If the American Dream had wheels, it might look like an Airstream trailer. The silver torpedo beckons from the future, even as it evokes ’60s-era roadside burgers and moon rockets. Like many things in American life, it’s electrifying.
Last year, manufacturers shipped roughly 342,000 recreational vehicles to American dealers, according to the RV Industry Association — everything from a $10,000 pop-up trailer to a million-dollar land yacht cruising America’s highways. Some are built for weekend getaways; others, for a never-ending road trip. For decades, the industry barely changed. Three companies — Thor Industries, Forest River and Winnebago — manufacture most of the nation’s rigs in factories around Elkhart, Indiana, mostly using technology that debuted in the 1950s. But, starting about three years ago, the electric revolution arrived. Incumbents began seriously field testing EV technology, and start-ups like Lightship and Pebble announced battery-powered, self-propelled trailers. The result is a new generation of mobile palaces that look nothing like what my dad towed into state parks when we went camping as a kid. The electrification of American camping — at least the car-camping kind — is cleaner and quieter than the era of vibrating generators and hissing propane tanks. Here’s how millions of Americans may soon spend their weekends, or their year, camping on the road without using fossil fuels.
How do you camp? Write me at climatecoach@washpost.com. I read all your emails.
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