Campervan Evolution
After decades of campervan evolution, VW has taken a bold step forward - bringing car-like comfort, smarter packaging, more technology to its iconic incredible adventure vehicle.
Does the reality of the new VW Cali T7 Ocean match the expectations?
Video Credit: The Volkswagen UK press site media team
campervan curiosity
Our campervan curiosity intensified during the summer of 2024.
As a family we watched countless review videos, articles, and blogs.
Around this time the Volkswagen California T7 was officially unveiled in a world premiere on 7 May 2024. As the most popular urban camper, we joined the countless fans of the California or ‘Cali’ for short.
We started to fall in love with the T7 Ocean for many reasons, the main five being:
- 3-room concept
- Highly flexible seating
- Smart camping
- Compact to negotiate rural roads
- Plug-in hybrid option with an all-wheel drive.
3-room concept:
Two sliding side doors enables versatile three-zone camping capability.
This enables the use awnings on both sides to make one larger camping area.
VW example:
Left for cooking, eating, essentially an overall a general living space.
Right as a children’s/ (or in our soon to be teenagers) bedroom underneath the awning.
The summer kitchen allows cooking inside or out. Due to the 230V shore power exterior socket. it can power an induction hob or hotplate.
T7 seating has been designed to be extra comfortable and more flexible. The individual seats in the passenger compartment can be simply moved or removed individually.
On long journeys (12+ hrs), the children would be able to adjust where they sit and the table so they could draw, colour or just sit back, rest or read.
Adjustable table for eating together inside.
Smart camping
The California app : Making planning your trip easier:
- California remote control via app
- Discover 40,000+ campsites
- Practical how-to videos explaining camper features
- Various accessory themes for your vehicle
- California self-check: three practical checklists, e.g. for your travel preparations or winter storage.
Operating Manual:
Your California at a glance – The User Guide allows you to quickly and conveniently access technical information relating the California while on the move.
California Remote Control
Turn your camper into a smart home on wheels.
With the app you can access many camper-specific settings even outside the vehicle and keep an eye on the vehicle status.
You can can easily raise and lower the electro-hydraulic pop-up roof to better monitor the opening and closing process from outside.
Setting different light profiles and wake-up lights as well as controlling the cool box ensures more comfort during your trip. With camping mode, you can arrive relaxed at night without disturbing other campers.
Rural roads
When travelling to our camping destinations, our main challenge is safely negotiating rural roads.
Many occasions we have been in challenging situations were a caravan or even small motor home have been travelling in the opposite direction.
These larger vehicles require the majority of the rural road space. As a result, we have had to either park and wait (due to other numerous vehicles behind) or reverse to a passing spot/ or another road to allow safe passage.
As a family, we feel a larger motorhome would add unnecessary stress and limit our off site travelling ability.
Plug-in hybrid option with an all-wheel drive
The T7 has the plug-in hybrid option with an all-wheel drive. In addition to rural roads, we often camp on famers sites which requires driving through dirt tracks.
Furthermore, our winters up north of England can be challenging with snow and ice. All wheel drive for us is essential.
Now we knew what we wanted!
It was time to explore options on the market.
So we booked a trip to the Motorhome & Campervan Show in October 2024.
