- A startup is making a kei car-like electric camper that costs less than $15,000.
- With a pop-up roof tent and some clever packaging, Vala’s tiny electric camper can sleep four–in a pinch.
- The tiny house on wheels is based on a Wuling EV that’s shorter and narrower than a Chevy Bolt.
America’s idea of a house on wheels typically involves a truck chassis and a $100,000+ price tag. As always, there are exceptions, but none can quite match what China is cooking right now.
This tiny camper is almost as small as a Japanese kei car, and yet its makers claim it can sleep up to four people. Measuring just 141.7 inches (3.6 meters) long, 59 in (1.5 m) wide, and 74.8 in (1.9 m) tall, the pint-sized motorhome is shorter and narrower than a Chevrolet Bolt, but quite tall.
The fact that it has a built-in pop-up roof tent also helps, as two people can cuddle up there and leave the second twin bed downstairs open for another couple of the kids. As is the case with most RVs, the bed on the main floor only converts from a table and a couple of seats.
According to Everything Electric APAC, there’s a large TV at the rear, which swivels in and out, so occupants can watch it from the inside when the weather is bad or turn it into an outdoor small-scale cinema. The rear of the van also has a slide-out table that can accommodate all sorts of appliances, but they can only be used when the rear door is open. That’s not ideal, but it’s to be expected for a car so small.
Speaking of appliances, they draw power directly from the van’s high-voltage battery, thanks to vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality, so nobody is inhaling nasty fumes from a noisy gas generator.
The van itself is made by Wuling, a brand that’s known for its partnership with General Motors. It’s powered by a 30.6-kilowatt-hour battery that’s good for a CLTC-rated driving range of up to 190 miles (305 kilometers) on a full charge. A 40-horsepower electric motor powers the rear wheels, so there’s not a lot to write home about in terms of specs.
However, the whole thing costs the equivalent of less than $15,000, which makes it fantastic value for money. The base vehicle is roughly $8,000, with Vala adding another $7,000 worth of stuff. Sure, its driving range may not be a great fit for the great American highway, but for short camping trips with the kids, it could work.
