Very short, fully equipped campervan : Malibu 540 DB camper van

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Very short, fully equipped campervan : Malibu 540 DB camper van

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Күн бұрын

The Malibu 540 DB camper van has a kitchen, toilet and shower yet is only 541cm in length and 205cm in width.
I live in a motorhome full time and travel around Europe in it. I spend most of my time in Poland, Germany and Italy. Vanlife is my life.
In my KZfaq channel, I present reviews of recreational vehicles. Here you will find campervans and motorhomes from the cheapest camper vans to the most expensive luxury liners, from various companies including Hobby, Hymer, Carthago, Westfalia, Wingamm, La Strada, Frankia, Wavecamper, Maurer, Clever Vans, Pössl, Bürstner, Niesmann Bischoff, Action Mobil, Reisemobil Manufaktur, Robeta, Trigano, Challenger, EuraMobil, Laika, Forster, Mobilvetta Design, Affinity, Globe Traveller, Benimar, Roller Team, Adria, Tourne, Megamobil, VW, Mercedes, CS, Renault, Ford, Fiat, Carado, Sunlight, Baileys, Chausson, Balcamp, Knaus, Weinsberg, Mitsubishi, Woelcke, Reisemobile Bürow and others.
I do this by regularly attending trade events such as CMT Stuttgart, Abenteuer und Allrad, Caravan Salon Dusseldorf, Warsaw Caravan and Camping Show and sometimes others.
I cover equipment, including 12v electrical equipment and talk a lot about lithium batteries.
I also show some of the places I have visited in Europe in my own motorhome, as well as the places you can stay at! I try to give as much coverage as I can to official campsites and free places which I use for overnighting. Therefore you can find here the aire or stellplatz that you are possibly looking for.
Please consider supporting me on Patreon : / alanheath

Пікірлер: 67

@alanimals 4 жыл бұрын

I can't say I'm over powered with camper vans when you can get a decent motorhome with more for the same price. Only my choice obviously but great review Al.

@G-ra-ha-m 4 жыл бұрын

I agree for the smaller vans, but the Sevel vans are generally not too far off the Coachbuilt in usability. A coachbuilt has advantages of flat sides, but for blending into a neigbourhood and drivability a PVC seems better, as well as waterproofing of course. For me the coachbuilds only really score when they have intelligent layouts which are impossible in a PVC - such as the Swift Escape 604 or 612. When you go bigger with quality you soon end up spending more, Mid £40ks for PVC and £50k starting for coachbuilt is my baseline. Paying £65k for a PVC or even a tiny, facility free VW T6 is madness - but I see that people do! Many PVCs are overpriced IMO, the Clever Tour 540 and Globecar Plus range prove they don't have to cost so much.

@SMITHYSKONTIKI 4 жыл бұрын

Nice size van when our grandchildren get a bit older we will downsize to something similar

@marklittler784 4 жыл бұрын

Don't think the elderly would think much of that mattress loooool like the way with these layouts your expected to use the bed as a trampoline to get to the cupboards looool

@ccmogs5757 4 жыл бұрын

Nice , interesting layout , probably suits many - good van , good vid. mate :)

@jhare18 4 жыл бұрын

The length of this van is ideal for me.

@marklittler784 4 жыл бұрын

Now I know why in nursery they gave us those different shaped wooden blocks to place in their corresponding positions on a board, it was good practice for putting boards over the sink & cooker in camper vans, caravans and motor homes loooooool

@lynnelynne6685 4 жыл бұрын

Mature,, yes.:) Great little book cubby hole in the corner for reading. Nice size Washroom for it's size. Used for emergency purposes only. The interior colors chosen may slowly start causing or create a claustrophobic feeling.

@brucepeppinck9988 3 жыл бұрын

Looking forward great 👍 Motorhome

@travelcampervansandmore 4 жыл бұрын

Carthago/Malibu, one of the few large...ish brand not yet owned by one of the large four consortiums. (if I'm not mistaken)

@VanlifewithAlan 4 жыл бұрын

I think Carthago might claim that they are one of the big brands!

@chrisborgmotorhome 4 жыл бұрын

Nice small home not much longer, 40 cm-ish, than a large family car, Great video Alan.

@PUGSLTD 4 жыл бұрын

599 is the minimum you need to have the storage and space. I wanted to get a 540 but changed my mind and got a 599. So much more spacious and the bathroom much pleasurable too. And for the price difference between the 2 a 599 is better value.

@philsaunter1956 4 жыл бұрын

The 540 vans are not really about the money. With their almost car-like length and shorter wheelbase they are MUCH better if you drive into towns a lot. We drove a 599 through Verona a couple of years back for example and we were sweating bullets. If you only go into towns occasionally and spend most of your time on motorways and campsides (or in the wilderness for that matter), the extra length gets you nice improvements in terms of spaciousness, so in that case, absolutely.

@geckobrah4201 4 жыл бұрын

I wish all van reviews would show a Birdseye schematic floor plan shot.

@jasiahdillon732 3 жыл бұрын

You probably dont give a shit but does anyone know of a way to log back into an Instagram account? I was stupid lost the password. I would appreciate any tips you can offer me!

@leightonsonny6516 3 жыл бұрын

@Jasiah Dillon instablaster :)

@jasiahdillon732 3 жыл бұрын

@Leighton Sonny thanks for your reply. I found the site through google and Im waiting for the hacking stuff now. I see it takes quite some time so I will reply here later when my account password hopefully is recovered.

@jasiahdillon732 3 жыл бұрын

@Leighton Sonny It did the trick and I finally got access to my account again. I'm so happy! Thank you so much, you really help me out !

@leightonsonny6516 3 жыл бұрын

@Jasiah Dillon no problem :D

@mauro6826 4 жыл бұрын

Oh yeah, that’s for me . Going everywhere ( wife at home ), guitar , pizza & bike. I hope I do not need wc in emergency or in the night . Mauro

@G-ra-ha-m 4 жыл бұрын

I'd leave the toilet swung out overnight :). In my experience the shower gets used less than the toilet which is why the Adria Twin swing-out wall appears to be the best idea of all.

@remlatzargonix1329 4 жыл бұрын

At first, I thought "The spiral staircase on that van was a fantastic touch."......oh well.

@usualsuspect527 4 жыл бұрын

נוח. חדר שינה נפרד, סלון, +שירותים. 👍👍👍👍

@VanlifewithAlan 4 жыл бұрын

שבת שלום! ברכות מפולין! מאיפה אתה כותב?

@jamiepickles1879 4 жыл бұрын

Great Video Review as always

@pjt3887 4 жыл бұрын

Not a huge fan of the bathroom. The overall features are quite nice. My Grandma taught me to use buckets in your sink to recycle the water in your garden. So someone could do that for the fold down sink if it's not too heavy. But I like to conserve water as much as possible.

@carolhewett3756 4 жыл бұрын

Yes, as a tent camper I don't understand the need for running water (except for showering). I always used 1 gallon jugs, poured out what I needed into basin and then poured that on to the ground. I use biodegradable soap. I always thoroughly wiped items clean with paper towels before washing and that way used minimum soap and water. The paper towels, especially the greasy ones, made great fire starter for campfire or rocket stove. As for showers, I liked the solar ones that you hang up. I usually required 2 if I was washing my long hair. I also found it helpful to have a bucket of low suds water with a little vinegar or bleach and would dip my hands in that thruout the day. A construction worker taught me that truck. I added the disinfect. In any event one must keep kitchen washing separate from toilet washing. Vans and tiny houses with one sink gross me out.

@artnan5917 4 жыл бұрын

great

@badgerpa9 4 жыл бұрын

Stay safe! Add a vanlife hashtag for more views.

@VanlifewithAlan 4 жыл бұрын

According to a KZfaq creator video, adding hashtags does not help.

@DavidThomas-fc2vh 5 ай бұрын

Hi whould you know what wheel locking nuts fit a Malibu 540 motorhome

@VanlifewithAlan 5 ай бұрын

David I don't know but I think that there is a special reason for asking so I suggest you contact the manufacturer directly.

@frankbreu9383 4 жыл бұрын

... i don‘t like vans from fiat ... better are sprinter or crafter ... but thx for your information-video 🙃✌🏼 br

@philsaunter1956 4 жыл бұрын

There is no equivalent length Sprinter/Crafter though. The L1 is too short for a camper van incl. bathroom. There is also less width especially towards the roof. The Sprinter is nice for intercontinental travel, their engines are pretty commonly used around the globe.

@clementeyanez3307 4 жыл бұрын

Alan aquí en Guadalajara 2:20, de la tarde.

@loveu2222 4 жыл бұрын

Low bad very bad idea, otherwise very nice✌️☮️🏖️🇺🇸🗽

@VanlifewithAlan 4 жыл бұрын

Depends what one wants. It may be for a person who has difficulty getting into a high bed.

@eTrUSCANdigitalnomad 2 жыл бұрын

congratulations! Can you suggest best camper van 540cm 4x4?

@VanlifewithAlan 2 жыл бұрын

Here are three : kzfaq.info/get/bejne/oK-qmbymmsimno0.html or kzfaq.info/get/bejne/oJaDnNyk3tObe40.html or kzfaq.info/get/bejne/gMqiaq-hqdHUgaM.html

@eTrUSCANdigitalnomad 2 жыл бұрын

@@VanlifewithAlan thanks!!!

@G-ra-ha-m 4 жыл бұрын

I like how Fiat always charge a fortune for tiny engine upgrades (115 to 130 and 150 to 170 were just software changes), look out for PAS (Peugeot Citroen) based vehicles as they give away 160BHP for nothing to break into this market!). I like the low beds, the cost can be smaller cold water capacity and gas bottle size but the major bonus is being able to have windows both ends (sides) of the bed without them getting damaged by feet and heads. Sadly Malibu failed here. The wardrobe is nice, as are the locker handles and corner cubby. Shower looks more usable than their 6m one with less fiddly looking doors, hate folding sinks - perhaps they could invent a plug for it? The flat bottom of the sink may also be a pain to keep clean when brushing teeth using a lot more water on top of that noted. Plus behind the sink is going to be a gunk trap. Water and cassettes are the limiting factor in my experience, solar a distant third as a short drive usually peps that up. For a couple the van looks great overall, I tried to get a 5.4m van (less weight, easier to park) but the deals and tech. go into the better selling 6m class first, so more people buy them and so the manufacturers think that the 5.4m market is lesser - a bit of a self perpetuating cycle. As a result in a parking space I'm almost exactly 0.6m sticking out :).

@travelcampervansandmore 4 жыл бұрын

I don't think it is Fiat charging a fortune for the engine upgrades but more the converters. The worst offender I found is Westfalia who charge an extra £2000.- for the 140bhp engine and so on. This is three times more than some other converters. Daily robbery from Westfalia.

@G-ra-ha-m 4 жыл бұрын

@@travelcampervansandmore Good point, I must admit I didn't really look at Westfalia when I was in the market, I skated past their stands because I knew that they charged a b____ fortune for their vans and thought I'd be better spending the £20k or so extra on actually using a cheaper van :). It it possible to get a good Sevel van for < £45k but I had to really look hard to find them :). BTW I was at one show where the Westfalia Kepler One was £65k, the sticker shock and awe I had was amazing !

@travelcampervansandmore 4 жыл бұрын

@@G-ra-ha-m What did you go for in the end?

@G-ra-ha-m 4 жыл бұрын

@@travelcampervansandmore Globescout Plus. Been quite pleased with it TBH, but 6m is the limit for parking in my drive, 5.4m would have fitted better. The 3-way fridge means I haven't had to mess about with solar etc - the single 95Ah Varta battery can just about last 5 days without driving or power if I'm out in the daytime and am careful. The Clever Tour 540 is one I'd buy too, it it was in stock, probably have to buy that in europe.

@travelcampervansandmore 4 жыл бұрын

@@G-ra-ha-m 5.4m is already getting too big for my parking space! Thanks for the details.

@erminiapurrone4014 4 жыл бұрын

Really like this ban is it available in the US? looking for sunbathing like this. Thank you for this video

@erminiapurrone4014 4 жыл бұрын

Sorry auto correct is horrible. Meant van not ban and something not sunbathing

@robertcoren7318 3 жыл бұрын

Like it but the bathroom is awfully small.

@VanlifewithAlan 3 жыл бұрын

It is a very small van!

@xb9dx598 3 жыл бұрын

thats good for trips because you dont have to go to a hotel

@csf5538 4 жыл бұрын

Did not show access to toilet, on video !!!

@MrNice-qs3wt 4 жыл бұрын

Do these class b vans have air conditioning

@tuyenfinance818 4 жыл бұрын

Love low bed 😍 no backup camera?

@henryc1000 4 жыл бұрын

“No backup camera”..... seriously??

@VanlifewithAlan 4 жыл бұрын

What do you expect? An entire film crew? If you will hire one, I will be delighted to use t.

@henryc1000 4 жыл бұрын

My sentiments exactly 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

@sleepingbearffg5008 4 жыл бұрын

Your van is worth allot yet you need support??

@KhurasaniArmyofImamMehdi 4 жыл бұрын

Please mention price

@metronetrail 4 жыл бұрын

46000 euros

@carolhewett3756 4 жыл бұрын

If you are reaching an American audience, it would be most helpful to give us dimensions in inches and feet, not only metric measurements. King think I like this, I wish I knew the dimensions.

@philsaunter1956 4 жыл бұрын

Have you considered converting them yourself ? It's not available in the US anyway.

@marklittler784 4 жыл бұрын

" with lots of features" 😅

@marklittler784 4 жыл бұрын

Just keep a damp flannel with disinfectant on in a plastic bag to clean your hands.