02 / VESSEL DOSSIER
Know the machine before the road.
The Nebuchadnezzar is a 2025 Swift Trekker X on the Ford Transit: compact enough for an ordinary category B licence, but capable enough to carry four people into the Highlands—provided the payload is treated as a hard limit.
This Nebuchadnezzar is the eight-speed automatic. Swift’s 2025 sheet lists its payload at 370 kg, compared with 415 kg for the manual. Category B currently covers petrol and diesel vehicles up to 3,500 kg MAM; always check the actual licence entitlement. Swift specification ↗Licence categories ↗
Ford Transit core
- Our Ford Transit has the 2.0-litre turbodiesel, 165 bhp and eight-speed automatic gearbox; a six-speed manual was the alternative.
- Cruise control, ESP with roll stability, emergency brake assist, lane keeping, rear camera, front and rear sensors and automatic cab air-conditioning.
- Touchscreen infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Compact kitchen
- Dometic two-burner gas hob and sink, plus a combined oven and grill.
- Waist-height 70-litre compressor fridge with dual hinges, so it opens from either side.
A proper wet room
- Tambour door, fold-away basin and separate showerhead.
- Thetford electric-flush cassette toilet with an 18-litre wheeled waste tank.
Heat, water + power
- Whale blown-air heating with an 8-litre water heater.
- Insulated 65-litre fresh and 55-litre waste tanks; 110 W solar panel.
- Four mains sockets, with USB charging points throughout.
Camp mode hardware
- 3.5 m Thule Omnistor awning and powered entry step as standard.
- External cold shower and a dedicated barbecue gas point.
FIELD USE / SET-UP SEQUENCE
Small details that make camp life work.
Service geometry
Hook-up and water fill sit at the nearside front corner. The cassette hatch and external shower are offside, away from the awning. The clear 4-inch control panel is above the sliding door.
Elevating roof
Secure twist-lock closure, dual zipped windows with midge screens and fire-resistant canvas. Pull the canvas clear, lower, lock and physically check it before every departure.
Sleep decks
Official 2025 sizes are 1.85 × 1.36 m at the rear and 2.05 × 1.30 m up top. The rear uses clipped side sections and magnetic struts; the roof bed adds a Heki skylight, blind, flyscreen, USB and spotlights.
Wet-weather win
The gas bottle shut-off is reachable through an internal cupboard, so there is no need to step outside in the rain.
CREW CONFIGURATION
Built around two adults, the children and Percy.
Four belts, one Isofix point
The two forward-facing travel seats include Isofix on the aisle seat. With baby number two the van still has four belted places, but the second child seat must be a compatible belt-fitted model; confirm the seat and installation before travel.
Parents up, little ones down
Use the roof bed for the adults. The rear double—or the flat rear deck—takes a travel cot comfortably. Later, it becomes the natural two-up, two-down family-of-four layout.
A secure dog zone
The flat rear activity area has gear tie-downs and scratch-resistant plank-effect flooring. Anchor a suitable crate or crash-tested harness; Highway Code rule 57 requires dogs to be restrained while travelling. Flyscreens and vented windows help on warm evenings.
Weigh the real expedition
Our automatic’s quoted 370 kg payload must absorb passengers, children, Percy, water, options and every bag. That is 45 kg less than the manual, so load exactly as you intend to tour and visit a weighbridge before the first big trip; check both total and axle weights.
FIELD REPORT / REVIEWER CONSENSUS4-BERTH / FAMILY CAPABLE
Driver support + the better bed
Reviewers praise the generous standard driver-assistance package and genuinely superior roof bed. Practical Motorhome named it Best Campervan for Solo Travel in its 2025 awards.
Cook lightly; corner calmly
The kitchen aisle is narrow and under-lit. At 2.98 m tall it can feel top-heavy on sharp bends, and the washroom has no roof vent—crack the roof windows when showering so steam can escape.
A comfortable family van if you eat out more than you cook in.
Motorhome Monkey later included the Trekker X among its 4.5/5 tests. Swift says the active owners’ group, founded in 2024, has grown beyond 400 members—useful real-world backup for roof-canvas and bed-setup questions.
LIVE VEHICLE CORE
Use the Landship data—or replace it with your own van.
The editable master profile and every connected calculator now live together on the Tools page.