level with the top of the chest of drawers; very refined, and gives you an area that measures 72cm by 57cm for eating.

The practicalities

Practicalities include the Alde Load Monitor that switches off the heating when you use a high-powered device such as the microwave, to prevent you from tripping out the pitch’s power supply.

And Crusaders come complete with the Whale Aquasource Mains Water Hook Up that enables you to connect the caravan’s water system to a tap on a pitch.