When the term "Extinction Level Event Camper Trailer" leapt out from our morning email scroll, we assumed it was just one company's creative marketing, a way of distinguishing its offering from all the other "rugged" and "hardcore" campers out there. But the new ELE trailer from Mammoth Overland is different. It goes beyond mere camping and into the realm of pure post-apocalyptic survival, carrying unique features like a Bear Spray Defense System, medical-grade air filtration, drone-launch system and optional bulletproofing. Imagine the worst disaster you can think of, and then imagine towing and camping right through the heart of it.
"People ask me all the time if our trailers are bear-proof — and they are, technically," said Mammoth president Scott Taylor. "That got me thinking: What if we made a trailer that’s truly bear- as well as apocalypse-proof? I grew up in Montana, and Montanans know a thing or two about bear-proofing and self-reliance. We designed ELE to aircraft standards. It can handle whatever campers might encounter, from bears, to wildfires, to social unrest, so overlanders can explore fearlessly."
Bear attacks on humans may be extremely rare, but statistics will be of little consolation if you're woken by a bear clawing and rocking at a teardrop trailer that has you lying mere inches from the kitchen, little more than a piece of lightly alu-dressed plywood between your groggy face and the animal's determined claws. Bears have been known to mangle car doors on their undying mission to sate hunger, so what might they do to a small RV ... or the human inside?
Instead of pondering that while listening to those claws digging closer and closer, ELE campers have a quick out. Mammoth's bear spray system ties together replaceable left and right bear spray canisters on the front of the trailer. A flip of one of two rocker switches located inside the cabin behind accident-proof covers unleashes a 25 x 10-foot (7.6 x 3-m) mist of spray around the trailer exterior within seconds, warding away everything from hungry bears to unlucky thieves, like so:
Hopefully the spray system will quash any intrusions on its own, but should it fall short, the trailer also includes lockable weapons storage designed for keeping handguns and rifles safe and at the ready. And if you're buying a trailer like this, you're probably going to be stocking it with firepower.
Not that Mammoth's trailer is mere plywood lightly dressed in aluminum, anyway. The company, a spinoff of light-sport aircraft manufacturer Vashon, builds the ELE with aerospace-derived construction, securing an aluminum-sandwich body to a high-strength steel chassis. The build is reinforced with steel armor up front and steel skid plates below, and those looking for even more protection can add the optional Level 3 bulletproof armoring package to create a towable survival bunker that pairs perfectly with something like a mil-spec Rezvani Tank.
Mammoth doesn't stop there. It pressurizes the ELE cabin to 0.25 PSI with help from two submarine-style pressure doors that each push four pins into the walls at the turn of the handle. A medical-grade air filtration system from E.L. Foust ensures interior air is clean, providing up to six months of purified air. The system is capable of immediately purging air and refilling the cabin with purified air in less than three minutes. It filters so finely, it can even take care of odors.
The ELE also comes equipped with a Guzzle H2O water filtration system capable of filtering and filling the onboard 83-L water tank in 10 minutes. This way, occupants don't have to venture back to a compromised, unfriendly grid for a refill.
ELE occupants maintain awareness of their surroundings via multiple surveillance features. A gimbal-mounted, boom-operated night-vision camera rises over top the roof to provide a surveillance feed to the computer and onboard 32-in TV. To take that surveillance wider, a roof mounted hatch lets campers quickly access the drone deployment system for eyes in the sky. The greater monitoring system also includes an onboard weather station and geiger counter.
Meanwhile, the robust R20 insulation package means that campers can stay put and stay comfortable. An air conditioner and available Dickinson Newport propane heater combine to keep the climate just right, while campers stay connected via Starlink internet and dual-band radio communications.
Four 100-Ah Renogy smart lithium batteries deliver up to 20 hours of electricity and can charge via the two 100-W solar panels on the awning or from driving the tow vehicle. A Wen portable gas generator serves as a backup.
That broad feature set comes standard on the $67,000 ELE trailer, but those who want to make it literally bulletproof will have to pony up an extra $25K for the Level 3 armoring. The ELE will be a limited edition trailer, and Mammoth is taking deposits now for Q4 2023 delivery. The Washington company will premiere the new camper at next week's Overland Expo West show, and New Atlas plans to be on the ground to take a closer look.
Source: Mammoth Overland
