While its fancier sibling has been undercutting it with a solid piece of off-road RVing, Airstream has been preoccupied taking a good idea too far. Way too far. The Interstate 19X LE Outland Edition starts off with a few unique, interesting camping features concealed inside a classic "riveted" silver bullet shell, including a slide-out indoor/outdoor bed. Sadly, somewhere along the line Airstream's "off" switch got disconnected, and it decided to slather the van in a package so over-the-top tacky, the SEMA show might just be embarrassed to host it. Thankfully, only 30 will be built.
Look at the special-edition Interstate LE Outland from nearly any exterior angle, and it appears to be a pretty nice all-terrain camper van ... so long as it's daytime and the doors remain closed. It rides on the US-market off-road camper base van of choice in the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 144 AWD and adds on some nice rugged equipment like a heavy-duty front bumper with bull bar, off-road LED lighting, and a set of 18-in wheels shod in BFG KO2 all-terrain tires.
Airstream's latest also boasts an Overland Vehicle Systems 270-degree wraparound awning, promising more shade than the single-side pull-out awnings common on adventure vans, including the original Interstate 19X. That feature is sure to prove particularly handy in the types of rugged, treeless deserts and tundras over which one would be inclined to drive a van like this.
The Outland's faux-riveted exterior will probably prove a polarizing point of contention, with some dismissing it as vinyl wrap fakery with no real point, others enjoying it as a fun nod to Airstream's iconic trailer design. We'll let each beholder come to their own conclusion on that, and since it's optional, buyers can do the same.
It's behind those graphic rivets where the Outland's downfall, as well as its handiest features, lurk. Step through the sliding door on the passenger side, and things go slightly awry as garish red trim peeks out from the walls and floor. Overall, though, the front half of the cabin is quite nice and functional.
In place of the Interstate 19X's usual rear sofa layout, the Outland has two smaller vis-a-vis benches between the kitchen and raised rear bed – so campers don't have to do the lounge-to-bed conversion every night but still enjoy a comfortable pair of lounge seats during the day. A removable multi-position table turns those two seats into a dining area for two.
Though Airstream doesn't show it in the photos, its PR team tells us that the 19X does in fact have a bathroom, which seems essential for an off-road-oriented camper van of this size. It's a basic wet bath layout located between the driver's seat and driver-side lounge seat. The sink just aft of the bathroom compartment provides flexibility and serves as the kitchen sink.
The kitchen features a unique design that takes indoor/outdoor functionality a step further than the average van of this kind. Instead of just positioning the refrigerator at the end of the kitchen block, where it can be accessed from inside and out, Airstream tunnels through the kitchen block and puts the Dometic CFX3 on a slide-out for improved accessibility. Set up your outdoor camping chairs on either side, and you have cold drinks within arm's length.
Complementing that handy fridge configuration is a removable induction cooker that can be used inside on the countertop or outside on the removable table. Airstream includes a rear door mount for the latter purpose. There's nothing new about the portable induction cooker, which has fast-become a standard feature on a number of adventure camper vans, but it serves as a nice extension of the Outland's generous indoor/outdoor living layout.
Both fridge and cooktop are powered by a 200-Ah lithium battery system with 2,000-W pure sine inverter/charger, 250 watts of solar charging and a 30-A shore power connection. A 2.5-kW remote-start generator serves as backup just in case those charging options don't keep up, though those who think they'll need more power from go can also upgrade to the E1 power package.
Airstream is able to fit its spacious floor plan into a standard-wheelbase Sprinter by using a little trickery with its bed. The raised 54 x 75-in (137 x 191-cm) bed can be set up in three separate positions via bidirectional slides. At night, it extends out to full size over top the two-seat lounge. It can also slide partially out the rear double doors, serving as a sort of a balcony daybed and under-the-stars sleeper that still enjoys a little overhead protection from the awning. During the day, it compacts in half so campers can slide it into the back and sit in the lounge chairs or slide it forward for more room in the rear garage.
Airstream beefs up the bed frame and tacks on a chair swing hanger so that owners can create a two-story open air lounge. The bed is also designed to be completely removed, allowing the Outland to double as an adventure day tripper that can load in gear from floor to ceiling. Airline tie-down track on the floor works to keep everything secure.
And then, a good thing goes bad. Fast.
You'll have to open the rear doors to access that slide-out bed function, and the instant you do, your eyes will be under attack from multiple directions. They'll become immediately glued to either the bright-red bed frame and side panels straight ahead or the oversized dangling speaker cones belonging to the ridiculous 1,200-W audio system (includes 400-W sub!!).
And that's the best case scenario. If daylight has dwindled, your eyes won't have the option, pulled in like moths to the utterly tacky colored lighting that glowing off the speaker edges.
Offensive as the blazing speaker lights are to the very concept of camping in nature, at least you'll have gotten fair warning by the dribbling glow of underbody lighting outside. That's more than any camp neighbors within a 3,000-ft radius or so will get when the audio system starts thumping bass with the thoughtless abandon of a horny teenager slow-driving through his crush's neighborhood at 1 a.m.
We've seen the occasional exhibition RV with some of this type of over-the-top ostentation, but have customers really been hounding Airstream for a Red Bull-saturated, open-air dancehall powerful enough to blow the pine needles clean off surrounding trees? We'd have to think not, and the fact the company has limited availability to a couple dozen suggests it's not so confident, either.
We suppose the Outland could make a decent music festival tourer, but why overbuild it with all that off-road kit? And why not leave that whole part of the project to some custom conversion upstart looking to make a name for itself?
We intend to never get an answer to those questions because if we ever see one of these out in the wild, we'll be far too busy packing up and rushing to a different campground, maybe an entirely different forest, to ask for more info. Luckily, our chances are slim, what with only 30 planned build spots, each dragging with it a price tag of US$344,000 before options.
On the other hand, we do hope Airstream carries over select Outland features as part of its future products or options sheet. The slide-integrated kitchen design, multi-position bed, 270-degree awning and general floor plan seem would be nice additions, and the name isn't bad, either – a slight but noticeable break from grossly overused tack-ons like "Overland" or "Basecamp."
Source: Airstream