Electric vehicles are upgrading the camping experience as we know it
Imagine how peaceful camping would be without the loud gas-powered engines running. Electric vehicles are upgrading the camping experience as we know it. Not only are EVs silent, but they also offer unique advantages over gas-powered cars for camping.
EVs are going more off-grid
If you haven’t noticed already, more electric vehicles are going “off-grid” to explore the outdoors, go camping, etc.
In fact, campers are more likely to own an electric vehicle. According to a survey by Kampgrounds of America (via CNN), about 4% of regular campers own an EV, compared to just 1% of Americans.
EV startups like Rivian (RIVN), with its “Electric Adventure Vehicles,” are designing vehicles built for on- and off-road performance. Rivian’s vehicles are made with one mission in mind: “to protect our planet and the cultures that inhabit it for generations to come.”
Although Rivian EVs are “made for the plant,” they are also some of the most hardcore vehicles you will come across.
Rivian’s R1T electric truck offers up to 410 miles of range, an extendable truck bed (up to 83.9″), a gear tunnel and frunk for extra storage, and even an included “Rivian Torch” flashlight in the driver-side door.
The R1T can also plow through +3 feet of water, rock crawl a 100% grade, and tow up to 11,000 lbs.
Rivian’s R1S electric SUV offers just as much capability with up to 400 miles range, 14.9″ of ground clearance, and room for seven. It includes up to 104 cu ft storage space an 7,700 lbs towing.
EVs are upgrading camping as we know it
Rivian is not the only company designing EVs for camping and exploring. Ford, Hyundai, Tesla, Volkswagen, and others are building electric vehicles and features to upgrade the experience.
Electric vehicles already offer distinct advantages over ICE cars, like when towing. Matt Lin, who takes his Ford F-150 Lightning and a camping trailer out every few weeks, explained how the instant torque helps when towing.
“I’m not constantly sitting there watching transmission temps climb, I’m not watching motor temps climb on hills,” Linn said. He lives in “Hill County,” Texas.
Linn added he uses the “frunk almost as an outdoor kitchen because it takes a lot of electrical strain off of the camper.” He uses it to run his coffee maker, ice maker, etc.
Meanwhile, automakers are not the only ones working to improve the camping experience with EVs. Trailer companies are releasing unique new products and features to make EV camping even easier.
Mike Kowal, who pulls an airstream RV with his Rivian R1S, said the SUV learns how the trailer impacts range and adjusts estimates. He can tow about 200 miles with the trailer.
Travel trailer and RV companies joiAirstream, known
Know for its iconic “Silver Bullet” design, Airstream unveiled the Trade Wind in Sept. It’s the company’s most independent travel trailer so far, featuring its biggest battery bank and solar system.
Thor Industries, which owns Airstream, is focusing on aerodynamics to improve efficiency. Thor’s head of product development, McKay Featherstone, said, “As we specifically target electric vehicles, it just becomes doubly important.”
Airstream isn’t the only one. Rivals like Bowlus are going all-in on electric and solar tech for off-grid camping.
Bowlus, which launched the “world’s first all-electric RV,” revealed its new Rivet luxury travel trailer last month. As its most rugged RV yet, the Rivet features a “yacht-quality” battery and solar system for “indefinite time off-grid.”
The Rivet’s +25-ft floor plan includes a separate bedroom, a luxury bathroom with a hotel-style shower, a spacious living room, and a kitchen. Also included is a fridge/freezer, air conditioning, heat, two-burner induction cooktop, microwave, and more.
“We’ve had customers cross coasts, all the way up to Canada, all the way across Canada and back down, all with an electric vehicle,” Bowlus CEO Geneva Long explained.
One of the biggest obstacles right now is charging. Many campsites across the country have older infrastructure and need an upgrade.
KOA has dedicated EV chargers at about 5% of its campsites, which could reach around 50% in the next 5 to 10 years.
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Environment
Communication is now even more important to getting renewable projects off the ground, experts say
(From left) CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick moderates an IoT panel with Cenk Alper, CEO of Sabanci Holding, Christina Shim, chief sustainability officer of IBM, and Mitesh Patel, interim CEO and COO of SunCable International, at CONVERGE LIVE on March 13, 2025.
Renewable energy companies can shorten the long approval process needed for their projects by communicating better with stakeholders, according to experts.
Christina Shim, IBM’s chief sustainability officer, said sponsors need to focus on the business value — in addition to the environmental benefits — when discussing their projects.
“That being said … there are some triggering words now, depending on where you sit around the world, and I think the more that you can quantify business value for what you’re doing and tie it to, again, the business operations and business decision making, it’s only going to be more and more important,” Shim said Thursday.
“As long as the outcomes are the same, you just need to make sure that you’re communicating in an appropriate way with the right stakeholders.”
She compared it to how one might talk to a CFO, versus an investor, versus someone in procurement. “You kind of have to talk about things a little bit differently.”
Mitesh Patel, interim CEO and COO at SunCable International, agrees that adjusting communication for the right audience is crucial.
“For politicians, the voters are their constituency, not your project or not your company. You have to help them translate what benefits your project will bring to the constituents,” said Patel, whose company is developing a project to deliver solar energy from Australia to Singapore via undersea cables.
The project, called Australia-Asia PowerLink, is valued around $24 billion and expected to supply Singapore with 1.75 gigawatts of electricity — or around 15% of its electricity needs, according to the company.
The comments by Shim and Patel, who were speaking to CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick on a panel in Singapore, come as renewable energy projects often take many years to get off the ground.
A report from the Global Infrastructure hub, which is part of the World Bank’s Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility, noted the complex nature of preparation needed before an infrastructure project gets underway. It put the average project preparation time at 6 years but said it can take up to 14 years if the project is not planned properly.
Cenk Alper, CEO of Sabanci Holding, a Turkish conglomerate, said the biggest obstacle to getting renewable energy projects off the ground is often regulatory.
“The biggest problem is still government — the permits. Because from licensing to making a project ready, the total time is longer than the construction time,” he said.
The situation in Europe is worse, he added, citing a project where connecting to the grid took two years.
Alper said Western countries need to streamline the approval process for renewable energy projects, noting China has embarked on more projects in the last five years than the rest of the world combined.
A new study from the REPEAT Project led by Princeton University’s ZERO Lab warns that the repeal of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax credits could decimate the growing EV manufacturing sector.
The report “Potential Impacts of Electric Vehicle Tax Credit Repeal on US Vehicle Market and Manufacturing” clearly outlines the risks. The Princeton study states that repealing the IRA federal tax credits and the EPA’s clean vehicle regulations would sharply reduce EV demand.
Specifically, EV sales could drop around 30% by 2027 and nearly 40% by 2030 compared to sticking with the policies implemented by the Biden administration. That means the share of EVs among new cars sold would shrink dramatically – from about 18% to 13% by 2026 and from 40% to just 24% by 2030.
“While no one has a perfect crystal ball, this is our best attempt to survey available quantitative forecasts and develop an outlook on US EV sales,” explained the study’s project leader, Jesse D. Jenkins, assistant professor at Princeton’s Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering and Andlinger Center for Energy & Environment in an email. “The report is also the only analysis I’m aware of to date that draws the connection to US manufacturing as well.”
Here’s why this matters: The report points out that repealing these policies wouldn’t just slow down EV adoption – it could seriously derail the US manufacturing renaissance now underway. Up to 100% of planned expansions for EV assembly plants could be canceled or shuttered. Battery manufacturing would also take a huge hit, with between 29% and 72% of battery cell production capacity becoming redundant by 2025. That means factories under construction or those just coming online would be at risk.
To put that into perspective, an Environmental Defense Fund report released in January found that $197.6 billion worth of investments in EV and battery manufacturing have been announced at 208 facilities around the US, with two-thirds announced since the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022.
It’s probably a good time to point out that, in order to qualify for IRA federal tax credits, EVs must be domestically assembled, use battery components that have been substantially domestically produced, and use critical minerals produced, processed, or recycled in North America or free trade agreement countries.
Why, then, is the Trump administration torpedoing an industry that’s achieving the very thing it says it wants to achieve, which is to boost domestic manufacturing and jobs?
And let’s not forget the broader EV supply chain – materials, parts, and component suppliers across the country would also suffer, though these effects haven’t even been fully quantified yet.
Bottom line: Repealing the tax credits and regulations wouldn’t just slow down EV sales – it would threaten the jobs, investments, and communities counting on America’s EV manufacturing boom.
Read more: Republican districts lose billions as clean energy cancellations surge
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The Optiq, Cadillac’s most affordable EV, just got a price cut. Despite being on the market for less than two months, GM cut lease prices by nearly $100 a month. Here’s how you can snag the deal.
GM cuts lease prices on Cadillac’s most affordable EV
Compared to Cadillac’s other electric vehicles, like the Escalade IQL, which starts at over $130,000, and the Vistiq, which has a price tag of over $77,000, the Optiq already looks like a steal at about $55,000.
Cadillac’s electric SUV arrived in January with lease prices starting at $489 per month. Although this was already its cheapest SUV (gas or EV), GM is making it even more affordable this month.
The 2025 Cadillac Lyriq is now listed at just $399 for 24 months with $4,929 due at signing. In less than two months, the OPTIQ’s lease prices have fallen by $90, or almost 20%. The deal is for the 2025 Cadillac Optiq AWD Luxury 1 with an MSRP of $54,390.
Cadillac’s lease deal runs through March 31. However, there are a few limitations you should know about. The deal includes a $2,000 loyalty or conquest offer.
The fine print states you must be a lessee of a 2020 model year or newer non-GM vehicle for at least 30 days. According to online car research firm CarsDirect, this extends to 2011 and newer electric vehicles from a competitor brands such as Tesla, Rivian, Porsche, BMW, Ford, and Honda, among several others.
At 190″ long, 75″ wide, and 65″ tall, the Cadillac Optiq is about the same size as the Tesla Model Y (187″ long x 76″ wide x 64″ tall).
Powered by an 85 kWh battery pack, the electric SUV has a driving range of up to 302 miles. With 150 kW DC fast charging, the Optiq can gain up to 79 miles of range in about 10 minutes.
| 2025 Cadillac Optiq trim | Starting Price (including destination) |
Driving Range (EPA-estimated) |
| Luxury 1 | $54,390 | 302 miles |
| Luxury 2 | $56,590 | 302 miles |
| Sport 1 | $54,990 | 302 miles |
| Sport 2 | $57,090 | 302 miles |
Inside, the Optiq features a massive 33″ infotainment and “segment-leading” cargo (57 cubic feet) and second-row space.
GM has been introducing new deals on new EV models all year. Chevy’s new Equinox, Blazer, and Silverado EVs are all available with 0% APR with leases starting as low as $299 per month.
Ready to take advantage of the savings? We can help you get started. Check out our links below to find deals on GM’s most popular EVs in your area.
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