In the past, we've seen Volkner edge out its few competitors for "most expensive motorhome of the Düsseldorf Caravan Salon" honors with stretched luxury homes as "modestly" priced as $1.7 million. This year, it leaves the competition in the dust, going all out on the priciest, most over-the-top motorhome package on the show floor. It slides a 1,480-hp Bugatti Chiron aboard its $2.4-million Performance S motorhome and treats owners of the elaborate ultra-luxury/hypercar vehicle experience to a lavishly appointed abode complete with custom Burmester audio system carefully tailored to the mobile space.
For more than a decade, Volkner has been wowing the Düsseldorf crowds with the sporty roadsters and supercars it manages to squeeze between the axles of its huge motorhomes. This year, it's really upped its own game.
The $3-million Bugatti Chiron actually costs more than the Performance S motorhome itself and packs more than triple the horsepower of Volkner's 430-hp 18-ton 39-footer. We preferred the Porsche 911 GT2 Volkner brought to the 2018 Caravan Salon not a full year after the car's Nürburgring record, but there's no denying that the Chiron and Performance S team is an absolutely stunning package, a pairing of extreme, over-the-top motorized engineering like few we'll ever see.
While something like a Porsche or Bugatti looks most impressive in Volkner's slide-out central garage, the company stresses that the garage can also be used for more everyday alternatives, like jet skis, motorcycles, ATVs or ebikes. At camp, the slide-out platform doubles as a front porch sheltered by the awning above.
The Chiron may be the most powerful, expensive adornment on this year's Performance S, but the interior is still the most critical – no sense in hauling your seven-figure hypercar around in a seven-figure motorhome if it isn't actually spacious, comfortable and luxurious.
Volkner's blindingly glossy "BrilliantDark" interior finish isn't our favorite, but the dark, multi-tone look of the hand-laid Macassar wood veneers blends quite nicely with the cream-colored paint and upholstery. It also makes a natural wood casing for the massive speakers of the premium audio system Volkner and Burmester optimized for the Performance S cabin. Volkner pins the cost of that sound system alone at €300,000 (approx. $354,000), adding to the display model's pricy, over-the-top intrigue.
And here we foolishly thought the new Dembell motorhome might be the most expensive on show. With the Chiron, Burmester audio and host of other upgrades, the Performance S attracting eyeballs and feet to Volkner's 2021 booth leaps from a cool €2,035,000 ($2.4 million) to a package total of €6.5-million ($7.7 million) euros. That makes it a shoe-in for the show's most expensive motorhome title, as identified by the Caravan Salon media team.
Actually, the tastemakers at Volkner probably laughed themselves silly when newcomer Dembell advertised a Ferrari California as a vehicle compatible with the largest garage on its ultra-premium triple-axle Class A. The entry-level California isn't even in production anymore, and when it was, it sold for a fraction of the Chiron ... and less than the cost of Volkner's Burmester audio system alone.
Overall, we still prefer the heavily yacht-influenced look of Dembell's interior, but Volkner adds some similar touches in the Performance S' glass doors, vessel sinks and ambient wall sconces. The floor plan includes an L-shaped kitchen behind the front dining lounge, a full-width dry bathroom and a rear bedroom with raised island bed. The slide-out on the driver side adds plenty of space to walk and move around throughout.
The Performance S show model brings plenty of onboard power thanks to a lithium battery bank, 2,000-W rooftop solar array and 8-kW generator. Additional standard and available Performance S amenities include a full kitchen with induction cooktop, oven, microwave and espresso machine, a wine cabinet, a computer workstation, and a multi-zone heating system with four individual heaters.
Volkner has raised the supercar-carrying motorhome game to new heights this year, but it's not the only marque showing how perfect a match modern supercars and massive ultra-luxury motorhomes are. Below, Morelo shows its wares alongside the new Maserati MC20.
The Düsseldorf Caravan Salon opened on Friday and runs through September 5. We'll continue looking at show highlights in the days ahead.
Source: Volkner and Caravan Salon