Lance Camper Announces Expansion
Lance Camper, maker of ultra-lightweight, composite-built truck campers and travel trailers, is expanding its manufacturing footprint. In addition to its 22-acre campus in Lancaster, California, Lance — a subsidiary of REV Recreation Group — will add an assembly plant and component warehouse in Decatur, Indiana. The Decatur facilities will produce travel trailers for Lance dealers in the eastern half of North America.
According to Mike Lanciotti, president of REV Recreation Group, this expansion will create more than 100 jobs, and initial recruiting was expected to begin in early April. Preliminary startup is planned for July, with production ramp-up to follow for six to eight months.
For more information, visit www.lancecamper.com.
Spartan Launches One-Touch Leveling System
Spartan’s Red Diamond leveling system levels RVs while providing clear visual feedback.
Spartan RV Chassis, a brand of The Shyft Group, recently introduced its Red Diamond leveling system, an exclusive aftermarket option that levels an RV without the use of jacks. The air-spring leveling system is available for installation on Type A motorhomes built on a Spartan chassis — model-year 2000 or newer — and not already equipped with air leveling.
An intuitive touch-screen interface provides users one-touch automatic leveling; manual leveling with control of each air spring while traveling at low speeds or while in park; adjustable entry height to ease ingress and egress; and automatic protection against chassis twist. The user-friendly touch screen allows RV owners to select auto-leveling or four-point manual control of the leveling actuators. Three digital “bubble level” indicators show the exact vehicle stance, and clear visual feedback on vehicle status is provided. To learn more, visit www.theshyftgroup.com.
RV Industry Produces Record 600,000+ RVS
The RV Industry Association’s December 2021 survey of manufacturers revealed that total RV wholesale shipments for 2021 ended with a record 600,240 vehicles, surpassing the 2017 record of 504,599 shipments by 19 percent.
“For decades, the RV industry has been growing, with more and more people turning to RVs as the perfect way to experience the great outdoors. While the demand for RVs has been amplified over the past two years, the pandemic also created several obstacles and challenges for our industry,” said RV Industry Association president and CEO Craig Kirby. “But through their hard work and innovation, our manufacturers and suppliers are rising to meet these challenges, building a record 600,000 RVs this past year, sending more RVs to dealer lots across North America than ever before, and allowing more people to experience the joys of RVing.”
Total RV shipments for 2021 increased 39.5 percent over the 430,412 units shipped in 2020. Towable RVs, led by conventional travel trailers, ended 2021 up 39.6 percent against 2020, with 544,028 wholesale shipments. Motorhomes finished the year up 37.8 percent compared to 2020, with 56,212 units.
Storyteller Overland Buys Global Expedition Vehicles
Global Expedition Vehicles, now a subsidiary of Storyteller Overland, produces rugged RVs such as this Adventure-XT model.
Storyteller Overland, a leader in the Type B RV adventure van space, announced in January that it has acquired Global Expedition Vehicles LLC, a leading manufacturer of expedition vehicles and bespoke adventure trucks.
Global Expedition Vehicles will continue to operate under the same name and to provide its expansive lineup of custom expedition vehicles to customers in North America and beyond. Merging with Storyteller Overland will create a rapid expansion of the market for the adventure truck series, which ultimately will be offered on both the Ford F550 and the Ram 5500 chassis.
As a result of this acquisition, Storyteller Overland will be in an enhanced position to introduce the world’s first higher-volume production models of the GXV-style Super C RV and adventure trucks. While the custom Global X and GXV rigs will continue to be built in Springfield, Missouri, the higher-volume, repeat-build adventure truck units will be made by the Storyteller team in their newly expanded facilities in Birmingham, Alabama. The goal is to meet the increasing demand for this type of off-road, off-grid, long-range expedition vehicle.
As with Storyteller’s Type B RV adventure vans, known as the “MODE4x4” line, the new Storyteller GXV line of adventure trucks will be available for purchase via the company’s nationwide dealer network.