Renault Australia's assault on the Australian motorhome market is gaining momentum, with the French maker partnering with Melbourne-based RV specialist Sunliner to premiere a high-tech, limited-edition model dubbed the Sunliner 40.
Built to celebrate Sunliner's 40th anniversary, the model boasts some of the latest innovations in the RV field, including a drop-down bed that's been combined with a slide-out, advanced wireless interior lighting, state-of-the-art climate-control, and a sophisticated computer management system.
Sunliner is the first major RV brand to adopt Renault's new rear-wheel-drive Master motorhome cab/chassis, which joined Renault's LCV line-up earlier this year.
According to Justin Hocevar (pictured), Renault Australia's Managing Director, the motorhome chassis represents another opportunity to further expand its growing footprint in the Australian LCV market.
"We see this as a very important development in our light commercial business," he said, speaking at the Sunliner 40's unveiling in Melbourne on Thursday, September 19.
"Within our LCV business we've been looking at branching out and developing niches where there's already that wide acceptance of European products, but where we're not yet represented."
Renault hasn't been a player in the motorhome market in this country for around a decade, but Hocevar says that after careful consideration the company feels "the time is right" to re-enter the fray.
There's no doubting the French maker's momentum in the LCV market right now – its year-to-date sales in the niche, spanning Kangoo, Trafic and Master platforms, are up 61 per cent.
Manufactured at Renault's Batilly facility near Paris, the Master motorhome cab/chassis features a raft of differences over the standard cab/chassis. Headlining the changes are dual swivel seats and the open-backed cab; there's also protection over the 105-litre fuel tank, space on the dash for extra instruments and switches, and additional wiring provisions, while the rear of the chassis is also different – there's no cross member, allowing it to accommodate a motorhome body.
The rear-wheel-drive model comes with an optional Eaton mechanical differential lock in a dual-rear-wheel format, while low-rolling-resistance Continental tyres are standard.
The Master motorhome cab/chassis is powered by the 2.3-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel found in the brand's other Master variants. Putting out a claimed 110kW and 350Nm, the engine is mated to either a six-speed manual transmission or a six-speed automated manual transmission.
With a 4500kg GVM, the Master motorhome can still be driven on a standard car licence.
While the motorhome chassis has been available in Europe for around four years, Renault Australia's LCV Model Line Manager, Lyndon Healey, says it's something new for the Australian RV market…
"What the manufacturers have had available here hasn't changed much in the last 10 years," he says.
"In rear-wheel drive the Mercedes and the Iveco are quite popular but the Master will be significantly cheaper than those chassis. It's really a new product for this segment."
While Sunliner is the first major RV manufacturer to use the Renault motorhome cab/chassis, Healey says the model has been met with widespread interest.
"We've had discussions with several [motorhome manufacturers] and they're quite interested for a number of different reasons," he says.
"The chassis is quite unique because it's rear-wheel drive and yet it's still at what has traditionally been a front-wheel-drive price point, so I think it gives them an option they haven't had before. It's either been a choice of a comparatively cheap front-wheel-drive or an expensive rear drive – this one gives converters the best of both worlds, so I think we'll get plenty of interest."
While an official recommended retail price is yet to be announced, Healey says the Master motorhome cab/chassis is available to private buyers for around $52,000 for the manual and around $55,000 for the AMT.
Just 40 examples of the Sunliner 40 will be built, with the exclusive motorhome selling for around $165,000 to $170,000. The Renault platform is also now available in three other Sunliner ranges: the Pinto, the Vibe, and the Holiday.
Sunliner's General Manager, Nick Hunter, says the Sunliner 40 provides a window to the future for motorhomes in this country.
"We haven't designed this product for the masses; we've designed it for us and it shows where we think the future [of motorhomes] may be lying," he says.
"We could have gone out and produced the biggest motorhome possible with everything dangling off it to show us off as the biggest and best. We did the opposite: we wanted something that could be driven on a car licence, we wanted to keep it just under 24ft, we wanted to pick the best parts out of our best-selling models and we wanted to incorporate many new technologies.
"We believe this motorhome will be a hit, and he hope our market will love it as much as we do."
Like the rest of Renault's Master range, the motorhome cab/chassis benefits from a three-year/200,000km factory warranty with three years' roadside assistance, 30,000km (or annual) service intervals and a capped-price servicing program ($349 per annum for the first three years).