Shift Magazine - February 2022 - Cover3

last mile
Electrification goes camping: Winnebago, Thor reveal e-RVs
BY GAIL KACHADOURIAN HOWE
T
he RV industry is starting to join
the race toward zero emissions.
Thor Industries Inc. and Winnebago
Industries Inc. each revealed
concepts for electric RVs at the Florida
RV SuperShow in Tampa last month. The
companies identify electrification as a
priority for the next generation of motor
homes and towable trailers.
Thor told Shift that it plans to have an
all-electric motor home for sale next year,
with an electric towable trailer to follow.
Thor did not reveal pricing estimates.
For Winnebago, " it could be up to two
years before a vehicle like this [e-RV] rolls
down the road in sizeable numbers, "
company spokesman Chad Reece said.
" But some of its technologies could be
seen prior to that. [Electrification] is a natural
progression in the RV segment. We
hear from consumers they have interest. "
RANGE MATTERS
Thor's Vision Vehicle concept was
designed to operate using a high-voltage
battery and an integrated fuel cell-based
range extender. The Elkhart, Ind., company
says the concept could travel up to
300 miles on a single charge while powering
onboard systems such as HVAC, lights
and entertainment. This range matches
the company's research that showed the
average RV driver stops every five hours,
or about every 300 miles.
The 300-mile distance has another
significance: An RV Industry Association
survey released last year found that 64
percent of the 800 first-time RV buyers
surveyed took trips less than 300 miles
from home. Those surveyed bought RVs
from April 2020 through the first several
weeks of 2021.
While the U.S. charging network is still
Thor's Vision Vehicle concept could
travel up to 300 miles on a charge
while powering onboard systems.
growing, range anxiety is something RV
makers must consider for electric motor
homes and towable trailers. Thor considers
range anxiety to be the biggest barrier
to EV adoption.
In its eStream electric towable trailer
concept, Thor partnered with supplier ZF
to create an 800-volt battery system that
powers the wheels. The goal is to reduce
the negative impact of towing on an EV's
charge and range.
In North America, towable trailers are
70 percent of the RV market, and as more
automakers introduce EVs, which would
be towing those trailers, there's " a need
to innovate, " said Thor Chief Innovation
Officer Josef Hjelmaker. EV drivers
towing a camper must stop as often as
every 90 minutes to recharge their vehicles,
and that must change, he adds.
CHARGING UP
While RV makers tackle this range
issue, the association is working with the
RV industry " to make sure the [charging]
infrastructure is in place and that national
parks and outdoor recreation areas aren't
being forgotten as we are putting these
investments into EV infrastructure, " says
association spokesperson Monika Geraci.
Winnebago, of Eden Prairie, Minn.,
worked with Lightning eMotors, a Loveland,
Colo., company that electrifies
commercial vehicles, to design its e-RV
concept to travel 125 miles on a single
charge while also powering onboard systems.
Winnebago expects that range to
increase " with improving battery technology, "
Reece says.
It would take 45 minutes to fully recharge
Winnebago's e-RV concept's battery at a
high-speed commercial charging station.
Winnebago in 2019 formed its Advanced
Technology Group, which created
the company's electric motor home concept.
The e-RV is built on a Ford Transit
platform with an enhanced powertrain on
an 86-kilowatt-hour battery that would
propel the vehicle and provide power to
the living area.
The Thor and Winnebago concepts both
include technology that informs users of
charging station locations as they travel.
Said Hjelmaker: " The next generation,
the millennials and Gen Zers, are joining
the RV life with new expectations of ease
of use, ownership, digital presence and a
shift toward more sustainable solutions. " n
february 2022 * shift 23
Shift Magazine - February 2022

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