Gorgeous 1914 Ford Model T Caravan Emerges as World’s Oldest Known Motorhome

A one-off Ford Model T motorhome has resurfaced after years and could be yours as early as next month if you’re on the market for a collectible with incredible prestige and even more historical significance. It’s a 1914 Ford Model T Motor Caravan widely believed to be the oldest known motor caravan in the world, as Bonhams describes it in the official listing.

That claim is debatable since the distinction belongs to the 1910 Pierce-Arrow Touring Landau, which is the first RV to go into series production. Also known as the Pierce-Arrow 66 Touring Landau or the Pierce-Arrow Special Touring Landau, it was the first motorhome to be offered with a toilet and running water onboard, sleeping for two and the poshest comfort creatures even by more recent standards – which is saying a lot, considering we’re talking about a period in which even roads were considered a luxury.

Still, this Model T motorhome is impressive for its size and impeccable condition, and it’s also a one-off, so for that reason alone, maybe you can find in yourself the generosity to overlook whatever exaggeration is in the “world’s oldest” title. This is what fancy living on the road was like back in the day, so you might as well consider CR 4134, as it’s known, the great-great-great-grandfather of today’s premium mobile homes, whether we’re talking about motorhomes or tinies.

Unsurprisingly then, this motorhome was a premium product as well: it was done on commission for Frank Bentall and his family. The Bentall family founded the Bentalls luxury department store in 1867 and were part of the aristocracy, which meant they had the finances and the connections to arrange for a custom mobile home. For it, a 1914 Ford Model T chassis was used, extended, and strengthened by specialist Baico to support the added weight.

The bodywork, which is all-wood, was done by Dunton of Reading and was of such high quality that, when the motorhome was recovered after decades in the 1970s, almost all original parts could still be restored and kept. No word on how much the motorhome was used for the purpose it was designed for, but the listing notes that it was sold off in the 1920s and “subsequently abandoned” for the next five decades.

A certain Leo Smith bought it then and, with help from cabinetmaker Robin Tanner, restored it over a four-year process that involved keeping 95% of the original parts. In 1976, the motorhome was entered in the 1976 HCVC London-Brighton Run, where it won several awards, including the Concours. It would be displayed and further awarded at specialist events in the following years and has even been featured “on television with Royal visitors in attendance,” the auction house notes.

Today, the motorhome is looking for a new owner capable of appreciating its historical significance – which, for once, isn’t a roundabout way of saying it’s painfully expensive. The listing has an estimated price between £20,000 and £30,000 ($23,300 and $35,000 at the current exchange rate), but the final price will be determined on September 10, when bidding takes place.

It is the closest thing to a well-maintained time capsule. The interior offers sleeping for four and basic creature comforts with a fold-down table, a wood-burning stove for cooking and heating, and plush leather seating in the main living room.

The leather bench that serves as the driver and passenger seat can swivel to face the interior, turning that space into a lounge. The bench integrates storage, and there’s also a proper Welsh wardrobe. Luxury touches include green velvet curtains for privacy, ornate interior ornaments, and even a letterbox, because how else are you going to keep in touch with the people you leave at home?

Bonhams notes that the unit sells as seen in the photos, with all the ornaments and the fittings, and even the pots and pans hidden from view, a lot of pictures, and other unspecified antique memorabilia. “External lamps, a fuel can, spare wheel, [and] spare spark plugs” are included, but not the current registration number. It’s almost as good to take on the road again.