One of the biggest trends in the modern RV space is the simplification of appliances in order to avoid carrying around two or three different kinds of power sources when one can do the job. Airstream thinks it has an even better answer with its first-ever all-electric travel trailer. The new Airstream Basecamp 20Xe is a reasonably affordable camper featuring 10.3 kWh of batteries on deck and some solar power to keep them charged. The batteries power everything, from the stove to heater.
If you’re a bit of an old-school RVer like I am, you’re used to carrying around different power sources for your rig. Before every trip, you, like me, probably make sure that your house battery is ready to rock and you have enough propane to cook, warm your water, and operate your furnace. If you’re going off-grid, you might even carry solar panels and either gasoline or diesel for a generator. That’s a lot of stuff to consider!
Over the past few years, multiple RV manufacturers have been toying with the idea of having a single source of power for most or all of the equipment found in an RV. Bowlus has for years been marketing its Volterra, a travel trailer that works entirely off of a bank of batteries. The Lightship AE:1 and the Pebble Flow are also both entirely electric. If you’re still into internal combustion, you can get single-fuel RVs like the Airstream Rangeline as well as plenty of camper van conversions. These are designed to have their appliances run on the same gasoline or diesel that fuels their engines.
The idea with all of these RVs is to simplify the experience on your end, and now Airstream wants to join in on the all-electric party with its latest incarnation of the Basecamp trailer.
Airstream’s Most Popular Camper
I’m somewhat surprised to tell you this, but Airstream’s most unorthodox trailer is also its most popular. You’d think that most Airstream buyers would flood into showrooms for a famed “silver bullet.” Instead, the hottest Airstream for the past several years was inspired by one of the first-ever Airstreams.
That’s the Basecamp, and here’s what you need to know about it, from my retrospective:
The original Basecamp launched for the 2007 model year and was inspired by founder Wally Byam’s Torpedo plywood teardrop camper from the 1930s (below), the very first Airstream product. Airstream’s idea for the 2007 Basecamp was to build a compact, lightweight camper that still had every amenity and plenty of space. In other words, the Basecamp is more or less Airstream’s take on a teardrop trailer. That camper was discontinued in 2008 right before the Great Recession hit.
Airstream says that over time, it refined the Basecamp concept to include an onboard bathroom, more kitchen space, and upgraded appliances. This work resulted in the 2016 release of the Basecamp 2.0. It weighed in at just 2,585 lbs and still featured that riveted semi-monocoque aluminum structure that Airstream still is known for. That’s an Airstream that could be towed by many of today’s crossovers!
Back in 2016, Airstream said it designed the Basecamp to “rekindle the desire to explore nature and get outdoors.” While the Basecamp was the most outdoor-friendly Airstream, the company saw potential in it going off-road, too. In 2019, Airstream announced the X-Package, which adds a three-inch lift kit and Goodyear all-terrain tires. As of 2022, the Basecamp isn’t just one of the smallest Airstreams, but it’s also what Airstream says is its most popular model. And the most popular Basecamp is the 20-foot floorplan.
Airstream says the Basecamp has been its most popular single model since its launch in 2016. Customers love its smaller size and lower base weight. So it makes sense that Airstream is rolling out its latest tech on the most popular model first.
In February 2022, Airstream teased what could be the future of its brand. The Airstream eStream featured an 80 kWh battery, a powerful self-drive system, and featured fully electric appliances. Yep, Airstream and its German partner Dethleffs pioneered the tech that startups like Lightship and Pebble have advanced in their RV builds.
Unfortunately, it’s still a bit unclear what’s happening with the eStream. In the past, Airstream reps told me that the eStream was under active development to be produced. Then, in late 2024, another Airstream rep told me that the eStream had been shelved as just a concept. I’ve reached out to Airstream to see what the current status of that project is.
What we do know is that Airstream has been taking some of the technology from the eStream and has trickled it down into its existing products. First came the 2024 Airstream Trade Wind, a trailer with a similar design as the Flying Cloud but featuring 9.72 kWh of lithium house batteries and up to 600 watts of solar.
The New Airstream Basecamp 20Xe
Now it’s time to see the latest evolution of eStream technology. The new Airstream Basecamp 20Xe takes Airstream’s most popular floorplan – the Basecamp 20X with a 20-foot floorplan and a mild off-road kit – and makes it fully electric. That’s the little ‘e’ at the end of 20Xe. From Airstream:
The Basecamp 20Xe features a fully inverted 30A electrical system with a 3,000W inverter, 600W of rooftop solar panels, and a 10.3kWh lithium Battle Born® battery bank. This provides ample power to explore remote locations while running the optional air conditioner and microwave. The fully inverted system ensures that every outlet is functional, allowing seamless use of laptops, phones, and other essential devices. The unit also comes equipped with an upgraded solar prewire port near the A-frame where up to an additional 300W of solar panels may be plugged in to boost solar harvesting capabilities while going off-grid.
This sounds similar to the Trade Wind, which uses a triplet of chassis-integrated 270 Ah LiFePO4 Battle Born batteries. Those batteries are 12-volt packs, which provide house power when the trailer is parked off-grid.
The Basecamp 20Xe is really just more of the same. However, now every single appliance in the trailer from the heater and cooktop to the water heater can run entirely off of the battery bank. Thus, Airstream is hailing this trailer as its first-ever all-electric production camper.
Now, I will note that while this is a pretty big deal for Airstream, it’s not that impressive for the RV industry as a whole. Using 12V batteries for your all-electric trailer might not be the most efficient way of doing things. For example, in the Trade Wind, a Victron inverter kicks 12 VDC power up to 120 VAC. This was never contained in the press release, but something I was able to figure out during my tour of that trailer. Ideally, you would do something like Lightship or Pebble where you’d have a large high-voltage battery powering a purpose-built electrical system.
Relative to some campers, the Airstream’s 10.3 kWh setup here isn’t even that impressive when it comes to capacity. The Bowlus Volterra has a 17 kWh battery. Meanwhile, the clean sheet design Lightship AE:1 has a 77 kWh battery, all of which can be used for house power or for the traction motors. Even the base version of that trailer, which doesn’t have a drive motor and uses its battery entirely for house power, carries a 40 kWh pack.
However, Airstream would be quick to note that trailers with bigger batteries and more solar either aren’t in production yet or are not mass-production trailers. It is true that Airstream is packing some of the most power in a mass-produced trailer. Those other trailers are also often way more expensive, and don’t worry, we’ll get to that later.
One thing I found interesting about this trailer is that, as Airstream notes, the engineers did decide to keep the propane around as a backup fuel source. From Airstream:
The Basecamp 20Xe’s LP tank shroud houses a 20-pound propane tank that can be used as an alternative fuel source for interior heating and hot water functions. The combined water heater and furnace system can operate on multiple fuel settings, including all-electric, all propane, or a mix of both. A recirculating feature in the wet bath reduces water waste by redirecting cold water from the hot water heater into the fresh tank until it reaches the desired temperature. And for additional water conservation, an optional composting toilet is available as an upgrade. For cooking flexibility, a removable single-burner induction cooktop can be used both indoors and outdoors via a 110V outlet.
Technically, this means the Basecamp 20Xe isn’t all-electric. But by Airstream’s logic, you don’t have to use the propane if you don’t want to (you can even fully remove the tanks), so it’s good enough to be called all-electric.
In addition to the electric bits, Airstream says you’ll get the Airstream X package, which gives you Dexter three-inch lift blocks, knobby tires and stone guards. It’s not a true off-roader, but you should be able to take it down a fire road without breaking it.
As far as dimensions go, you’re looking at a 3,750-pound dry weight and 20’2″ total length. In terms of stores, you get 23 gallons for fresh water, 28 gallons for gray water, and 21 gallons for your waste. The beds inside allow up to four people to sleep, though that’ll depend somewhat on how large and how friendly those four people are.
I Bet It’s Going To Fly Off Of Dealer Lots
Airstream says you’ll get all of this for the price of $76,900.
A standard Basecamp 20 starts at $56,900 and the Airstream X package costs $3,000. So, you’re at $59,900 before the all-electric stuff. That means Airstream says that 10.3 kWh of batteries are worth $17,000.
So, why do I think these things are going to fly off of lots? Well, The Basecamp 20Xe is really just doing the same mods that many Airstream owners do on their own. You can replicate the Basecamp 20Xe’s parts for roughly $10,000-ish from Battle Born and Renogy. However, the Basecamp 20Xe offers all of it from the factory and with a warranty. There’s no need to take a base camper and electrify it yourself.
So, the Basecamp 20Xe is not the best all-electric camper on the market and not super innovative, either. However, it does appear to be tailored specifically for Airstream’s fans. It’s basically a modded camper from the factory, which is pretty cool. With some luck, I’ll get to test one of these out for myself and see if it gets anywhere near the hype.
Photos: Airstream/pattern Depositphotos.com
Does this have any regenerative braking to recharge its batteries? I’d think in theory this could be a source of a lot of energy for batteries, although I would be the first to admit I lack any engineering knowledge to know if that would make sense for the combined system of the camper and towing vehicle together.
It probably will do well coming from airstream name will definitely give it credibility. I guess they are trying to be beat lightship to market. It’s about 1/3 of the initial cost of light ship too. The e-axle and aero is where these things really shine for towing with a bev truck. Not sure it’s got quite the aero as the lightship though.
Airstream is to RVing what Apple is to computers. Solid product, but you’re still paying a premium for the name.
If that’s the way you roll, hey, more (battery) power to you.
Little sip of the cool aid there, I think… Making sure gas bottles are full, batteries charged and you have fuel for the generator, is not a huge problem for most functioning adults..
I am sure Airstream is very good at wiring. Unlike most caravan makers where short circuits, burning smells and batteries which run flat from weirdo circuits abound…
I am with you to a degree. I take pride in preparing for a trip and I am not bothered by propane, generators, or batteries.
That being said, there are now numerous options for single source power on the market and people are buying them. You have to consider that a lot of RVers are newbies or otherwise don’t know what they’re doing. Or, heck, maybe they’re environmentalists. So Airstream is just following the trend.
I’m doing something similar with my ambulance RV conversion. I added 9.6 kWh of lithium to the 3.6 kWh of lead acid batteries that came with the rig. The new lithium batteries are 48V to cut way down on the size of cables. I have 1800 watts of solar on top to keep it charged and of course there are also options for shore power or charging from the dual alternators.
I haven’t decided get on if I’m going to do a espar diesel heater for backup.
It will need more solar to go boon-docking for a long time if you’re cooking and hot water on electric only.
10.4 KWh of batteries are under $3000 nowadays. I wonder how much of a markup Airstream is adding (Battleborns are very good batteries, but the premium cost vs. benefits are debatable).
Don’t get me wrong, I think all or near all electric trailers are a great thing that should become common.
What’s left unsaid is for how long (off-grid)? I doubt the solar panels can recharge enough (during daylight hours) to offset the power consumed during the other hours. This, in theory, could be a good option for weekend-only users only IF they can recharge at home, during the week (HOA rules?!), or in the storage yard, and if the batteries will last for 3-4 days, unplugged.
Here in the Midwest, where high summer humidity makes A/C mandatory for many campers, that’s another major drain that needs to be accounted for. The beauty of propane and generators is that the trailer can be winterized and left untouched for months and/or it can serve as a home for weeks on end following a disaster. (That $10K-$15K upcharge will buy a LOT of propane . . . )
Yeah, Airstream just says that the stores work for “days” but doesn’t say how many or with what kind of use. As other readers have noted in the past, Airstream’s setup isn’t super efficient so you wouldn’t want to expect to use any high power appliance for too long.
I’ve always liked the way the Basecamps look, but I remain flummoxed and flabbergasted by their price. They may be cheap compared to something else/bigger, but damn if these really are going to fly off the shelves at $80K a pop, maybe I should buy stock in the company instead.
I agree that integrated stuff from the factory with the warranty has value but it is still a big premium in this case. Going all-ish electric is a nice option, but it isn’t a game changer.
The game changer for EV power and RVs is when they can connect the battery in the RV into an EV tow vehicle to extend the total range.The battery in the RV would also allow you to use the RV brake for regen. The same system would help a PHEH or EREV as well. A connected trailer/truck system like that would also allow for the ICE motor in the tow vehicle to be used as a backup generator.
Airstream had a prototype a year or more ago but I haven’t hear much about it since.
Lightship is working on that as well. They won’t come out and say it but they seem to have a relationship with Rivan and they are working on a solution together.
I don’t camp any more – arthritis and old age, and preferred tents and wood fires when I did. Eighty grand is too rich for my blood. That number would buy a decade of decent hotels and dining for the yearly 2 week vacations. Looks nice, and is probably a good value for folks that like the RV lifestyle. I just doesn’t work for me and the SO.
It’s my favorite camper so far by far but at 7650lbs empty (with propane) it’s more than any automobile of mine can tow.
Hell, I think there are only 2 trims of the F-150 lightning that can tow it.