Vixen Motor Company
Vehicle manufacturer USA From 1986 to 1989.
The Vixen Motor Company built in the United States Motorhomes from 1986 to 1989
History
The Motorhomes which were built 587 times within about three years. It is a designed as a so-called camper and built vehicle. Its developer was William T. Collins, who previously worked for the sports car manufacturer DeLorean and earlier for Pontiac.
The 21 range featured two captain chairs with the Vixen TD, original design: inline BMW six-cylinder diesel, five-speed manual, pitch roof, year of construction 1986/87. The Vixen XC, nine-seater executive version combine handling and stylish features with bed, reading lamps and television with VCR, year of construction 1986/87 and the Vixen SE, V6 petrol engine, four-speed automatic transmission, fixed high roof, air conditioning, year of construction 1988/89
The unusually low Vixen was created as an alternative to the GMC Motorhome by General Motors. However, this model was three-axle, had a 7.5-liter engine and was at a height of almost three meters between seven and eight meters long. The aim of the developer of the Vixen was to make it so flat that it fit into a standard American garage.
The aerodynamic body of the Vixen means it consume less than eight litres of diesel per 100 kilometres’ engine was the 2.4-liter inline six-cylinder diesel from BMW with a five-speed gearbox from Renault. The engine was installed under the back bed to save space. The European drive was complemented by American high-volume parts, such as axles, air suspension and brakes.
The Vixen's cabin is made of plastic, the side walls of the open roof are made of transparent Plexiglas, which fills the camper with unusually much daylight. Due to the low floor, which is only 20 centimetres above the carriageway, you can reach a standing height of almost two meters when the pneumatic pitch roof is open. Through consistent lightweight interior design including furniture, toilet, refrigerator, sink, stove and microwave, the Vixen comes to around 2.3 tonnes empty weight, at full load to just under three tons. The camper is 2.15 meters wide and 6.26 meters long.
The concept of the Vixen is not unlike that of the camper VW California with pitch roof, which was at that time of Westphalia was converted to a motorhome. Like this, however, this was too small for most Americans. This circumstance, the diesel engine and the gearbox should have been the main reasons for the failure of the Vixen. Neither a V6 gasoline engine with four-speed automatic transmission, which was pushed ahead of the already foreseeable end of production, nor a fixed high roof with air conditioning could prevent the premature end of the vehicle and its manufacturer. The modifications led past the developer's goal, because the vehicle with high roof and attached air conditioning just did not fit into a standard American garage.
