Travel better | Electric RVs for a cheaper vacation?

High gas prices are causing some recreational vehicle (RV) owners to reconsider their summer vacation plans. Could lovers of long getaways turn to models with electric motors to reduce the bill and pollute less? Not at the moment. This does not prevent some campers from pulling a trailer with their electric car…

Simon Chabot
The Press

Faced with a gas price of nearly $2 per liter, many campers will go less far than expected during their next vacation, reveals a survey by the Quebec Federation of Camping and Caravanning (FQCC). Nearly 17% of group members surveyed online will go camping closer to home and about one in five campers thinks they will stay longer in the same place in order to limit their expenses.

But not all campers intend to change their summer plans, if the FQCC’s sounding is to be believed. On the contrary. Some 20% of respondents will save money elsewhere to offset increased transport costs and 37% will not change their plans. After two summers when their movements were restricted by measures to limit the spread of COVID-19, campers are thirsty for freedom, judge Louise Gagnon, director of communications at the FQCC. “As they can start traveling again, people are not going to help it. Several campsites are already full for the summer. »

Director of sales at Horizon Lussier, an RV dealer located in Marieville, Serge Maheux believes that wholesale motorized buyers are not concerned about the price of gasoline. “When you spend $200,000, $300,000 or $400,000 on a motorhome, I don’t think it has an impact,” he observes.

The fact remains that with the constant increase in prices at the pump, and an ecological conscience accentuated by the climate crisis, small recreational vehicles are gaining in popularity.

And why not turn to RVs with electric motors? Because even if there are some prototypes, we don’t find any on the market yet. Technology does not allow products to be offered with sufficient autonomy, underlines Dominique Nadeau, president of Safari Condo, a Quebec company that fits RVs in commercial vehicles.

Even if GM announces the arrival of trucks with greater autonomy, up to 640 km, it will still be necessary to find where to place the water and propane tanks if the batteries already occupy the entire underside of the vehicle. “There are studies to be done to see how we can adapt the products, specifies M^me Nadeau. For the moment, we therefore have no concrete plans. »

A caravan in the wind

However, Safari Condo, which also manufactures trailers, has been offering one designed to be towed by an electric vehicle for two years already. The A2124 is the result of a collaboration with Redmond Hayes, a retiree who bought a Tesla Model X in 2017 with the intention of touring North America while camping. Dissatisfied with the performance of his car with his F1743 retractable roof trailer, and after tinkering with a plastic part to try to improve it, Mr. Hayes was invited to work with the Safari Condo team.

Following virtual wind tunnel tests, Safari Condo was able to reduce the coefficient of the model developed with the assistance of Mr. Hayes by 50%. “We’re talking about 15% energy savings – fuel or electricity – to pull the A2124 trailer,” explains Dominique Nadeau. Buyers of electric pickups, which more and more manufacturers are offering, will be happy to hear that.

In 2019, Redmond Hayes traveled all the way to California pulling his new trailer, a 13,000 mile round trip. Obviously, he had to make quite frequent stops for refills. The range of his Tesla, about 475 km, is reduced by half when he pulls the caravan. “I made the compromise because I wanted to prove that it was possible, says the man whose vehicle now has 200,000 km on the clock. But there is clearly an interest in this way of travelling… if you had seen the number of people who came to ask me questions! »

Redmond Hayes will also be at the Safari Condo stand at the next Quebec Electric Vehicle Show, to be held at the Old Capital Fair Center, from May 13 to 15, to talk with the curious. He promises to talk about both the ups and downs of his experience. “There is a big downside on the side of the charging stations, he cites as an example of the inconvenience of caravanning in electric mode. Most were not configured for vehicles with a trailer. It is therefore necessary to unhook the trailer to connect. »

A solar RV

Students from the Technical University of Eindhoven, in the Netherlands, presented last fall a recreational vehicle equipped with five solar panels which feed both its engine block, but also the kitchen and even a television. Called Stella Vita, this RV also houses a double bed and a bathroom with shower, sink and toilet. It traveled nearly 2000 km on its maiden voyage to Europe.