Mercedes V-Class Marco Polo review

There are two obvious rivals for the Mercedes V-Class Marco Polo campervan – the Ford Transit Custom Nugget and the VW California – and we’re being treated to all-new versions of both this year.

In contrast, Mercedes isn’t replacing the current Marco Polo just yet, but it has given it a comprehensive makeover to keep it competitive, and you'll be able to spot a new model by checking out the front end. The new version has a bold and impressively deep grille surrounded by a dark, glossy panel, plus revised headlights and foglight surrounds.

Beyond that front facelift, the exterior updates are less pronounced, but it’s all change inside – at least in the front, where there's a completely new dashboard. Gone are the analogue dials, bolted-on infotainment system and curvaceous dash, replaced by a horizontal beam housing two 12.3in digital screens.

So does the updated Mercedes Marco Polo have what it takes to compete with the best campervans including the Ford Transit Custom Nugget and VW California? Read on to find out...

Read more: The best vans in every class

We all know cars are getting heavier, but 2.6 tonnes still sounds like an awful lot to steer around narrow lanes. However, during our testing, the Mercedes Marco Polo made a decent fist of navigating the Highlands – with the caveat that our test vehicle was fitted with optional air suspension.

The Marco Polo is powered by a 2.0-litre diesel engine with 233bhp and 369 lb/ft of torque. That’s a lot of grunt, all of which goes through a nine-speed automatic gearbox to the rear wheels.

That tops the 201bhp of the top-spec VW California and is significantly more powerful than the 182bhp available in the Ford Transit Custom Nugget.

You can feel the extra power behind the wheel: the Marco Polo positively sprints off the line (for a campervan), getting to 62mph in 8.8 seconds according to Mercedes official figures. It feels appreciably quicker than the California (which takes 11.3 seconds if you opt for the most expensive model) or Nugget (which Ford doesn’t publish figures for).

There’s enough in reserve to pull off some overtaking moves, although our test vehicle was a German model with the steering wheel on the left, which added a
little extra difficulty on Scottish roads. UK models will all be right-hand-drive, and won't be available with four-wheel drive (unlike in mainland Europe).

On a clear road, it’s mostly impressive. You sit up high, reminding you of the Mercedes Vito van origins of the Marco Polo, but that’s where the commercial roots stop showing.

The steering is direct, predictable and sharp, with little vagueness around the middle and quick responses to inputs. With well-tuned suspension that keeps sensations of being a bit too top-heavy at bay and rear-wheel drive for balance, it’s almost fun to drive.

It’s more involving than you'd expect given the weight, and far easier, safer and quicker to drive than anything with a caravan attached to the back.

Switching from the Comfort driving mode to Sport tightens up the suspension and switches the gearbox to a fast-reacting, high-revving set-up, but sacrifices a little too much refinement. Despite its capabilities, the Marco Polo is at its best when relaxing along the road.

It’s not perfect, though, with the weight pushing the Marco Polo down when it’s dealing with compressions in the road and leading to lethargic responses. If you hit a series of long-frequency undulations in quick succession, the suspension struggles to keep up (adjusting your speed will quickly fix the problem).

The optional air suspension fitted to our test model might mask other shortcomings, but we’d recommend splashing out on the upgrade anyway, not only for its on-road performance but for the benefits you get once you arrive at your destination.

The move to digitise everything has reached the Mercedes Marco Polo, with a black horizontal panel replacing the dials and screens of the outgoing model.

When you switch on the ignition, the gloss-black panel reveals a pair of 12.3in screens, which can be customised with three display styles and various modes.

The infotainment half of the screens uses Mercedes’ MBUX system and is mostly easy enough to use. It’s better than the system in the outgoing VW California and  Ford Transit Custom Nugget but both will get updates when new version arrive.

Once you’ve used the system and set it how you like, you’ll rarely go back to it, but there’s excellent voice control and a handy smartphone app if you want to avoid hunting down pixels on the screen to press.

The app is surprisingly useful, and able to deal with essential tasks in the living area. Setting a night-time temperature, adjusting the cool box — it can be a fridge or a freezer — or changing the ambient and feature lighting can all be done at the press of a button from inside or outside the Marco Polo.

It’s also where you can access some of the vehicle's show-off features. For example, if you have air suspension fitted, there's a self-levelling mode that makes mincemeat out of lumpy campgrounds. Park up, press a button and wait a minute or so while the Marco Polo raises and lowers the suspension at each corner until the camper is perfectly level.

It’s also just a matter of pressing a button to open the pop-up roof that houses the main bed. It takes about 30 seconds to put up and another 30 to put down again, and is so much easier than faffing around trying to pull down the roof by hand on the California or Nugget. There’s enough space to leave your duvet and pillows in place so there’s no need to make any special effort to keep things clear.

The rest of the living area is much as it’s ever been in this generation of Marco Polo. Its traditional layout has a kitchen along the side, a bench seat that folds to turn into another bed, and front seats that swivel around, all on a wooden yacht deck or stone-like floor.

The California is much the same, although with a handy table and chairs hidden in the door, which the Marco Polo misses out on. The Nugget takes an entirely different approach, putting the kitchen across the back of the vehicle. That frees up more space in the middle for relaxing but makes converting the seats into a bed more difficult.

Where the Nugget gains is with a ladder, which clips in and makes getting into the overhead bed safe and easy. Calling it a night in the Marco Polo meant balancing on the front-seat armrests, then using a headrest as a foothold before clambering in. The California requires much the same method.

The Marco Polo's kitchenette is equipped with a pair of gas hobs – the gas bottle is safely stored in a compartment at the back of the vehicle – a sink and a coolbox. There are drawers and cupboards all over the van, with a thoughtful vanity mirror and shelf built into a head-height cabinet.

The rival campervans offer the same, with slightly different specifications, but basic equipment is all on a par.

Converting the rear seats into a bed is most effortless with the Marco Polo. They’re electric, so they fold down, inflating and deflating various pockets to create a smooth surface to sleep on. It’s not entirely successful, with lumps and bumps still in place, but at 2.05 metres by 1.13 metres, it offers the same space as the rivals. We wouldn't describe the lowers beds in any of the three particularly comfy.

Blinds for every living area window and magnetic shades for the windscreen and front side windows keep the light out, although the fibreglass roof and fabric panels in the rooftop sleeping area let it stream in regardless. With darkly tinted windows in the back, closing the blinds doesn’t add a great deal of privacy.

The opening tailgate window is heavily tinted, allowing those sleeping on the lower deck to look out but, happily, making it challenging to look in.

The practical bits of a campervan are mainly in the living space, but there are other aspects that can make or break its usability, including the location of doors.

The Mercedes Marco Polo has one sliding door on the right-hand side, potentially opening up the living space into the road rather than the pavement. The 2024 VW California will solve that by having doors on each side.

A small boot at the back of the Marco Polo can store a few items, but if you splash out on the optional table and chairs most of that will be filled. The Ford Transit Custom Nugget has even less boot space.

There’s a removable drawer under the Marco Polo's back seats, so if you don’t need that, you can slide it out and replace it with your regular detritus. The rear bench slides forward, extending the storage area, but it’ll be easier to pack things on to the cupboards, wardrobes and cubbies around the camper.

You’ll need a lot of room behind you if you’re backing into a space, as the tailgate swings open at the top. Fortunately, the rear window opens, giving you access without needing to open the entire back end.

Despite its bulk, you’ll also be able to get into pretty much every car park. The Marco Polo is 1.99m high and 1.93m wide, although at 5.14m long, it’s longer than even the longest, 130 version of the Land Rover Defender.

Being concerned about costs on a Mercedes Marco Polo is like worrying about how best to arrange the deckchairs on the Titanic – it's one of the more expensive new campervans you can buy.

Indeed, opting for a Ford Transit Custom Nugget or VW California is likely to save you thousands. You can check the latest prices on our New Car Deals pages.

If you do decide on a Marco Polo, the buying process is simple because there's just one trim, Premium Plus, although you can have an (entirely unnecessary) AMG Line pack, which adds some spoilers, side skirts and other sporty accoutrements.

Beyond that, there are 10 colour choices and seven optional extras: smarter alloy wheels, a spare wheel, a trailer pack, a side awning, camping chairs and a table, open-pore wood trim for the interior, and Airmatic air suspension. We recommend spending your money on the camping chairs and air suspension.

In terms of fuel economy, official WLTP figures suggest the Marco Polo can manage 34.0–36.7mpg and, pleasingly, the onboard computer showed 34.9mpg after our single-person camping trip. It was a representative drive, encompassing motorways, A-roads, tight back roads and narrow country lanes.

The Marco Polo's Mercedes warranty covers you for three years and unlimited miles. Volkswagen limits its cover to 100,000 miles, while Ford is somewhat tighter with a 60,000-mile limit.

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