Caravanning is truly multinational. We can buy vans from Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Turkey – and now Iceland. Broad Lane Leisure is importing the Mink 2.0 Sports Camper, a teardrop van designed by an Icelandic firm and made in Latvia. We went to view this distinctive mini-caravan, at Broad Lane’s Kenilworth branch.
Pitch and set-up
With its bright yellow trim, smart alloy wheels and large circular doors, the Mink is certain to turn heads on the road.
It should be a fairly stable tow, not just because of its MTPLM of 750kg, but also because it sits on a conventional Al-Ko chassis. The monocoque shell is solidly built, not at all like the fragile-looking tin boxes some mini-caravans can resemble.
The grab handles are cleverly integrated into the design, not just an afterthought. They are also at a much more ergonomic height than those of many conventional vans, especially the rear handles, which sit at the top corner. Yet with an overall height of 1.83m, you could still easily store this caravan in your garage.
There is marked attention to detail in the overall design – for example, as an optional extra (£410), you can have a cargo platform fitted at the front. This has a hole where you can fit a ball hitch fixture, so you can load towball-mounted bike and ski racks separately from the towball on your car. A £145 two-bike rack is another welcome option, as is the £815 105W solar panel that was fitted to our test model.
Those wheel arches are not just wheel arches, either: imprinted on both of them are mouldings for two coffee mugs. This makes sense, because you are likely to be doing a lot of your eating outside so you’ll need somewhere to rest a drink.
Finally, those vents to the right of the large windows don’t just expel air: they are designed to draw it inside as well.
Lounge
Many comments on Broad Lane’s TikTok site use the words ‘washing machine’ to describe the two round doors. As you climb in, it does feel as if you are off for a quick spin! But those doors include a window, so you certainly aren’t sealed away.
There is no lounge as such in the Mink. Inside, there is just a double bed. But it is a comfortable place to sit, with an artificial-leather headboard.
The interior is cosy, too, thanks to the monocoque shell, which also helps deaden external noise. The inside is warmed by a Webasto heater – a £1395 extra.
Right above you and stretching across most of the living area is an enormous panoramic window, perfect for stargazing, whatever the temperature outside.
Ambient lighting runs along both sides in here, and there is a mains socket in the middle of the rear wall. Heating controls are visible at the top of the headboard, but the controls for the electrics are hidden behind it. We found removing the headboard to access them was a two-person job.
Kitchen
The kitchen is outside, but the ‘boot’ you open to access it lifts so high that even this 6ft 6in tester could shelter under it. There is plenty of workspace, with an icebox you access on the left by lifting a trapdoor.
A single-burner gas hob is standard, but there is no sink or water system, even as an option. Nor is there a washroom or toilet.
Beds
The memory foam mattress is large and very comfortable. The heating system is designed so that while 70% of the heated air comes into the cabin, the rest is filtered under the bed, adding to the warmth inside.
Straddled transversely above the bottom end of the bed is a bunk, clearly designed for a small child – it is only 1.40 x 0.55m, and made of duck canvas on dowel rods. Many will likely to use it for storage.
The window blinds have to be folded down and attached with toggles which is a bit fiddly – but at least you know they are unlikely to shoot up unexpectedly.
Storage
Storage in the living area is fairly minimal, which is why we think that you’d want to make use of the bunk. There are two small felt pockets on both of the side walls, but apart from that, there’s only a small amount of fairly inaccessible space under the mattress. Things improve in the kitchen, with six shelves behind the workspace. Three are filled with plastic boxes that come as standard, while two others have felt baskets.
Remove the trapdoor on the right of the workspace, and you’ll find another storage area – three smaller plastic boxes with cleverly designed interlocking handles.
Verdict
The Mink is considerably more stylish than many mini-caravans we have seen, and feels better built, too. You also won’t need a huge car to tow it. However, the absence of any water system might limit the amount of time you want to spend in it.
The eye-catching caravan was also shortlisted for both the best caravan for couples and the best caravan for innovation categories at the Practical Caravan Awards 2022. The Awards saw our expert judging panel use our collective decades of experience within the industry to pick out the best caravan across a range of categories.
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The memory foam mattress is large and very comfortable
Technical Specifications
| Berth | 3 |
| MiRO | 490 kg |
| Payload | 260 kg |
| MTPLM | 750 kg |
| Interior Length | 2.81 m |
| Shipping Length | 4.12 m |
| Width | 2.08 m |
