Volkswagen Sharan - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review

Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review

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Volkswagen Sharan - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review

This is the definitive Volkswagen Sharan – 5 / 7 seater car camping review for 2021. Continue reading if you want to know:

  • VW Sharan’s size & measurements for car camping
  • It’s comfort & driving rating
  • What are the common criticisms of VW Sharan
  • How VW Sharan compares to other car camping / microcamper cars – our rating & overall cars table

VW Sharan Camping Review Summary

Volkswagen Sharan car camping / microcamper review

Lukas Cech – Nimblecamper.com

sharan car camping nimblecamper - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review
Boot length 208cm
Boot height 113cm
Storage – very good
Comfort (interior)
Comfort (driving)
Consumption

Summary

The VW Sharan strikes a good balance between size and comfort. Actually, it’s one of the biggest MPVs out there. If boot size is your primary criterion – you can’t go wrong with a Sharan. The car drives nicely too and offers good comfort in the front for the driver and passenger. It’s not the best car to take off the road completely – but you can take it down a good enough mud road without any big problems. A very good car camping / microcamping conversion candidate, unless you are planning to drive through forests and very much offroad.
VW Sharan is one of the top cars in our 30+ cars for car camping table.

3.9
Sharan PROs
  • it is very spaciouslong and tall, easy to sit in even when converted to a camping car at the back – it’s one of the biggest small cars you can find out there if you want size, but not a van
  • easy to maintain, no expensive or hard to get parts
  • Volkswagen’s quality standards & reliability
  • good level of comfort for long journeys, well-equipped
  • good price on models up to 10 years old (they still drive very well at an affordable price + will last for years to come)
  • sliding middle doors + tailgate (why is this important)
  • front passenger backrest can be folded down horizontally to form a table
  • 7 seater is easy – just fold all the seats and your flat surface for a car bed is ready
Sharan CONs
  • the 5 seat version needs additional work to prepare the flat surface for a car bed – see how I did that easily under 106€
  • boot door floor isn’t flat (loading area – harder to put a camping box / boot jump in and out)
  • not a 4×4 – ok for some off-road, but not too much
  • you might hear some people complaining that they don’t see the front of the car when driving – leaving them feeling a bit uneasy about where exactly does the car end, especially when navigating tight spaces. But 2010+ models have parking sensors that should alleviate that

How does the Sharan compare to other everyday campers?

I think Sharan offers the best of the two worlds – size + comfort. That’s why it’s in our top 5 (Seat Alhambra and VW Sharan are basically the same car).

Can you sleep in VW Sharan?

This section focuses on assessing how does this car perform in a car camping setting – space, storage, features useful for camping, and extendability (how easy it is to add car camping gear).

Key information

  • Car type: MPV/Minivan
  • Make: Volkswagen
  • Folded seats boot length (cm): 208
  • Boot height (cm): 113
  • Boot width (cm): 158 (2nd row doors) / 125 (trunk)
  • avg MPG (UK): 36(1)
  • avg l/100km consumption: 7.1(1) (depends on how you drive – I’m getting 6.5 combined)
  • EURO NCAP safety rating (2019)4/5
  • ADAC rating (lower = better) – 2.1/5

External rating (not focused on car camping):

Whatcar.com rating: 4/5 • Autoexpress.co.uk rating: 3/5 • Carbuyer.co.uk rating: 4.1/5

Average external rating: 3.7/5

ADAC rating 2.1/5 (lower = better)

So to answer your question:


Can you sleep in a VW Sharan?

You bet your socks you can! Being at the top of our microcamper candidates list should be a good enough reason – it’s not just big and comfy, but it is also good to drive.

🏆Best cars for camping 🏆

1.
4.0/5⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
2.
Honda Odyssey 🇺🇸
4.0/5⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
3.
3.9/5⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
4.
3.8/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆
  1. Fiat Doblò camper XL, High Roof 🇪🇺 4.0/5
  2. Honda Odyssey 🇺🇸 4.0/5
  3. Volkswagen Sharan 🇪🇺 3.9/5
  4. Caddy Maxi Camper (Life) 🇪🇺 3.8/5

See all cars in our database, their boot dimensions and more ➡️

Ancestry US CA UK AU

The VW Sharan is a very good car for car camping – it’s one of the most spacious MPVs out there and offers a good level of comfort, mileage and maintenance costs. It’s also well priced – especially 5-10 years old models that were well kept to be found around 10,000 GBP. It’s not an offroad car so don’t expect a thrilling offroad ride, yet still, you can take it down a not too steep/rough dirt track or through a meadow.

Dimensions, boot size & Storage

  • Folded seats boot length (cm): 208
  • Boot height (cm): 113
  • Boot width (cm): 109
  • Overall height (cm): 172
  • Overall length (cm): 485,4
  • Overall width (cm): 190,4
  • Ground clearance (cm): 152

If you are after a taller boot (113cm), go for the 5-seater option – you will get much more storage space or headroom in the boot. As the 7-seater option storage is taken away by the 3rd row seats, resulting in effective boot height of 93cm.

Great storage in the front – aside from the standard passenger side glove compartment, there’s one in the middle/top of the dashboard, two cup holders, storage just below the armrest and two sunglass compartments above the head (fit smaller items like shades, keys, phone or a tablet), one smaller drawer below each seat.

Sharan storage front2 - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review
sharan storage front 1 - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review
image 4 1024x571 1 - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review

There are two side storage units in the boot (1) – for a wallet, mobile phone, tablet – smaller things, plus two side-storage units on the left side (2) – not as easy to open though.

image 1 1024x549 1 - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review
VW Sharan boot storage – same for 5 and 7-seater versions

The 5-seater version also has a storage unit just behind the rear seats – but you won’t easily get to it if you have a car bed / camping box setup, as it will sit directly on top of it.

There’s also (hidden) storage under the feet of the 2nd row of seats:

There’s also a handy bin-like compartment (with a small bottle/bin) for rubbish in one of the middle doors and there’s also two hiddenn compartments underneath the passengers feet at the 2nd row of seats (back).

image 3 - Sharan Camper: How to sleep in VW Sharan – Camping conversion review

Electric sockets – 12V outlets

There are at least 3 to 5 12V outlets in newer models plus there’s a 230V outlet too!! (EU style – might not be available in all models):

  • one in the boot close to the trunk door (right hand side)
  • two between the front seats (one hidden away in the storage compartment, another next to the hand brake and another next to the gear stick on the front panel
  • one 12V on the back of the middle panel where you’ll also find the 230V outlet too

See more in these VW Sharan detailed specifications on car.info.

This is a 2019 7-seater model, but the features are very similar to my 2013 model, making this review a good starting point if you want to know more about the VW Sharan.

Is VW Sharan a good car for driving?

This can get very subjective – you can see more detailed reviews on these websites:

Whatcar.com rating: 4/5 • Autoexpress.co.uk rating: 3/5 • Carbuyer.co.uk rating: 4.1/5

The Sharan is somewhere in the middle – it’s not a luxurious limousine, but it offers more than a standard car. Especially in the driver’s seat, there’s plenty of seat adjustments, armrest, cup holders, storage space. The nose (front of the car) is hidden from view – some users might feel a bit weird about that. But it only takes a short while to get used to + parking sensors do the trick nicely.

The car is still quite lively considering its size – but don’t buy it if you want to be a boy / girl racer. The consumption for a car this size is pretty good (I’m getting 6.5l/100km combined – car camping, city, motorway), Fuelly reports a range between 6.3 and 9.4 across 48 vehicles and car-emmissions.com reports an average of 6.4l/100km.

Maintenance costs are about average – it’s not such a fancy car, so no fancy maintenance costs – nothing you wouldn’t expect from a medium range family car.

Compared to other cars we’ve looked atWV Sharan is in the lead (together with Seat Alhambra, they are almost identical). Most other cars are a bit smaller (Except the Caddy Maxi Life and Grand Voyager). Then the only bigger ones are standard vans (no windows / seats at the back). Therefore in terms of size – this is as good as it gets for car camping in a standard car. It’s also doing well in terms of comfort and consumption. Overall, it’s a good all-rounder and I certainly recommend it.

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Works best for two people camping trip (tested it myself!) – very light, easy to fold and transport, sturdy enough at this price range.

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Need more? There are hundreds of images here, and over 1500 here – indulge yourself!

Summary

I bought a Sharan myself. The primary reasons are – it strikes a good balance between size (almost as big as the VW Caddy) and comfort – it’s very comfy for long rides around Europe :).

Here’s how I converted it into a camper:



Post author:

Lukas

Founder of NimbleCamper.com, avid traveler and outdoor enthusiast. Car camping and microcamping allows me to keep traveling and exploring with a much greater level of freedom & privacy – to go anywhere and sleep anywhere. I didn’t have 30K to buy a VW Multivan, so found my way to the world of everyday car camping conversions. Here I share my experiences and what I learn.

Check out my thoughts on a balanced life: sensimism.com

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