What was once a concept that appeared to have no chance whatsoever of making it to production is now officially a factory camper van family. We speak of Nissan's MyRoom, which moved from concept to full-on production reality earlier this year and is now spawning a smaller version, the NV200 MyRoom. The new, little camper vanette rolls all the homey, stress-melting tranquility of the original Caravan MyRoom into a smaller, more maneuverable mini-camping package. And it goes up for sale this month.
Nissan originally developed the MyRoom concept as one in a pair of show vans developed for the 2022 Tokyo Auto Salon, essentially Japan's SEMA show. Perhaps it was the debut venue, perhaps the fact that the original MyRoom Concept appeared ill-equipped to actually do anything beyond sit on a show floor and look cool. Maybe it was the MyRoom show-mate's outlandish feature set, what with its electric fireplace and digital wood panel display. Or maybe it was the fact that the latter concept, the Caravan Mountain Base, definitely appeared to have more consideration put into it, leaving the MyRoom feeling like an afterthought.
Whatever it was, the MyRoom concept felt about as far away from a production vehicle as any weird concept car or SEMA build ever has. We didn't give the possibility of production more than a fleeting split-second thought.
But then Nissan did it, green-lighting the MyRoom for production as a limited edition Caravan package in 2023, over myriad other concept campers and leisure vans of the time that seemed more practical and straightforward. Those others seem destined to remain mired in conceptual perpetuity while the MyRoom has moved beyond limited edition and become a fixed Caravan model option.
Nissan teased the smaller NV200 Vanette MyRoom, a Japanese market-only release, before it officially announced the August launch of the Caravan MyRoom, or exhibited yet another camper van layout a few weeks thereafter. However, it held back full details and photos until announcing the mini-camper's December 2024 launch. As you can tell from the proper name, if not the photos, the Vanette is Japan's version of the NV200 that Nissan discontinued for the US market back in 2021.
If you thought the NV200 made an adorably tiny camper van base while it was in the US, it's worth noting that the Japanese version is just over a foot (32 cm) shorter, measuring in at a properly tiny 173 in (440 cm) long – not quite "kei camping" but certainly a small mini-camper by Western van standards.
The diminutive size hasn't stopped Japanese camper converters (or European ones) from turning the NV200 Vanette into a proper camper van with pop-up roof, kitchen and more, but Nissan holds back on any full-time RVing ambitions by applying the simpler MyRoom treatment to the van. The package doesn't include a kitchen or any kind of plumbing, turning the Vanette into a five-seat passenger vehicle with overnighting and light dining capabilities – more a light camper or a sleeper van than a full camper van.
The Vanette MyRoom follows the Caravan MyRoom formula closely, using the same bidirectional rear bench to flip between forward-facing van configuration and rear-facing hotel room-inspired lounge. A hovering tabletop rests on the side supports to serve as a dining table, coffee table and mobile workstation. It can slide forward and backward as needed. Pop open the doors and immerse yourself in the scenery while enjoying your first morning cup of coffee or a meal.
At night, Nissan's rear bench folds flat to create a double bed with help from removable mattress-extension panels at the rear of the van. Nissan stresses that its bench is specially crafted to provide firm seating support during the ride and supple, sofa-like cushion when lounging and sleeping.
To add to the calm, natural ambiance, Nissan uses the same style of woodgrain paneling as in the Caravan MyRoom, albeit reworked for the smaller interior. A set of compartments integrated into that paneling houses an electrical socket, lighting remote control, space to store the headrests when converting the rear bench to camp mode, and general storage space. As on the larger Caravan MyRoom, Nissan offers the Leaf battery-driven power station as an option for standalone off-grid power.
Nissan is now selling the front-wheel-drive Vanette MyRoom starting at ¥4,643,100 (approx. US$30,950) and the AWD version at ¥4,967,600 ($33,125). A cushier "Comfort Suspension" comes standard on the FWD model.
Source: Nissan Japan
