I'm a Racer Who Chose a Camper Van As My Company Car

I love getting into nature with the Nugget and my dog to recharge between race weekends

Ben Barker

30.07.26

I'm a Racer Who Chose a Camper Van as My Company Car

As a racing driver, work can be strapped into a Mustang GT3 screaming around a track at night, flames spitting out of the exhaust as I hunt down the competition or try to extend a lead.

Work can also be a cramped debrief with engineers in the race truck or a promotional event for our sponsors. And because I live in the UK but mostly race in North America, work also involves a lot of flights and anonymous hotels near tracks.

It’s the kind of life I dreamed of and that still gets the blood pumping, but a busy race calendar plus testing and promotional work means I really value my downtime to mentally reset between each event. Which is why, when I’m not racing the Mustang GT3, I drive the Ford Nugget I chose as my company car.

“A busy race calendar plus testing and promotional work means I really value my downtime to mentally reset between each event.”

Ben Barker, Ford Racing driver and Nugget fan

Ford Mustang GT3 racing car with blurry background showing speed

Ford Mustang GT3 racing car driving through pit lane at night in an endurance race

Actually, it was my partner who swayed me. She’s always wanted a camper and as soon as I signed my Ford contract, she was straight online to see if they did one. We both loved the look of the Nugget and now I’ve had a year living with one, it’s perfect. I get itchy feet easily but still need to unwind after a race, so my partner and I pack up the Nugget, bring the dog and have a few nights away together.

My partner and our dog are both delighted that I picked the Nugget as my company car

“I get itchy feet easily but still need to unwind after a race, so my partner and I pack up the Nugget, bring the dog and have a few nights away together.”

Ben Barker, Ford Racing driver and Nugget fan

When I’m not at a track, I love being in the water on my surfboard. Since having the Nugget we’ve discovered loads of great, hidden camping spots in Devon and Cornwall, UK, where we can park up on the cliffs and be in the waves within minutes the next morning.

Those trips mean we drive right across Britain, and the Nugget’s ideal for that. It’s comfy, refined, the sound system is great and it’s small enough for country lanes. I like driving it so much that I even use it for the weekly shop. Plus — unlike my previous daily drivers — it’s got a shower that can also hose down the dog or our bikes and boards.

Sandy beach and blue see seen through the windscreen of Ben's Nugget parked up

Two surfboards stand propped against a rustic fence next to Ben's Nugget as the sunset paints the sea gold in the background

We've also taken it on trips abroad, including a stunning few days down in the Dolomites recently. I love being able to park up somewhere and go for a hike and know we can come back to cold drinks, comfy seats and a different view every night.

There's always something special about that first long drive of a holiday road trip

Leave home with the Nugget in the morning, cruise through Europe, park up that evening for dinner in the Dolomites

During the season, training doesn't stop — even when I'm on trips away between races

It must be something to do with racers and how we’re wired differently, but good luck finding a driver or engineer who isn’t obsessively into coffee, watches or cycling. I’m one of them — I actually own a couple of little cafes in my local area. My Nugget’s always stocked with a few different presses and percolators so all I need to do is toss in some specialist beans and I can have the perfect coffee wherever I park.

I’ve made a lot of my mates jealous by sending them photos of the beautiful places I’ve enjoyed that morning’s first coffee in bed. (And yes, I’m also into cycling — you have no idea how physical racing is until you do it, and cycling is a great way to keep my body up to speed but get my mind off the track.)

Ben's Nugget parked in a forest clearing with his gravel bike ready to hit the trails

The Nugget’s also been handy for work. If I’m coaching in the UK, I drive to the track, enjoy a night in the Nugget and wake up in my own space. It beats waking up to the motorway dawn chorus under the same copy-paste artwork in a chain hotel.

Last year, I actually drove it down to Le Mans in France for the 24-hour race there. Le Mans is like nothing else — we’re there for well over a week, over 330,000 people go, and most of the racetrack is actually closed roads between different towns. That’s how big it is. In the middle of all this, the Nugget was the ideal little sanctum away from everything. I parked it in the driver’s compound behind the pit lane, and my mum spent the week in it.

Another Ford Racing driver was totally sold as well; my teammate Fred Vervisch ended up putting his name down for a Nugget. He’s had it for a few months now, so we share camping tips and tricks with each other. I guess it’s a nice way to chill out after setting a lap record at the Nürburgring.