Benimar Amphitryon 957: Spacious touring vehicle

In Belgium, Benimar is one of the sales hits when it comes to new motorhomes. The formula is simple: offer a lot at an attractive price. The motorhome manufacturer from Peniscola, Spain, succeeds well in this. We take a look at the Benimar Amphitryon 957.

For model year 2020, Benimar is renewing its integrated motorhomes and they immediately get a new name: Amphitryon. You can choose from three versions, 742 cm long, each with a different bed: there is a version with a centrally placed queen-size bed, one with traditional single beds and this one: the Benimar Amphitryon 957 which has a full-width bathroom behind the single beds.

Amphitryon Exterior

Benimar builds the Amphitryon on a Fiat Ducato and uses the wide-track light chassis for this. Standard, the integrated motorhome is equipped with the newly developed 140 hp Multijet-2 diesel engine, which is equipped with AdBlue technology to meet strict emission standards. We would personally order the optional 160 hp version, supplemented with the completely new 9-speed automatic transmission – a dream to drive. The construction of the Amphitryon consists of smooth polyester sandwich panels with styrofoam insulation material in between. The motorhome has flush-mounted Seitz windows and a nice wide entrance door.

Sleek, modern interior

For the interior, Benimar combines a dark wood color with many white surfaces, such as on the cabinet doors of the overhead cabinets, the walls, and the front of the refrigerator. This creates a sleek, modern interior and, together with the color scheme of curtains, seat and back cushions, it provides a contemporary, warm atmosphere.

Living lounge

Directly opposite the entrance, we see a narrow kitchen unit and, in line with it, one of the two side benches which, together with the divisible table, form the living lounge. This layout gives a great sense of space, but there are also disadvantages: to travel with four people, you have to convert each bench separately, after which two extra seats (with headrests and seat belts) are created in the direction of travel – for those who rarely travel with more than two people, this is of course a negligible problem.

The narrow kitchen unit offers space for a three-burner gas stove under a glass cover plate and a sink, both placed far back. This provides sufficient workspace at the front of the counter for cooking. Opposite the kitchen is a tall Thetford refrigerator with a capacity of 141 liters, with a convenient pull-out pantry next to it.

Sleeping area

The bedroom can be closed off with a sliding door. Here we see two single beds against the side walls with a walkway in between. Their low position means you don't have to climb in and out of bed, and it's handy that you can raise both headrests – this gives you a wonderful chill-out spot during the day to read something.

Drawers for holiday items are built under both sofa beds, and against the ceiling, we also see spacious overhead cabinets with open shelves – handy for small items you want to have within reach. A special feature of this layout is the bathroom, which is located at the very back, across the full width of the camper. To the right is the spacious shower, to the left is the toilet, again with plenty of storage space.

Installations

The Benimar Amphitryon 957 comes standard with a Truma Combi-4 for heating and hot water – for a camper of this length, we would prefer a Combi-6E, with a higher capacity and where the 'E' addition means you can also heat with electricity when connected to shore power. You then also have permanent hot water in the integrated boiler. Fortunately, with Benimar, you can also opt for the optional Alde liquid heating: the crème de la crème. The waste water tank is located above the rear axle – we would have preferred the fresh water tank between the front and rear wheels instead of at the very back, for stability reasons.

Conclusion

The Benimar Amphitryon 957 is a wonderfully spacious touring vehicle and offers a great sense of space due to its layout. Single beds are popular in campers, also because they can be linked – which is not possible with this layout. But it does give you a dream of a bathroom, which then comes at the expense of a garage. If you still want to cuddle up together and have your bikes inside, then you should choose the Amphitryon 967.

Pros & Cons

+ modern look
+ spacious bathroom
– no garage

Technical data

CHASSIS/ENGINE
Chassis Fiat Ducato low wide-track chassis
Engine 140 Multijet-2 Euro 6d-temp diesel engine
Maximum power kW/hp 104kW/140hp at 3,500 rpm
Maximum torque 350Nm at 1,400 rpm

DIMENSIONS
Length: 742 cm
Width: 237 cm
Height: 295 cm
Wheelbase: 403.5 cm
Headroom: 212 cm

WEIGHTS
Maximum mass: 3,500 kg
Ready-to-drive weight: 3,050 kg
Payload: 450 kg

SEATING* & SLEEPING
Number of seats/berths: 4/4
Rear beds: 195x80cm and 199x80cm
Drop-down bed 200×140 cm
(*seats with seat belts)

Price approximately € 91,700
More info: www.benimar.es

Benimar Offer

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