RV News: Fleetwood’s New Camper Van, Aliner Anniversary Edition, and a Porsche 911 Sets New Altitude Driving Record

rv.com, RvLyfe

Welcome back to our weekly round-up of news from the RV and camping industries. As usual, we have a lot to cover this week, so let’s dive right in.

Fleetwood and Holiday Rambler Announce Class B Camper Vans: This week, Fleetwood RV and Holiday Rambler —both owned by Rev Recreation Group—announced new Class B camper vans coming to their respective 2024 lineups. The two brands are best known for their larger Class A motorhomes but are expanding their offerings to meet changing consumer demands. For Fleetwood, the new model comes in the form of the 2024 Xcursion, while Holiday Rambler will offer a similar RV dubbed the Xpedition. The new campers ride the Mercedes Sprinter platform. Find out more here.
Aliner Reveals Limited Edition 40th Anniversary Towable: 2024 marks the 40th anniversary of the founding of Aliner, the RV manufacturer known for its distinctive A-frame models. To celebrate, the company has announced a limited-edition towable added to its Evolution line for 2024. Interested buyers will have to act fast, though, as only 100-150 of these special collector editions will be sold. Watch the Aliner website for further updates.
Porsche 911 Sets New Altitude Record for Highest Drive: Think your overlanding rig can go just about anywhere? Is it capable of driving up a 22,000-foot volcano? This week, a team of adventurers did just that when they took a pair of Porsche 911s up a mountain in Chile. The vehicles were highly modified to take on the rough terrain, eventually reaching the summit of Ojos del Salado at 22,093 feet, setting a record for the highest altitude drive ever. Read all about it here.
EV Charging Start-Up Paving the Way for Electric RV Rentals: If Brooklyn-based start-up itselectric has its way, renting electric RVs could get a lot easier. This week, the company joined forces with several other organizations—most notably Grounded RV, Michigan Central, and Newlab—to announce the availability of e-RV rentals and charging in the Detroit area. While this is a small step towards making these vehicles and charging infrastructure available to more people, it is a promising milestone. Read more about this development here.
Industry’s First RV Technology Summit Coming to Tampa in January 2024: RV industry leaders will descend on Tampa, Florida, in a few weeks for the inaugural RV Technology Summit. A joint venture between Harvest Hosts, Outdoorsy, Roamly, and RV Life, the event looks to “bridge the gap between the traditional ways of the RV industry and the exciting world of RV travel technology.” Topics of discussion will include using apps to navigate, exploring destinations online, new tech to make RVing more affordable, and much more.
More Data Shows Winter Camping on the Rise: We’ve seen various surveys and studies indicating winter camping is growing in popularity, and The Dyrt has the numbers to back that trend up. This week, the online campsite booking service shared data from a recent survey it conducted with its members. The results showed that 31.2% of respondents indicated they went camping during the winter in 2023. A press release announcing the findings says improvements in gear and clothing have helped fuel the interest in cold-weather outings and reiterates that interest in camping, in general, remains at an all-time high.
New e-Bike Doesn’t Require a Battery: E-bikes are a fun, eco-friendly option for exploring a destination, which has made them especially popular with RVers. However, when compared to traditional models, e-bikes tend to be much heavier, thanks to their large battery packs. But what if an e-bike didn’t need a battery at all? A French company called Pi-Pop, has introduced an innovative new design that does away with the power cell altogether. Instead, it uses a supercapacitor to collect energy while descending, riding on a flat surface, and using the brakes, which can then be used to apply pedal assist on hills. Our friends at GearJunkie have the full scoop.
The EQuad is an Electric ATV: Switching gears to an e-bike of a different kind, earlier this week a company called Livaq introduced an all-electric ATV dubbed the EQuad. The four-wheel off-roader repotedly has a range of up to 170 miles and can reach a speed of 67 mph. The vehicle’s electric motors provide plenty of torque and power for riding over rugged terrain, without producing emissions or much noise. The four-wheeler is available for preorder now at an MSRP of $8,600. Sign us up!