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  • Electric RV News: Industry Confident Despite Uncertain Market

    Electric RV News: Industry Confident Despite Uncertain Market

    While EV sales have declined, electric RVs are slowly marching forward, with two manufacturers making the news in recent weeks. Harbinger Motors, based in Garden Grove, California, has begun production of their electric commercial truck chassis, which was the basis of Thor’s plug-in hybrid Class A prototype that was demonstrated at the 2024 Elkhart Dealer Open House.

    Conversely, GM has temporarily paused production of its Brightdrop electric delivery van. The Brightdrop has found favor with a few boutique RV makers who convert the vans to RVs. But sales are sluggish, with GM reporting only 274 units sold in total in the first quarter of 2025.

    Thor Prototype Previews Future Electric RVs


    At its open house last year Thor Motor Coach had a prototype motorhome based on the Harbinger chassis on a test track for journalists and RV dealers to try out. The vehicle itself looked very much like other Thor motorhomes, which are based on a Ford truck chassis. Other than a very unusual paint job, the Thor prototype resembled a Thor A.C.E. and was about the same size.

    To address the range anxiety commonly associated with EVs, an on-board gasoline engine extends the estimated range of the vehicle from 150 miles with a fully-charged battery alone to up to 500 miles. The ample battery capacity means equipment like kitchen appliances, the air conditioner, and such can all be run from the battery, without relying on a generator, similar to the Pebble Flow.

    My experience driving the prototype reminded me of the difference between driving an electric car and a gas-powered one. The motorhome offered reasonable acceleration and good overall performance; the handling was notable for being able to maneuver in the tight test course and navigate very tight turns – much tighter than one might expect a vehicle of this size to be able to handle.

    GM BrightDrop RV Sales Sluggish Despite Promise


    GM’s BrightDrop commercial van has had trouble finding traction with customers thus far, but there is at least one RV company that’s seen its potential for camper van conversions. RV maker Grounded bases their Zevo motorhome on the BrightDrop, promising 270 miles of range. Part of the RV upfit includes adding 1,000 watts of solar and adding an rail-based modular system to the interior that allows customers to fit and retrofit components like a shower, seating, or storage according to their present needs.

    Electric vehicles face a perennial chicken-and-egg problem between sales volumes and infrastructure: Drivers of EVs often report problems with a lack of charging stations – or ones that are out of service; on the other hand, there isn’t a big enough customer base to justify building out a more robust charging network, their operators claim. Though the benefits to RVing are obvious: quieter operation, less air pollution at campgrounds, extended off-grid autonomy, with the drastic ebb and flow of funding and public faith, the future of electric motoring is uncertain, but not without promise.

  • Coleman Travel Trailers Top US Sales Charts

    Coleman Travel Trailers Top US Sales Charts

    Camping World’s house brand, Coleman, was the most popular travel trailer brand in the US in 2024 based on sales volume, according to Statistical Surveys. Corporate cousin Jayco’s Jay Flight, meanwhile, was the top-selling North American brand in 2024 when including Canadian sales.

    The Coleman RV range is part of the Thor portfolio and is manufactured by one of its subsidiaries. Until recently that was Heartland RV, but Heartland itself was recently rolled into Jayco, with its house brands moved to Keystone’s Dutchmen RV branch.

    Camping World Chairman Marcus Lemonis stated in a press release related to the finding, “the Coleman portfolio represents our most traded-in unit and our most sold used unit, all contributing to our record year-to-date new and used combined unit market share. These lineups give us the ability to work directly with our manufacturing partners to ensure we are meeting the customer where they want to be in terms of both price and payment.”

    Statistical Surveys, Inc. is a subsidiary of Trader Interactive. The conclusions were reached by measuring unit volumes in the U.S. and Canada through February 2025.

  • Heartland Becomes Jayco Subsidiary in Thor Restructuring

    Heartland Becomes Jayco Subsidiary in Thor Restructuring

    Thor Industries, the world’s largest RV manufacturer, has placed the Heartland RV brand under the control of Jayco, another company in its portfolio. The company cited Jayco’s strong market position and optimized operations as reasons for the change. The change is not expected to disrupt Heartland dealership operations nor affect Heartland RV owners.

    The move comes during a soft market for RVs and looming challenges facing the industry as a whole. According to Bob Martin, president and CEO of Thor, “aligning key Heartland brands under the Jayco umbrella creates potential to maximize the performance of those brands.”

    What About My Heartland Warranty?

    Customers who currently own Heartland products that are covered under that brand’s warranty should not be affected in any way. Ultimately, Thor is responsible for fulfilling that warranty through established channels. Further, many of the components in an RV, including those assembled by Heartland, are made by separate suppliers, each with their own warranties. These could include systems such as air conditioners, furnaces, kitchen appliances, and chassis components. Of course, these warranties will not be affected.

    Heartland was also responsible for several brands that didn’t bear the Heartland name, including some products sold exclusively by Camping World and others sold by Bish’s. Those products will now be built by Dutchmen which is part of the Keystone family, also a Thor brand.

    Martin said, “Under the leadership of (Dutchmen President) Aaron Young, these private label brands will be under leadership that has proven its ability to deliver private label offerings with strong margins. Consolidating this business with Dutchmen’s current lineup will improve our operating leverage at Dutchmen and empower Dutchmen to continue to provide high-quality private label brands previously offered by Heartland.”

    My Jayco experience

    I got to tour Jayco’s operations in 2024 and was shown their plants, pre-delivery inspection facilities, and more. The company was absolutely investing in operations and procedures despite the market being soft at that time. One of the most impressive aspects of this was the company’s investment in pre-delivery inspection facilities, where every RV that rolled out of a Jayco plant was subjected to a thorough top-to-bottom test.

    Vice President of Marketing Trey Miller shared that Jayco is using newer software and control procedures to stay on top of customer requests and habits which has resulted in noteworthy changes to the product itself. Among those customer-driven changes were obvious ones like better mattresses, but also less obvious changes, such as moving furnace ducts from the floor. The attention to detail was clear and is one of the reasons Jayco continues to hold a solid reputation in the industry.

    About Heartland RVs

    Heartland Recreational Vehicles was founded in 2003 and was acquired by Thor Industries in 2010. Under Thor, Heartland RV built a 144,000-square-foot facility in Sturgis, Michigan, which features 40 stations and 34 assembly lines responsible for 5,000 RVs annually.

    In addition to the house brands built for several dealership chains, Heartland also owns Cruiser RV and the DRV line of luxury fifth wheels. They also have nine travel trailer brands, a fifth wheel brand, and a toy hauler brand. It’s an extensive portfolio, and no confirmation was given as to which of these brands were making the transition.

  • Expion360 Batteries Take Center Stage in K-Z Trailers

    Expion360 Batteries Take Center Stage in K-Z Trailers

    Campers looking for additional power to go will have a new reason to consider adding a new K-Z RV to their garage. The subsidiary of THOR Industries announced they will partner with Expion360 to install new battery technology into their Durango fifth-wheel models.

    Under the new agreement, Expion360 will provide battery technology for K-Z’s line of trailers. The partnership goal is to allow campers to stay off-grid for longer, while keeping their essential electronics powered from anywhere on the road.

     

    Edge Batteries Feature Solar Integration and Real-Time Battery Management System

    The K-Z RV Boondocker package will now feature an array of three Expion360 Edge 51.2-volt, 60-amp-hour vertical heat conduction (VHC) batteries, with the option to add a fourth battery to their trailer. The advanced battery technology and expert system integration is provided by Wellspring Solar.

    A built-in advanced battery management system protects it from high- or low-voltage surges, short circuits, overcurrent, and high- or low-voltage charging. With Bluetooth connectivity built in, Edge batteries work with the SmartTalk app for battery management. The battery also offers full integration with Victron’s Cerbo GX monitoring system to facilitate easy electrical system communication.

     

    Large-Capacity Group 27 Batteries Cater to Extended Off-Grid Journeys

    Expion360’s battery systems will also play a prominent part in the Durango “Off the Grid” solar package. RV buyers can choose to upgrade to two Group 27 100-amp-hour VHC heated batteries. Designed for RVs configured for long spans off-grid, the batteries come with a 12-year warranty and their rugged design is meant to work in even the toughest conditions.

    “By partnering with Expion360, we can provide advanced lithium battery options that enhance the off-grid experience,” Brent Froman, general manager of K-Z RV, said in a statement. “We are excited to offer these high-quality power solutions in our Durango and Durango Gold models, as well as in the Durango Half-Ton.”

    The Expion360 Edge batteries will be available in the Durango and Durango Gold trailers, while the Group 27 batteries come in the Durango, Durango Gold, and Durango Half-Ton trailers.