Automotive

Futuristic concept camper inspires two-story RV with inflatable pop-up

Futuristic concept camper inspires two-story RV with inflatable pop-up
The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery incorporates some interesting ideas from the 2019 Hymer VisionVenture (2021 show vehicle pictured)
The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery incorporates some interesting ideas from the 2019 Hymer VisionVenture (2021 show vehicle pictured)
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The more compact Bürstner Lyseo GalleryLyseo models have only a storage space over the driver cab, but the Lyseo Gallery inflates the space into a full bedroom and mini-office
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The more compact Bürstner Lyseo models have only a storage space over the driver cab, but the Lyseo Gallery inflates the space into a full bedroom and mini-office (2021 show vehicle pictured)
The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery seats four on the drive and has a front dinette with L bench and swivel cab seats
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The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery seats four on the drive and has a front dinette with L bench and swivel cab seats
The Klarstein retractor hood helps ventilate the kitchen and retracts away when the cooking is complete
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The Klarstein retractor hood helps ventilate the kitchen and retracts away when the cooking is complete
The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery concept kitchen includes a hybrid gas/induction cooktop and a sink with large, home-like faucet (2021 show vehicle pictured)
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The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery concept kitchen includes a hybrid gas/induction cooktop and a sink with large, home-like faucet (2021 show vehicle pictured)
Using the push-button air compressor, the pop-up roof raises in 90 seconds with nearly no effort on the owner's part
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Using the push-button air compressor, the pop-up roof raises in 90 seconds with nearly no effort on the owner's part
This split photo shows the carpeted stairs on the left and the under-stair storage on the right
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This split photo shows the carpeted stairs on the left and the under-stair storage on the right
An entryway shoe compartment urges campers to take their shoes off before entering ... just like home
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An entryway shoe compartment urges campers to take their shoes off before entering ... just like home
Wireless mobile charging
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Wireless mobile charging
With its roof closed, the Lyseo Gallery sizes in like a non-pop-up Lyseo model ... it just offers more space at camp
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With its roof closed, the Lyseo Gallery sizes in like a non-pop-up Lyseo model ... it just offers more space at camp
The Lyseo Time A shows what a Bürstner alcove model looks like ... the Gallery looks like a nice option for those that don't like that big over-cab roof but want extra space
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The Lyseo Time A shows what a Bürstner alcove model looks like ... the Gallery looks like a nice option for those that don't like that big over-cab roof but want extra space
The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery incorporates some interesting ideas from the 2019 Hymer VisionVenture (2021 show vehicle pictured)
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The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery incorporates some interesting ideas from the 2019 Hymer VisionVenture (2021 show vehicle pictured)
View gallery - 11 images

In 2019, Hymer impressed many with a groundbreaking Sprinter B+ camper van concept it called VisionVenture. Among the concept's many boundary-pushing features were an inflatable pop-up roof and a staircase leading up to the second floor. Hymer Group brand Bürstner recaptures some of the sleek, innovative glory of the VisionVenture, integrating the inflatable roof and interior staircase into an ultramodern, two-floor Class C motorhome that invites travelers to "travel small, live large."

The roof on the 271-inch-long (689-cm) Lyseo Gallery isn't the first over-cab pop-top we've seen lately, or even the most extreme, but it definitely sets itself apart from the average above-cab sleeper. Bürstner explains that the model's pop-up alcove gives it interior space like the manufacturer's hard-alcove Class C motorhomes, but with the sleeker drive form of its semi-integrated Class B+/C vehicles.

With its roof closed, the Lyseo Gallery sizes in like a non-pop-up Lyseo model ... it just offers more space at camp
With its roof closed, the Lyseo Gallery sizes in like a non-pop-up Lyseo model ... it just offers more space at camp

Bürstner's existing semi-integrated Lyseo motorhomes don't offer alcove sleeping, using the compact space above the driver's cab as storage. But in the Lyseo Gallery, that space transforms into a roomy bedroom courtesy of the distinctive pop-up "Gallery Roof."

In place of the usual gas struts, the Gallery Roof relies on a different type of gas-assisted setup. At the push of a button, the built-in air compressor fills the vertical wall chambers, erecting the roof as they inflate into shape. It only takes about 90 seconds to go from lowered drive roof to upstairs bedroom. Once the roof is raised, a pressure sensor continuously monitors the inner air pressure, automatically filling the walls if pressure dips below a set level. Bürstner promises near-silent operation, but we'd have to hear it doing a 2 am refill to really believe that.

The more compact Bürstner Lyseo GalleryLyseo models have only a storage space over the driver cab, but the Lyseo Gallery inflates the space into a full bedroom and mini-office
The more compact Bürstner Lyseo models have only a storage space over the driver cab, but the Lyseo Gallery inflates the space into a full bedroom and mini-office (2021 show vehicle pictured)

The first thing we wondered when seeing the inflatable pop-top in near-production form is, what happens if you accidentally pierce or rip one of the walls? Will you not be sandwiched by the crashing roof panel?

Bürstner says that the walls are reinforced to prevent damage and leaks and also claims to have arranged the chambers in such a way that it will not suddenly collapse due to loss of pressure.

When Hymer first showed the inflatable roof concept on the VisionVenture, it pitched it as a way of increasing thermal insulation to create a more comfortable interior environment. Bürstner cites the same advantage, stressing that the Gallery Roof boosts insulation by way of the trapped air inside the walls while also holding up to UV light. And, of course, the waterproof material stands up to outside moisture.

Using the push-button air compressor, the pop-up roof raises in 90 seconds with nearly no effort on the owner's part
Using the push-button air compressor, the pop-up roof raises in 90 seconds with nearly no effort on the owner's part

Beyond the advertised benefits of the walls themselves, the greater Gallery Roof design raises straight up into the air, rather than tilting open like many other pop-tops. This creates vertical walls to increase interior volume and support a second-floor sitting height of 43 in (110 cm).

Bürstner adds to the overall homeyness of the upper bedroom with a side table/workstation, seat and device charging station. Instead of a ladder, it adds in the tiny home-like staircase. Cabinets integrated below the carpeted stair treads ensure that no space is wasted in the design.

The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery seats four on the drive and has a front dinette with L bench and swivel cab seats
The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery seats four on the drive and has a front dinette with L bench and swivel cab seats

Bürstner's homey design continues throughout the rest of the interior, where its designers worked hard to create a true home-away-from-home aesthetic. Recalling its own 2018 Harmony 3 concept, Bürstner seamlessly blends modern rounded furniture and fixtures with classic residential-grade equipment like wall lamps and a high-arched kitchen faucet. The kitchen also includes a long sink basin with integrated drying rack, gas/induction cooktop with retractable extractor hood, pop-up coffeemaker, electrically controlled drawers and a full side countertop.

The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery concept kitchen includes a hybrid gas/induction cooktop and a sink with large, home-like faucet (2021 show vehicle pictured)
The Bürstner Lyseo Gallery concept kitchen includes a hybrid gas/induction cooktop and a sink with large, home-like faucet (2021 show vehicle pictured)

The Lyseo Gallery also includes a large rear bathroom and a spacious front dinette.

For now, the Lyseo Gallery remains a pre-production show vehicle, but Bürstner plans to put it into production in 2022.

The quick video below doesn't provide a particularly thorough look at the Lyseo Gallery, but it does give a quick feel for what it's like to live aboard.

Bürstner Lyseo Gallery – the new show car

Source: Bürstner

View gallery - 11 images
2 comments
2 comments
BlueOak
First mod I’d make - fabricate safety support shafts to prevent that roof from collapsing on us in our sleep.

And, assuming the reason there is no large window in the front is due to requiring the support of those billows, It’s a shame can’t seem to figure it out.
wolf0579
Personally, I've never liked the hybrid of hard shell, and soft fabric in a shelter. If you're going to have a hard shell, great! Here in N. America, there are things out in the wilderness that will eat humans when available, without stopping to kill them first and I like that hard shell not to have weak spots. When you're tenting, you are far more vulnerable, and remain more aware of your surroundings.