Outdoors

Bowlus takes the long road with its most powerful off-grid camper yet

Bowlus takes the long road with its most powerful off-grid camper yet
No matter how many features Bowlus packs into the Road Chief, it's still that distinctive look that really captures the imagination
No matter how many features Bowlus packs into the Road Chief, it's still that distinctive look that really captures the imagination
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The Road Chief Endless Highways Performance Edition becomes Bowlus' most powerful, high-tech trailer
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The Road Chief Endless Highways Performance Edition becomes Bowlus' most powerful, high-tech trailer
No matter how many features Bowlus packs into the Road Chief, it's still that distinctive look that really captures the imagination
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No matter how many features Bowlus packs into the Road Chief, it's still that distinctive look that really captures the imagination
The Performance Edition includes two long skylights
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The Performance Edition includes two long skylights
Bowlus estimates that the new lithium battery system can run primary equipment for up to 14 days without recharging
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Bowlus estimates that the new lithium battery system can run primary equipment for up to 14 days without recharging
The new Endless Highways Performance Edition measures just under 26 feet long
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The new Endless Highways Performance Edition measures just under 26 feet long
On the "endless highway"
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On the "endless highway"
Beating the setting sun by minutes is much better done with an ultra-luxury trailer than with
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Beating the setting sun by minutes is much better done with an ultra-luxury trailer than with a tent
Bowlus' latest goes up for preorder today, starting at $225,000
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Bowlus' latest goes up for preorder today, starting at $225,000
The rear king bed split into singles
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The rear king bed split into singles
The dining area includes a two-seat booth and a sofa with removable table
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The dining area includes a two-seat booth and a sofa with removable table
Looking back down the aisle of the Bowlus Road Chief Endless Highways Performance Edition
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Looking back down the aisle of the Bowlus Road Chief Endless Highways Performance Edition
Much like the other areas of the Road Chief trailer, the kitchen straddles the aisle
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Much like the other areas of the Road Chief trailer, the kitchen straddles the aisle
View gallery - 12 images

Luxury travel trailer maker Bowlus Road Chief is back with another edition, one that handily exceeds the off-grid battery and tech capabilities of current and past models. With a design inspired by yachts, aircraft and electric vehicles, the Endless Highways Performance Edition can roll clean across the entire United States and back without ever running out of battery power. It also has a full remote monitoring system, floor heating, indoor/outdoor cooking capabilities and the effortless style of Bowlus' riveted polished-aluminum shell.

Modern-day technology and comfort have been cornerstones of the Bowlus Road Chief design since Geneva Long and her father John revived the nameplate in 2013. The trailers have always been equipped with standard and available features like multiple batteries, solar panels, air conditioning, and connectivity tools to support industrious digital nomads. In 2016, Bowlus upped the ante by offering the Lithium+ package with 4-kWh LiFePO4 battery bank meant to keep onboard amenities running for up to a week at a time. It later rolled that package into its standard Endless Highways model.

With the Endless Highways Performance Edition, Bowlus steps things up once again, this time doubling the capacity of its LiFePO4 battery to 600 Ah/7,680 Wh. The new battery bank delivers power to appliances and outlets for up to two weeks between charges with help from a marine-grade 3,000-W inverter, upgraded from the 2,000-W inverter on the standard Endless Highways.

On the "endless highway"
On the "endless highway"

The two-week estimate is based on running standard equipment like the fridge, lights, routers, pumps and heaters but doesn't include running the air conditioning. Bowlus says the battery can run the A/C for about two nights before running out of juice. The onboard power management system is wired up to the internet and Bluetooth, enabling remote monitoring via smartphone.

If you happen to be towing the 25.8-foot (7.9-m) Performance Edition trailer with an electric vehicle, you can even use the external 110-V outlet to provide an emergency charge, adding roughly 16 miles (25.7 km) worth of battery power to the tow EV, which will hopefully be enough to get it to shore power.

The new Endless Highways Performance Edition measures just under 26 feet long
The new Endless Highways Performance Edition measures just under 26 feet long

Beyond the big power upgrade, the new model houses the same Endless Highways floor plan as in the past. It starts off with a king bed squeezed into the creased tail that can split into a V-shaped pair of twins. Directly ahead of the bedroom, the aisle-split dry bathroom has a port-side teak-finished shower room complete with seat and a starboard-side toilet room with sink.

The large dining area also spans the aisle, this time with a pair of dining booths/work stations that convert over into single beds. The kitchen area is the last stop on the way to the front door and small tongue deck.

Roving chefs that prefer to cook in the fresh air will be glad to know that Bowlus includes an outdoor cooking station with both 110-V outlet and propane hookup. This allows campers to combine electrical and LPG cooking equipment like a portable grill, induction cooktop and blender into a high-powered outdoor kitchen.

The Endless Highways Performance Edition launches today and is available for pre-order at US$225,000, a shockingly high price, for sure, but not unprecedented.

Source: Bowlus

View gallery - 12 images
6 comments
6 comments
paul314
That two-week estimate seems really optimistic to me. A couple of road warriors with serious laptops could churn through that entire battery capacity in a week or less, and that's before the other amenities. Of course, if you have a tow vehicle, you have another much bigger source of power to take advantage of.
Jason Catterall
There is no way that 4kWh battery would add 16 miles of range to any vehicle towing this monster. A Tesla Model 3 manages that energy use in optimal conditions, whilst towing nothing. At best this will add 6 to 8 miles, assuming it was fully charged when used to top the tow car up.
Where do they get these numbers from??
Eddy
This seems to be a hell of a big camper to be on a single axle.
Mayakovski
Would make a lot more send to turn it around, the door at the tail end out of the way of the tow bar. Putting the aerodynamic shape into the wind. Also I would not trust such a big trailer to a single axle. It's cool looking but that price is ridiculous for the features. Whomever buys this is getting ripped off in a big way.
ljaques
You wanted a chrome look? OK, bend over. Here it is! Hayull, even Airstream didn't ask that much for their big models. That battery would give you =much= less time than they specify, especially if on the inverter. I'm guessing that sales will number in the few handfuls.
Fast Eddie
I think something like the X-Stream concept would be a better all-around choice:

https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/c13fe85249ee6e486b81ba7ea546f297b7586f65f3d8f46e7f3dc023d8fe66f8.jpg