Bilbo's Nexa+ T7 review: a rear kitchen, a cassette toilet and the new Low-Lie roof

The Bilbo's Nexa+ moves the kitchen to the back of the van, fits a plumbed-in cassette toilet, and since the February 2026 NEC show it has worn a new Low-Lie side-elevating roof on the latest T7 Transporter. For a certain kind of buyer, a couple who want a daily-drivable van but refuse to give up a proper toilet, that combination is the whole reason to look at it.

What it is

The Nexa+ is a panel-van conversion of the Volkswagen Transporter. The example on Bilbo's stock page, reference R2169, is a new 2026 T7 Commerce PRO short-wheelbase van with the 2.0 TDI 150PS engine and an eight-speed automatic gearbox, converted as a Nexa+ with the Low-Lie side-elevating roof. Bilbo's describes the Nexa as a four-seater with twin beds below, an optional roof bed and a multi-positional table. Bilbo's list price for that van, including diesel blown-air heating, was £77,930 as published on 13 October 2026, with a note to contact sales for current offers. Bilbo's news page for the February 2026 NEC show says the redesigned Nexa+ was shown there for the first time with the new Low-Lie roof, and that the Nexa+ is now built on the T7. Bilbo's registered address is in South Godstone, Surrey, and Out and About Live's manufacturer page says the firm has been converting VW Transporters since 1977, most of them with raising roofs. For the company background, see our profile, Bilbo's explained: the Surrey converter building VW campers since 1977, now on the T7 and the Ford Transit Custom.

Bilbo's gives the van as short-wheelbase, so ask the sales team for the overall length and the closed roof height, and for the closed height of the Low-Lie roof in particular if you have a car park or garage to clear.

Layout and how it lives

A rear kitchen changes how a small camper works. Instead of a galley running down the side behind the driver, with the bed across the back, the Nexa+ puts the cooking and the fridge against the tailgate and leaves the middle of the van for the seats and the beds. The payoff is a living area that feels less like a corridor, and a gas locker you reach from outside through the tailgate rather than from inside the van. The trade-off is that there is no side-kitchen worktop beside the sliding door. If you like to cook standing at the sliding door, Bilbo's own Celex keeps the side kitchen; we review it separately in Bilbo's Celex T7 review: the classic side-kitchen VW camper, now on the new Transporter.

Bilbo's features list gives seating for four with seat restraints and headrests, swivel driver and front passenger seats, a single sliding table, under-seat storage and a modesty curtain. Lined blackout curtains cover the cab as well as the living area, and Bilbo's lists thermal and acoustic insulation and an ample selection of dimmable LED lighting.

Beds and the Low-Lie roof

Bilbo's features list gives twin beds, with a double bed upgrade available as an option from new only, and an optional roof bed, though the stock listing for R2169 marks the bed as optional and says buyers choose the conversion options to be fitted, so confirm the beds in your quote. Ask Bilbo's how many the roof bed sleeps. The "from new only" wording on the double bed upgrade is worth taking seriously: if you think you will want the double, order it at the start rather than hoping to add it later.

Bilbo's lists the Nexa+ with either an elevating roof or a high-top roof. The new Low-Lie roof is the elevating option, and it hinges up from the side rather than the front or rear. Out and About Live's review of the Nexa+ T7 says the Low-Lie roof will also be offered on the latest T7 Celex with its side kitchen, and mentions two windows on the nearside and flyscreened vents. Ask Bilbo's for the closed height and the roof-bed dimensions before you order; those are the two numbers that decide whether the roof suits you. Our explainer at pop-top roof conversions covers what to check on any elevating roof, and types of campervan conversion explains why a high top and a pop top suit different owners.

The toilet

This is the Nexa+'s signature, and the one point where you need to read the paperwork carefully. Bilbo's features list for the Nexa+ includes a fitted, plumbed-in electric cassette toilet with a modesty curtain, while the stock listing for R2169 marks the toilet as optional and says buyers secure the van and then choose the conversion options to be fitted. Both can be true of a van sold before conversion, but the practical advice is simple: confirm in writing that the toilet is included in the £77,930 you are quoted, or what it adds if it is not. Ask Bilbo's whether the toilet flushes from the fresh water tank; the cassette comes out to empty at a campsite disposal point.

Kitchen, power and heating

Kitchen

Bilbo's lists a three-burner hob with a deep stainless steel sink under a glass top, a 50-litre compressor fridge, and an optional 240V microwave or gas grill. The Caravan and Motorhome Club's review says the kitchen unit houses a grill, or a microwave ordered in its place, set over a drawer that includes a loose cutlery tray. Choosing between the two is a question of how you camp: the gas grill works off-grid, the microwave needs hook-up, so ask Bilbo's whether an inverter can be fitted if you want the microwave off-grid.

According to Bilbo's, the gas locker carries two Camping Gaz 907 cylinders at 30 mbar in an airtight, steel-lined compartment vented through the floor, reached from the tailgate. Two 907s is a sensible allowance for a van this size, but 907s are small, so plan on swapping them more often than a motorhome owner swaps a 6 kg cylinder. Bilbo's quotes a 36-litre onboard fresh water tank with an internal filler and a 35-litre waste tank with an accessible drainage tap. Treat the campsite tap as part of the routine.

Power

Bilbo's says every conversion has a 12V system and 240V hook-up, with a 130Ah AGM leisure battery separate from the vehicle battery that runs the compressor fridge, lighting and water system and charges on the move or on mains. The power management system has a digital display showing battery voltage, water levels, internal and external temperature, appliance current draw and an alarm clock. Bilbo's fits a 240V socket, a 12V socket and a twin USB socket as standard, plus a wireless charge pad, and the cab adds its own wireless phone charging with three USB-C ports. Ask Bilbo's how long the 130Ah battery runs the fridge and lights, and if you want longer off-grid stays, ask whether a lithium battery or a solar panel can be specified, and what each adds to the price.

Heating

Bilbo's £77,930 list price for R2169 includes diesel blown-air heating. Diesel heating is the right choice for a van with only two small gas cylinders, because it runs off the fuel tank rather than eating into your cooking gas. Ask Bilbo's for the heater's make and output if you plan to camp in winter.

Driving and the base vehicle

The Commerce PRO is the top-specification base Bilbo's uses for this van, and it arrives well equipped before the conversion starts. Bilbo's lists the Commerce PRO's standard highlights as air-conditioning, 16-inch alloy wheels, an exterior pack, adaptive cruise control, a heated windscreen, heated single cab seats with armrests, keyless start, front and rear parking sensors, a leather multi-function steering wheel, wireless phone charging with three USB-C ports, a steel spare wheel, high beam control, a 13-inch touchscreen, a 12-inch digital driver's display, LED headlights, VW swivel cab seats, a tailgate, a heated rear window with wash and wipe, and Volkswagen's 5+ Promise Plan. R2169 also carries optional Style interior trim, a 70-litre fuel tank, folding mirrors operated from the key fob and a wide console. The 70-litre tank and the adaptive cruise are the two items on that list that change long days on the motorway.

Bilbo's lists the 2.0 TDI 150PS with an eight-speed automatic. The Caravan and Motorhome Club's earlier review of the Nexa+ quoted the 2.0-litre turbo-diesel at 148 bhp (110 kW) at 3,250-3,750 rpm. Bilbo's describes the Nexa as compact, nippy and efficient, and as a good choice for people downsizing from caravans or larger motorhomes. Bilbo's says test drives are available on a range of engine sizes and should be pre-booked with the sales team, which is the best way to settle whether 150PS is enough for you. For how the T7 Transporter compares with the other van most British converters now build on, read VW Transporter T7 vs Ford Transit Custom as a campervan base.

Weights, payload and licence

Bilbo's page for this van gives engine, gearbox and equipment, so ask the sales team for three figures before you order: the plated weight (MAM), the unladen weight, and the payload left once the conversion, the toilet, the roof and the options you pick are fitted. Those decide the rules that apply.

• Licence: a category B car licence covers a motor caravan with a MAM of up to 3,500 kg, so if the plated weight is at or under that, any car licence holder can drive it. Over 3,500 kg needs C1, which drivers who passed on or after 1 January 1997 do not hold automatically.
• Speed limits: the dividing line is 3.05 tonnes unladen, not the plated weight. At or under that, car limits apply. Check the unladen weight on the V5C or the certificate of conformity.
• Vehicle tax: a motor caravan at or under 3,500 kg with an engine over 1,549 cc sits in the Private or Light Goods class at £375 a year for 2026 to 2027. Check GOV.UK's motorhome rates before relying on that.
• Payload: four people, two full gas cylinders, 36 litres of water and a weekend's kit add up quickly in a short-wheelbase van. Ask for the payload of the exact build rather than a brochure figure.

Price, what it includes and the options that move it

On 13 October 2026 Bilbo's stock page listed two new T7 Nexa+ PRO vans, R2169 and R2173, each at £77,930, and a T6.1 Nexa+, R2155, at £65,950. The £77,930 list price for R2169 includes diesel blown-air heating, and Bilbo's says to contact sales for current offers. Bilbo's lists the roof bed, the double bed upgrade, the microwave or gas grill, and a choice of elevating or high-top roof as options for the Nexa+; R2169 is already listed with the Low-Lie elevating roof, so ask which of these can still be chosen for that van, and what the toilet adds if it is not already in the quote. On the base vehicle side, R2169 already carries the Style trim, 70-litre tank, folding mirrors and wide console, so ask whether those are priced in.

Against the converter's own alternatives, on the same date Bilbo's stock page listed a Celex PLUS 2.0 TDI manual at £69,300 and £72,815, a Celex PRO at £76,130 and £76,840, a Commerce PRO choose-your-layout van at £74,735, and a Celex eHybrid without a price. The like-for-like comparison is Celex PRO against Nexa+ PRO: £77,930 against £76,130 is a gap of £1,800, or £1,090 against the £76,840 Celex. That is a small gap, though confirm what each price includes, the toilet in particular. The cheaper Celex PLUS manual at £69,300 is £8,630 less, but it is a different trim level and gearbox, not just a different layout. The T6.1 Nexa+ at £65,950 is £11,980 under the new T7 and is built on the previous Transporter; ask Bilbo's how its layout and equipment compare.

Volkswagen's converter page for Bilbo's lists a three-year VW base vehicle warranty plus Bilbo's own three-year conversion warranty, and Bilbo's own page says to check the warranty details at the time of ordering. In the owner-voted Owner Satisfaction Awards, as reported on Out and About Live's manufacturer page, Bilbo's won Gold in 2024 and 2025 and was named best overall van converter in 2023, which is a useful signal from people who have lived with the vans rather than looked at them on a stand. Bilbo's news page says the latest Celex was shown at the February 2026 NEC on both the Volkswagen Transporter and the Ford Transit Custom; if you want to see a Nexa+ in person at the October show, ask Bilbo's whether it is on the stand, and see British campervan converters at the NEC 2026: who builds what for the wider picture.

Verdict: who it suits

The couple who want a loo in a Transporter

This is the Nexa+'s home ground. Two people, twin beds below plus an optional roof bed, a plumbed-in cassette toilet with a curtain, a diesel heater, and a short-wheelbase van. Confirm the toilet and the beds are in the price and you have a small camper that handles a wet night without a walk to the shower block.

The downsizer from a caravan or larger motorhome

Bilbo's names this buyer itself. The rear kitchen gives a motorhome-style cooking space, and the Commerce PRO base brings adaptive cruise, parking sensors and heated seats.

The one-van household

Four belted seats, swivel cab seats, air-conditioning and an automatic gearbox make it a workable everyday car. The compressor fridge and the leisure battery mean the camper side is ready when the weekend is.

Who it does not suit

A family that regularly sleeps four. The Nexa+ has twin beds below plus an optional roof bed, and the twin beds suit two adults rather than two adults and two growing children. A household in that position is better served by a layout designed around four berths from the start, and should ask Bilbo's about its other ranges before settling on the Nexa+.

Taken as a whole, the Nexa+ T7 offers a fitted toilet in a Transporter, and does it without turning the van into something bigger. At £77,930 as listed on 13 October 2026, it sits close to the equivalent Celex, so the choice between them comes down to layout rather than money.