Brunswick Corp.’s Navico Group unveiled a generator replacement system in tandem with Thor Motor Coach at the Florida RV SuperShow in Tampa.
The system is dubbed Reliable by Fathom e-power system. It rolled out at Tampa with Thor Motor Coach’s Tellaro, Sanctuary and Sanctuary Transit models.
Sean Sears, national sales manager RV at Navico, said the system brings together technology from multiple Navico brands into a cohesive system. The system includes Mastervolt lithium-ion batteries and chargers, BEP digital displays and Blue Sea Systems relays and switches.
“We have the batteries, the chargers, the displays,” he said. “We have the Blue Sea Systems as circuit protection, we have the circuit breakers. We own every single part of the system to put these all together, so it works.”
The kits come pre-configured for OEMs and integrate seamlessly. Sears said. Among the advantages of the Fathom system is one company using proprietary language to enable the product to work together.
“We do not need to rely on other manufacturer’s screens,” he said. “It is all proprietary language…that speaks between our batteries, our chargers and our display screen.”
Rather than creating an aftermarket product, Sears said Navico worked with Thor Motor Coach to build the system into the RV as original equipment. He said off-road towables and Type B motorhomes are among the RVs able to benefit most from the system.
“We are offering a system that is no maintenance, no noise, no fuel, no moving parts,” he said. “You just need an opportunity to use solar, stop somewhere and plug in the charger, or the last resort would be letting the vehicle idle for an hour-and-a-half to get charged.”
The Fathom system is available in step-ups from entry-level to premium. The premium level includes battery voltage detection. When the battery drops to a certain level, the vehicle automatically starts to high idle and charge the batteries.
As the price point on lithium-ion powered systems has decreased, Sears said consumers are more likely to consider the additional cost to add quiet and lighter power systems using less fuel.
“I am actually very excited about it,” he said. “The technology we have had is finally being grasped by the mainstream. The battery technology has gotten to be affordable where people are requesting it. The customers are requesting this and we are getting the pull through.”
