A prototype caravan initially thought up by a customer that can be folded down electronically into a shape that reduces drag when on the road has been unveiled by Dethleffs.
The c.fold collapses at the touch of a button so that it only has a height of 1.65m on the road. It also has Goldschmitt air suspension to smooth the ride. Both these features should make it more amenable to be towed by one of the best electric tow cars.
Yet when on site, the roof can be raised again so that the front area where the entrance is has an internal headroom of 1.9m.
Overhead lockers inside feature a swivel mechanism so that they stay level, whatever position the roof is in, and the washroom slides away when not in use under a raised platform. Interior furniture has also been kept intentionally minimalist so that it too can be folded away to create a large storage space for e-bikes.
Although in this country Dethleffs, part of the Erwin Hymer Group, is only known for producing motorhomes, it also makes caravans, which it sells across Europe and beyond, just like sister brand Eriba (see our review of the 2024 Touring 530 to see what to expect with an Eriba tourer).
The c.fold, which weighs just 775kg, was developed for over a year by the German company’s Innovation Camp, a dedicated incubator for forward-thinking ideas, after an initial approach by the Marchart family, who wanted a caravan that could be towed by their electric car.
Innovation Camp head Oliver Reuther claims a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation showed that the c.fold “can travel approximately 100km farther on a single battery charge than it could with a conventional caravan”.
The c.fold first went on show to the public at the CMT show in Stuttgart in January. No announcement has yet been made about when, or if, it will go into commercial production.
In other industry news, Erwin Hymer Group UK has recently announced it is to make a decision on caravan production following a shake-up proposal. The proposals would see motorhome and campervan production move to Europe, with a final decision to be made on caravans by the end of April.
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