Tesla Graduates light up the RV Industry With Lightship L1 Camper

Tesla graduates, Rivian, Proterra, Lucid, and Zoox have used their their automotive EV design and development expertise to light up the stagnant RV industry with their company called Lightship.

The very first all-electric RV manufacturer founded in 2020, is formed by men and women are on a mission to advance travel trailers lightyears ahead. Its first intergalactic space traveller is the purpose-built, all-electric Lightship L1 battery-powered travel trailer—EV not included.

The company’s co-founders Ben Parker and Toby Kraus are very well informed on how about breaking the mould, to innovative, thinking outside the box in a segment that is perfectly content with, well, thinking inside the box.

Both being previously employed by Tesla while that all-electric start-up was really shaking up the automotive market, Ben and Toby are reimagining and electrifying from the ground up. You can hear even with the name Lightship, that it testifies to the duo’s former immersion in the Tesla culture.

This trailer is not one that is traditional as it is retrofitted with an electric heart in lieu of propane and electric (via gas-powered generators) systems. It has a perfectly clean-sheet approach, which results in an aerodynamic, self-propelled travel trailer with a seamless, connected all-electric ecosystem, including appliances, features, and modern amenities.

Lightship says the L1 is three times more aerodynamic than a traditional travel trailer, which is really important when it comes to maximizing the tow rig’s range (or fuel economy). You can only understand how some thought into aerodynamics would be a great thing if you’ve towed a bricklike traditional travel trailer before.

This trailer does not have slide-outs, but the roof however, slides up for more room. The idea is not necessarily new, but the execution is newer. It’s like a really modern, sophisticated, hard-sided “slide-up” pop-up camper.

Showing off that it’s manufactured by Tesla guys, the Lightship L1 has a self-propulsion system. It has up to 80 kWh of onboard battery capacity, which helps the travel trailer propel itself to assist in towing, resulting in minimal efficiency loss for the tow vehicle by helping the go-process rather than hindering. It also works perfectly in conjunction with the travel trailer’s battery system (backed by up to 3 kW of solar power) to provide a week of off-grid energy without charging, according to Lightship.

The Lightship L1 can sleep between four and six occupants, depending on configuration, and it is 27 feet long (a tad longer than the new Toro Bravo 4×4 Silver Spear) and 8.5 feet wide. Its gross vehicle weight (that’s fully loaded) is 7,500 pounds.

Main Image: Monica Gonderman