Automotive

Mercedes camper van blows van life open with spacious, motorhome-style interior

Mercedes camper van blows van life open with spacious, motorhome-style interior
Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
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Enjoying the rear bed in the Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
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Enjoying the rear bed in the Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
The new Yucon is based on the third-generation Mercedes Sprinter and is arguably the most inventive new Sprinter camper van we've seen
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The new Yucon is based on the third-generation Mercedes Sprinter and is arguably the most inventive new Sprinter camper van we've seen
The pedestal table creates a more formal vis-a-vis dining/seating group in the 7.0 Lounge
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The pedestal table creates a more formal vis-a-vis dining/seating group in the 7.0 Lounge
A peek inside the Yucon 7.0 Lounge bathroom
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A peek inside the Yucon 7.0 Lounge bathroom
Enjoying evening cocktails in the Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
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Enjoying evening cocktails in the Frankia 7.0 Lounge
The Frankia Yucon creates the start of a relaxing camping adventure
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The Frankia Yucon creates the start of a relaxing camping adventure
The smooth flow and wide open feel of the Frankia 7.0 Lounge is evident in the photos
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The smooth flow and wide open feel of the Frankia 7.0 Lounge is evident in the photos
The Frankia Yucon 7.0's slide-out table works as a side table, coffee table and more
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The Frankia Yucon 7.0's slide-out table works as a side table, coffee table and more
An optional package upgrades the 7.0 Lounge kitchen with the inset stove and swing-away worktop, pull-out countertop extension and more
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An optional package upgrades the 7.0 Lounge kitchen with the inset stove and swing-away worktop, pull-out countertop extension and more
The 7.0 Lounge has a forward wet bathroom with retractable toilet
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The 7.0 Lounge has a forward wet bathroom with retractable toilet
Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
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Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
The media console to the left has a TV area, smartphone charging, bookshelf, wardrobe and more
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The media console to the left has a TV area, smartphone charging, bookshelf, wardrobe and more
The Frankia Yucon 6.0 is a little better for city dwellers thanks to its shorter dimensions
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The Frankia Yucon 6.0 is a little better for city dwellers thanks to its shorter dimensions
Frankia 7.0 Lounge floor plan
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Frankia 7.0 Lounge floor plan
The 7.0 Lounge's super high-roof creates more than 6 feet of headroom throughout the van
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The 7.0 Lounge's super high-roof creates more than 6 feet of headroom throughout the van
Frankia Yucon 6.0
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Frankia Yucon 6.0
Launched last year, the base third-gen Mercedes Sprinter brings some of the latest technologies to camper vans
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Launched last year, the base third-gen Mercedes Sprinter brings some of the latest technologies to camper vans
The 6.0 is smaller but it still offers plenty of rear storage
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The 6.0 is smaller but it still offers plenty of rear storage
Frankia Yucon 6.0 bathroom
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Frankia Yucon 6.0 bathroom
The Yucon 6.0's table can also mount outside
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The Yucon 6.0's table can also mount outside 
The fridge at the end of the kitchen block can open from inside or out
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The fridge at the end of the kitchen block can open from inside or out
The Yucon 6.0 floor plan here shows the kitchen on the opposite side, as compared to the photos, so perhaps Frankia published the wrong floor plan or is working on another version, perhaps for right hand-drive markets
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The Yucon 6.0 floor plan here shows the kitchen on the opposite side, as compared to the photos, so perhaps Frankia published the wrong floor plan or is working on another version, perhaps for right hand-drive markets
Cooking breakfast in the Frankia Yucon 6.0
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Cooking breakfast in the Frankia Yucon 6.0
The diagonal table provides an efficient front space for work and dining, no need for a second set of seats
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The diagonal table provides an efficient front space for work and dining, no need for a second set of seats
The rear twin beds let Yucon 6.0 campers snuggle up or sleep separately
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The rear twin beds let Yucon 6.0 campers snuggle up or sleep separately 
A look back from the front of the Yucon 6.0
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A look back from the front of the Yucon 6.0
The Yucon 6.0 headboards adjust up to create chaise lounge-style seating
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The Yucon 6.0 headboards adjust up to create chaise lounge-style seating
The 7.0 Lounge's raised lounge floor lays the way for an underfloor storage compartment for things like outdoor table and chairs
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The 7.0 Lounge's raised lounge floor lays the way for an underfloor storage compartment for things like outdoor table and chairs
Hideaway compartments in the 7.0 Lounge media console offer mobile device storage and charging
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Hideaway compartments in the 7.0 Lounge media console offer mobile device storage and charging
Coat hooks provide a homey touch
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Coat hooks provide a homey touch
Frankia calls its new vans "micro liners," compact camper van versions of large, luxurious motorhomes
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Frankia calls its new vans "micro liners," compact camper van versions of large, luxurious motorhomes
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Germany's Frankia doesn't just name its new camper van "Yucon" to send visions of epic trips amidst colossal mountains and glacial turquoise dancing through your head. Naming the Sprinter van after Canada's sparsely populated northwestern territory also emphasizes the sheer feeling of size and space inside. With the Yucon, Frankia packs a roomy living area derived from its larger motorhomes within the compact driving footprint of a camper van. Clever space-saving features slide and swivel throughout this "microliner."

Frankia has traditionally stayed on the motorhome side of the market, building large Class A and C RVs atop chassis from Mercedes and other makes. That experience shines through in the brand's first camper van, as Frankia strives to give the Yucon a Class C feel inside the factory walls of a third-gen Sprinter van. The new van line promotes the idea of enjoying trips "from the inside out," relishing your time between the Mercedes badges as much as or even more than you enjoy exploring the world outside the van.

The Frankia Yucon creates the start of a relaxing camping adventure
The Frankia Yucon creates the start of a relaxing camping adventure

The #vanlife movement seems to be very much the driver of Frankia's camper van campaign, and both Yucon models are two-sleepers perfect for youthful couples bounding from place to place. Each floor plan puts emphasis on the rear bedroom area, as if carefully arranged to serve as window dressing for Instagram photos of underwear-clad, golden-haired females mesmerized by orange sunlight spilling across the ocean beyond the rear double doors.

Frankia doesn't simply support van lifers by making living in a van possible but by making it downright comfy and enjoyable. The king of that category is the flagship 274-in (697-cm) Yucon 7.0 Lounge, which finds its legs on a Mercedes Sprinter 170 with super high roof. Loaded with space-optimizing innovations, this van follows directly in the footsteps of the FutureConcept layout that Frankia experimented with at last year's Düsseldorf Caravan Salon, abandoning the conventional camper van formula of rear bed-central kitchen/bathroom-front dining lounge for something more spacious and homey.

The Frankia Yucon 7.0's slide-out table works as a side table, coffee table and more
The Frankia Yucon 7.0's slide-out table works as a side table, coffee table and more

Frankia designers worked extensively on the eponymous lounge in the rear, where occupants enjoy an L-shaped sofa and plenty of elbow room. The versatile layout allows for both vis-a-vis seating around the removable pedestal table and multi-person sofa seating facing the passenger-side entertainment unit, much the way one would do in a residential living room or TV room.

The large, full-height media console includes a TV stand, bookshelf with retention straps, and hidden mobile charging compartments below hinged surfaces. It also conceals a pull-out table that serves as a handy coffee table for cocktails, game-day snacks and more. A wardrobe is integrated into the same wall console.

Enjoying the rear bed in the Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge
Enjoying the rear bed in the Frankia Yucon 7.0 Lounge

Frankia's lounge layout appears to create a much more spacious and home-like feel than other camper van rear compartments, but it does come with one downside. The passenger-side media console cuts into the convertible bed width, so the 53 x 79-in (135 x 200-cm) longitudinal bed sleeps narrower than it needs to in a van load area that stretches up to 70 inches (179 cm) across. For comparison, the Winnebago Boldt Q70 BL, another new-Sprinter camper van with convertible longitudinal bed, offers 66 in (168 cm) of bed width. We do like Frankia's lounge better than the dual-sofa layout of the Boldt, though.

Frankia raises the 7.0 Lounge's floor, which serves both to separate the living area from the more task-oriented central and front sections of the van and to create underfloor storage. As shown in the photo below, the rearmost bench cushion (the foot of the 'L') retracts away, opening up the lounge floor for through-loading. Owners will have to lift items up and into the rear of the van, but there's plenty of length to store them and available tie-downs to help ratchet everything into place.

The smooth flow and wide open feel of the Frankia 7.0 Lounge is evident in the photos
The smooth flow and wide open feel of the Frankia 7.0 Lounge is evident in the photos

Stepping down into the kitchen, you'll notice the main cooking block has jumped over to the opposite side of the van from where it'd usually be in a European camper van. By keeping the larger structural elements on the driver side, Frankia adds continuity to the spacious lounge floor with a wide floor that runs from passenger seat to kitchen. Available floor tracks can be installed on this floor section, securing down cargo or up to two optional belted seats. The kitchen itself is stocked with a dual-burner stove, sink and 90L fridge/freezer.

Frankia 7.0 Lounge floor plan
Frankia 7.0 Lounge floor plan

Packaged between that kitchen block and the driver's seat, the wet bathroom includes a toilet, shower, countertop with built-in sink, mirror and storage shelves. The toilet retracts to increase shower floor space.

As attractive as the Yucon 7.0 Lounge's roomy interior is, Frankia's betting that some buyers will prefer more maneuverability and less wheelbase from their Sprinter camper, so it also launches the 233-in (593-cm) Yucon 6.0, based on a Sprinter 144. This floor plan gets compacted down but maintains a feeling of openness and separated space.

The Frankia Yucon 6.0 is a little better for city dwellers thanks to its shorter dimensions
The Frankia Yucon 6.0 is a little better for city dwellers thanks to its shorter dimensions

The rear lounge is noticeably lost in the model name and is also lost inside the 6.0 van, giving way to left and right twin beds. The rear floor is still raised, however, giving the area the feel of a Class C bedroom. Central cushions fill out some of the space between the beds, creating a larger bed for two. So the van is good for adventurous duos who want to get close as well as those who want to retire to their own beds. The headboards fold up, useful for both sitting up in bed and clearing more storage space in the load area behind them.

The rear twin beds let Yucon 6.0 campers snuggle up or sleep separately
The rear twin beds let Yucon 6.0 campers snuggle up or sleep separately 

The central kitchen and bathroom in the 6.0 are the most conventional things about either of the Yucon interiors. The kitchen block with dual-burner stove, 69L compressor fridge and sink stands right next to the sliding entry, and the fridge can be accessed from inside or out thanks to a dual-directional door. The bathroom compartment with shower, sink and toilet finds home behind the driver's seat.

While the middle of the van is conventional, the front strays from the norm once again, losing the rear bench typical in a front dinette. Instead, the retractable table extends out diagonally, putting a dining surface in front of the swiveled-around cab seats. The loss of the rear dinette bench makes room for the longitudinal beds in back and just makes sense in a two-person van — why waste space with two seats you won't use? The table can also secure to the outside wall of the kitchen area for al fresco dining.

The diagonal table provides an efficient front space for work and dining, no need for a second set of seats
The diagonal table provides an efficient front space for work and dining, no need for a second set of seats

Frankia was clearly thinking of #vanlife when it created these vans, but judging from its photos, it's aiming less for the twenty-something, post-college wanderlusting set so famous on Instagram and YouTube and more for older professionals and retirees willing and able to pony up €69,900+ (approx. US$77,550+). That base price is for the Yucon 6.0 with 3.5-tonne chassis and 112-hp four-cylinder CDI engine, and the Yucon 7.0 Lounge starts at €79,900 ($88,650) on that same Sprinter chassis. The 4.1-tonne models start at €81,600 ($90,525) and €91,600 ($101,625), respectively, bringing a variety of additional goodies, including a 161-hp CDI engine, 7G-Tronic transmission, 7-in MBUX infotainment system and rear parking camera.

The 6.0 and 7.0 Lounge each comes standard with a 100L fresh water tank, 60Ah lithium-iron-phosphate battery, Truma Combi D6E heater/hot water boiler and dimmable LED lighting. Along with familiar options like engine upgrades, all-wheel drive, solar charging and TV set-ups, Frankia offers some interesting ways to enhance the interior, including the floor rails and extra drive seats mentioned above and a kitchen enhancement package with pull-out countertop extension, inset stove below hinged worktop panel and coffee corner with dedicated 230V outlet for the 7.0 Lounge model.

Frankia calls its new vans "micro liners," compact camper van versions of large, luxurious motorhomes
Frankia calls its new vans "micro liners," compact camper van versions of large, luxurious motorhomes

Frankia will present the new Yucon at the 2019 Düsseldorf Caravan Salon, and we'll be stopping by to see just how spacious and livable those new layouts feel in person.

Source: Frankia

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