Spacious, light-filled and dotted with classy touches, this is an elegant van, complete with high-spec additions.
Ten years ago I attended the Nova Caravan launch into the Aussie market at a small factory in Campbellfield. At the time Nova set out to build quality vans for customers and it’s been their mission ever since.
Nova, a decade on, still holds true to its ‘quality’ motto and the new 2016 Bravo is proof of that – it’s a quality van at a good price.
Nova offers plenty of options to up-spec each Bravo, while pricing starts at $55,500 and goes up according to size and spec. The Bravo has six layouts from 16ft 6” to 18ft 6” and we reviewed the latter…
Peek Inside
While I could start with the full mechanicals and the body, it’s the interior of this van that grabbed my attention. It’s classy and very practical. The white walls contrast well with the dark timber doors around the lower half of the van, while the flashy green-tinged cupboard doors overhead are a nice touch. The contrasting seat trims and bench tops, plus the matching table top really stand out – Nova has definitely got a good styling guru on its books.
Entry to the Bravo is via a door mounted towards the rear, between the ensuite and the dining/kitchen area. The ensuite, running across the back of the van, is a good-sized space encompassing a swivel toilet, shower, washing machine, plenty of storage and a full-width mirror.
This dining space is comfortable for two to four people and the table adds extra bench space for cooking and prep work, if required. While the kitchen space isn’t huge, it’s certainly practical. Cooking is handled via an electric/gas cook top with grill and a microwave is located above the sink in the overhead cupboards. Mounted between the kitchen and the bedroom is a Thetford 184 litre fridge.
A standard island mounted bed dominates the bedroom at the front of the van, surrounded by a warren of storage, perfect for everyday touring.
The battery and electricals (including wiring for the optional solar panels) are located under the bed for ease of access.
Interior extras include air conditioning, a water filter, plus LED lighting throughout. An entertainment system is also hooked into the flat screen TV and there are hatches in the roof with plenty of windows to make the interior light and breezy.
All the interior hangs together because of the mechanical package. A Meranti timber frame is mounted on a 6-inch Duragal chassis. The body is wrapped in aluminium cladding with some very loud and flash decals to make it stand out. Up front is a new plastic moulded section which brings a 2016 update to the look of the Nova.
Our review Bravo features a tandem load sharing leaf spring suspension system, while the axles are fitted with 15” alloy rims, 10” electric brakes and an ALKO ESC system.
Mounted to the chassis up front are twin 9kg gas bottles, tap and a jockey wheel while under the chassis are four stabilising legs and two 95 litre water tanks with guards. Mechanically this package is finished off neatly and simply practical.
Verdict?
I towed this Bravo over a variety of road surfaces, from highways to steep and winding secondary back roads and it sat really well behind the Cruiser. The roller rocker suspension is a good choice for this van and it was well-balanced on the roads we travelled.
The Bravo’s colour scheme is pretty loud and really stands out. I think my Cruiser may well be a little too conservative for this rig, and I might have to jazz my ride up a bit if I’m going to keep doing shoots with such cool vans! The interior contrasting colours are rich and classy-looking and when combined with the very practical layout, the Bravo just works. Do we want it? Of course.
