PESCADERO, California – "Nice place for a nap" isn't a ringing endorsement for the cars and trucks I generally test, but things were different as I walked to a eucalyptus-shaded campsite an hour south of San Francisco.
I was there to test the Pebble Flow, a battery-powered camping trailer that autonomously hitched itself to an F-150 vehicle and used electric motors to power through fallen bark and level itself on the grove's uneven ground.
I slept like a baby in the Flow's king-size bed that night, convinced the software-defined camper will change RV life.
The Flow can also help power itself during towing and and recharge its battery on the way to your campsite.
I towed the 24-foot, 8-inch trailer along California's scenic Highway 1 and watched
as it effortlessly parked itself and deployed electric and hydraulic stands to create the perfectly level living space on uneven, sloping ground.
When parked in your driveway, by the way, the Flow can also power your house during electric outages or serve as a spare bedroom or office.
Electric power is just the start
The Flow’s battery power isn’t the big news; it’s an enabler for software-based features including the trailer’s ability to help tow itself with electric motors mounted in its two wheels.
I experienced the Flow as it:
- Autonomously approached and connected to the trailer hitch on a Ford F-150 pickup.
- Remotely pulled into a camping spot, controlled by an iPad.
- Used its own power and sensors to make towing easier and more intuitive.
- Detected uneven ground in my campsite and levelled itself in seconds to create a usable living space.
- Charged its batteries from an auxiliary solar array and its integrated rooftop panels
Pebble Mobility engineered and builds the Flow in Fremont, California, a Bay Area city with a long history of manufacturing.
Another Bay Area company, Lightship, builds electric travel trailers with a pop-up roof.
Pebble has sold about 100 in a few months. Owners already racked up more than 300,000 miles and received more than a dozen over the air updates with new features and improvements like more efficient climate control.
My stay in a Pebble Flow
My Flow felt perfectly level, despite being parked on uneven, sloping ground.
The cabin had warm LED lighting – around 2600 Kelvin, based on my lighting preferences at home. There were 110v outlets for my phone, MacBook and Bluetooth Bose.
The forced-air heat and AC were quiet and effective, with vents placed conveniently around the cabin,
Ambient lighting ringed the windows, which could be made transparent or opaque.
Each space – dining, kitchen, bathroom, desk/bedroom – had its own LED lighting. Lights, AC and other features were controlled by a built-in iPad or iPhone app.
The dining table had plenty of space and was offset slightly in its nook: generous space to starboard and fore, room for the petite-framed to port. The table and cushions adjusted to create a bed.
The side and rear windows opened wide for a fresh breeze coming in off the nearby shore.
To aft, there was ample space for a built-in desk and a folding chair. A comfortable Murphy bed folded out above.
I slept like a log and enjoyed a warm shower and cup of coffee in the morning.
2027 Pebble Flow prices
Flow prices are higher than, but not out of line with, similar-size high-end conventional trailers.
- Magic Pack: $159,000
- Founders Edition: $189,000
What you get for your money
- Autonomous trailer hitching
- Automatic levelling
- Standard electronic parking brake
- Remote parking via app
- Up to one week use on a charge
- Two beds or two single beds and queen
- Potentially unlimited use with auxiliary color panels
- 110v power outlets
- Work desk
- Kitchen with refrigerator, microwave and sink.
- Bathroom with vanity, sink, toilet and shower
- Forced air heat and AC
- Four high-res cameras for surround view
- Ambient light
- Two opening windows
- Power awning
- Exterior light
Making trailer life easy
“There are too many friction points in camping,” Pebble founder Bingrui Yang said he learned during a COVID-era trip in a rented RV. “Hitching, backing up and waste disposal are all too difficult.”
Yang set out to make camping less intimidating to novices and more pleasant for veterans.
Battery power eliminates the noise of on-board generators and propane cooking fumes.
The trailer’s sleek and aerodynamic design makes towing easier, with reducing drag on the tow vehicle and trailer sway from side winds. The two in-wheel motors provide up to 40 kW boost, reducing sway.
Yang said the self-towing power also increases range when towing with an electric vehicle. The company declined to say how much, citing varying weather, geography and tow vehicles.
Towing the Flow behind a Ford F-150 felt effortless. Acceleration and braking were intuitive. The trailer felt steady despite an onshore breeze from the Pacific Ocean. It followed in my tracks. The trailer's weight was immediately apparent when a Pebble engineer disabled the motors' "boost" feature.
The Flow has a standard seven-pin connector. The twin in-wheel motors synchronize speed, acceleration and braking with the tow vehicle.
For waste disposal, the Flow has an easy to connect outlet hose and one-touch flush and rinse. It’s quick and foolproof, chief technical officer Stefan Solymon told me with the rueful expression of one who missed a step evacuating waste from a conventional trailer and had to clean up the results.
2027 Pebble Flow at a glance
Battery-powered travel trailed
Sleeps up to 4
Engineered and built in Fremont, California
On sale now.
Order from Pebble Mobility.
Price: Magic pack $159,000; Founders Edition $189,000
Single axle
Two- in-wheel electric motors
Battery: 45 kWh Lithium iron phosphate (LFP)
Integrated 1.1 kW rooftop solar panels
Up to 3 kW of additional solar input
Level 1 and 2 charging up to 6.6 kW
DC fast charging 10-80% charge in less than 1 hour
NACS DC charging port
Standard bi-directional home charging
Up to 42 kW of regenerative braking
Length: 24 feet, 8 inches
Exterior width: 7 feet, 7 inches
Exterior height: 8 feet, 9 inches
Interior length: 21 feet
Interior width: 7 feet
Interior height: 6 feet, 5 inches
Door width: 29 inches
Ground clearance: 20 inches
18-inch aluminum wheels
Goodyear Wrangler Workhorse all-season tires
Departure angle: 11 degrees
Dry weight: 5,900 pounds
Payload: 900 pounds
Gross vehicle weight: 8,000 pounds
Tongue weight: 680 pounds
Contact Mark Phelan: mmphelan@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @mark_phelan. Read more on autos and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Pebble Flow camper offers autonomy, hitches itself to truck
