At home on the highway

Well, there is a new category coming to the fore: the mid-30s motorhome fan. I am one of them and companies like Winnebago are out to cater for our enthusiasm.

With traditional motorhomes costing $100,000 and upwards, the price has always been prohibitive.

But Emu Plains-based Winnebago is busy at the drawing board designing a new model for younger fans which should retail around $69,000. However, younger buyers are notoriously fickle and the devil is in the detail.

But if Winnebago's best-selling Free Spirit model is anything to go by, it is on the right track. Although the Free Spirit is still in the $100,000 region, it represents stage one of the evolution. Built on a Fiat Ducato chassis with a 2.8-litre turbo diesel, 6.7m long and almost 3m tall, it is about as large a vehicle as can be driven on a car licence.

Inside, the attention to detail makes it very modern indeed.

A stainless-steel gas hob and grill, extractor hood, and spacious fridge are state-of-the-art.

The cupboards are stylish and modern, featuring Italian wood. A flat-screen LCD TV brings it bang up to date.

Long stints on the road require comfort and the first thing that jumps out at you is the space. The bathroom, often one to suffer in the space-race, is surprisingly large with a separate curtained-off shower.

There is the usual bed over the driver's cabin and a table that folds flat for another.

The Free Spirit can also have two bunks at the back for the kids.

Underfloor storage accessed via exterior panels gave more than enough space. We stowed several suitcases and a surfboard without touching the sides.

The challenge for Winnebago will be to convert the lessons learned from its winning fleet of cruisers into a cool cachet for a new market. If it wins the hearts then the dollars will follow.

The mid-30s market has shown its willingness to pay premium prices for the right look and feel, as proved by the pricey new retro Mini and VW's revamped Beetle.

So far, the omens look good. The Free Spirit had a positive reaction from campers we showed it off to in Byron Bay.

"All the wood in here makes it feel like a yacht," said one.

Others were stunned by the comfort and the flat-screen TV but wanted more modern-looking cloth on the seats.

But everyone agreed on one thing: they all wanted one. So the traditional hurdle that might have put younger people off the idea in the past is gone. Now the race is on to put the right new kid on the block for the motorhomers of the future.

Fully laden, the Free Spirit carries 91 litres of water, more than enough for several days' free camping.

It also packs enough power from its batteries to enable you to stay comfortable in the wild without worrying about flickering lights. Staying warm off the beaten track is taken care of with a diesel heater which runs off the fuel tank. In campsites, the hook-ups are all simple and painless.

Once mains water is connected, all water appliances, including the shower, run with mains pressure — a godsend if you want to avoid those communal shower blocks. The power cable is simple to slot in, meaning as much TV as you can handle.

The picture is pin-sharp thanks to a roof-mounted electric aerial.

Fuel economy can be an issue. Filling the tank costs $70 and it took 2 1/2 tanks for the 800km trip from Sydney to Byron Bay.

Fast facts

Winnebago

Winnebago Industries has been operating since 1965 and is the largest manufacturer of motorhomes in Australia

It has no links to the American company of the same name

It makes no less than 70 models, the largest being the Classic, which can cost $500,000 and more

There are 170 people working at Winnebago's Emu Plains plant, making about 600 RVs a year