Airstream found success with its Interstate 19 Type B motorhome, built on the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chassis. To appeal to a new consumer segment, the manufacturer started with the Interstate 19 and built a “Swiss army knife” solution.
Airstream unveiled its Interstate 19X motorhome Tuesday. The manufacturer said the motorhome is made for outdoor and off-road enthusiasts seeking to explore the natural world while traveling comfortably.
Vice President of Sales Justin Humphreys said: “If you think about our traditional customer with Interstate, it is a very high-end Mercedes-like product that is very plush. It feels a little bit like it is a Mercedes car.”
The 19X, meanwhile, has standard 4×4 capability and an optional all-wheel-drive upgrade. A protective coating on the lower body and front hood mitigates road debris damage and scratches, while a Tenzing brush guard with integrated lights assists off-road travel.
“To this customer, this is going to be more of a working type of product,” Humphrey said. “This is going to help them achieve some type of goal. This is going to be that Swiss army knife to what they want. One customer is more about vehicle and comfort. This customer is about a tool to access a kind of lifestyle.”
Humphreys said the 19X customer is an active person and not defined by generation.
“There are boomers out there, hiking just as much as millennials,” he said. “This appeals across all of those age groups to a very active person that needs to support some kind of passion or lifestyle of theirs.”
Storage was another priority when building the Interstate 19X, Humphreys said. Drawers and cabinets are soft-close with positive locking components. The motorhome features an integrated L-track system on the floors, walls and ceilings to carry gear in the flexible rear storage area. Tiedown points help secure bikes, paddleboards, camping gear or small kayaks.
The motorhome has a full wet bath with a cassette toilet, a galley with an induction cooktop and a convertible dinette that can be twin beds or a 74×70-inch queen bed.
A generator provides power away from shore power with 250 watts of solar power and two 100-amp-hour lithium-ion batteries on board. The optional E1 package increases power with a second alternator pushing battery power to 12,000 watts and the inverter increasing to 3,200 watts from 2,000 watts.
“This is one of the fastest-growing segments because (the motorhomes) are so small and so nimble,” Humphreys said. “We see a ton of use cases, in addition to the adventure space. We hope that many Airstreamers use this as a tool through their lives.”
