Britz EVolve: A guilt-free holiday?

This story first appeared in the May issue of AutoTalk – CLICK HERE to download the magazine FREE

If you’ve made the jump over to electric, returning to a fossil-fuelled vehicle is not always the nicest experience.

For a start, you’ve become used to the lower noise levels and smooth progress, there are no smelly hands after a fill-up – and having to burn carbon for progress when you know it is just not necessary can be a little irritating.

Until now, if you wanted to take a motorhome holiday – arguably one of the best ways to see New Zealand – you had no choice but to grab a vehicle that ran on diesel.

Tourism Holdings Limited, our biggest motorhome rental company with its prominent Britz and Maui brands, decided to do something about it – working with its Action Motorbodies subsidiary and LDV to create the Britz EVolve, one of the first electric motorhomes available in the world.

And while initially a concept, the EVolve has been put into production – 12 have been built – and you can rent one now.

They are not expensive either, the two-berth vehicle costing around the same to rent as a Maui two-berth.Of course, take into account that you don’t have to pay for fuel, or even fast charging (it is included in the rental), or Road User Charges, as there are none.

It is not as simple as switching a camper from diesel to electric, there are compromises to be made.

Well one major one, and that is range.

A diesel vehicle will go 500+ km on a tank, while a standard EV80 around 180km.

The EVolve, with its vast new body, a shower, toilet, kitchen and water tanks weighs a lot more.

Britz recommends a range of 120km between charges.

To fix this, they’ve developed two routes, one in the North Island around the Waikato and Coromandel, and one in the South Island, from Christchurch around Central Otago.

Around the routes are campgrounds especially prepared for the EVolve, with sites fitted with both house power and an EV charger.

With a 7kW onboard charger, the LDV fills up overnight.

There is no gas on board the camper – this is entirely fossil fuel free – so you need to be plugged in to cook and shower.

Freedom camping is not ideal for this vehicle.

When Britz gave EVtalk the chance to take the Evolve for a spin, we said “heck yeah” and planned a five-day trip on part of the North Island loop.

Day one – Auckland to Miranda

Our first day on the road started mid-afternoon with a visit to Britz’s base near Auckland Airport.

A quick run through of the vehicle – and a bit of paperwork – and we were on our way.

The van comes ready to go, topped up with electrons, bedding and water.
Before leaving we loaded the fridge – which runs continuously from the house batteries – with food for the trip.

Rather than head south, we had to first pop into Newmarket to visit Darleen Tana at Bikes and Barbers.

She loaned us a couple of e-bikes for the trip, a Smartmotion Pacer and Smartmotion X-City.

The EVolve features a rear-mounted bike rack for two – although it should be noted the maximum weight per bike is 30kg.

Why take bikes? Our theory was that when the camper was charging, e-bikes would be a great little satellite EV for shopping trips and exploring.

We were very right, with the bikes really making the trip.

After loading up, we turned south (finally) and cruised down the Southern Motorway, then off to the Miranda Holiday Park.

We checked in and grabbed the swipe card for the charger.

We plugged into the type 2 charger, plugged in house power, and hit the hot pool.

Travelled: 97km.Charging: Just overnight.

Day two – Miranda to Rotorua
After a great night’s sleep on the double/queen size bed – which is created by lowering the dining table – we cooked breakfast on the camper’s induction stove before heading off.
First, we headed for Morrinsville where we left the van at the ChargeNet DC charger at New World while grabbing a quick lunch with friends.
ChargeNet units currently are a slight inconvenience with the vehicle as the cable is not long enough and you need to park on an angle.

With the Mamaku Ranges ahead we topped up to a little higher than the recommended 80%.
We didn’t need to, as despite the steep incline gentle driving got us over the hills with mileage to spare.
We arrived at the Rotorua Top 10 Holiday Park, where the staff were intrigued by their first EV – so we showed them how it worked.

Off came the Smartmotion bikes, and we headed to town for errands, and to grab a bite at the tourist mecca’s fabulous night markets.
Here we picked up the most Kiwi of bike punctures – the pin from an Anzac poppy.

Travelled: 164km.
Charged: DC charging, then overnight.

Day three – Rotorua to Waitomo
First thing in the morning we grabbed another hot pool soak before heading into town for breakfast and a puncture repair from the great team at Happy Ewe Coffee and Bike Repairs.
We loaded up the van, and stored our type 2 cable and house power cable in one of the handy side storage units on the van and headed out for the day.

First stop was the Redwoods on the edge of town, again to warm ourselves up with a blast on the Smartmotions.
For two people not used to running up and down trails, the electric boost of an e-bike is a real help and encourages you to get out there and get active.

We then made the short hop over to Tokoroa, where we again found a New World housed ChargeNet unit for a fill-up.
We pushed on next on our longest single leg, to Waitomo.

The twisty backroads we chose worked well with the EVolve’s performance.
It will do 100kmh, but really it prefers 80-100kmh.
It also makes it clear how heavy it is around corners – it’s not unstable, but likes a gentle hand.
Be kind and pull over for others to pass.

On arrival in Waitomo, we experienced the only charging we had to pay for.
The Waitomo Top 10 Holiday Park is a lovely spot but asks an additional $15 to use their type two charger.
Plus, their charger is on a sloped site, and on grass rather than a hard surface.
Paying for charging is a broader debate, but it should be noted this was the only park that did so.

Travelled: 163km Charged: DC charging, then overnight ($15).

Day four – Waitomo to Raglan
After a wander around Waitomo, and a shower in the camper (it is warm, and the pressure good), we had to deal with the less fun part of camping – waste.

The toilet and tanks are relatively easy to empty but can be a little wiffy.
Thankfully gloves are provided!

We set out on a relatively short run today, just north to Raglan.

We will admit we did not plan on going to a campsite that night, we had Airbnb booked, so on arrival in town, we filled the van at the WEL charger on the main street.

It is a tight squeeze here, but the van does fit.
Just!

Again the e-bikes came out and made short work of the hills in and out of town.

A night out without having to worry about parking – just chain up to the nearest bike stand.

Travelled: 104km.
Charged: DC charging
Day five – Raglan to Miranda
Overnight it rained.
It rained a lot, so the day became part of a comfortable trip home.
The Smartmotions were put away for the last time, and we headed into town for a little more breakfast before turning back across the Waikato for a top up at Morrinsville, then north to Miranda.
We returned there because this site makes tremendous sense as a gateway in and out of Auckland for the EVolve, and their EV-prepped spot is just lovely.

Plus, hot pools.
Who does not love a hot pool?
Travelled: 144km.
Charged: DC charger and overnight.

Day six – Miranda to Auckland
Our last day was a reverse of the first, a slow start before a trip to Newmarket to return the bikes (thanks Darleen), and then out to Britz.
Drop off was easy thanks to the express return package – which I highly recommend.

So what did we think of the EVolve experience? It is great.
Britz’s two touring routes look great, but I think anyone with a little EV knowledge can easily venture far further afield.
Yes, more range would be excellent, though we probably travelled as far per day as we would really want to and still have a relaxed holiday.

So if you are considering a getaway, consider giving the EVolve a go.
It is fun, it is practical, and yes, it is totally guilt-free.