Kitchen Cruiser (Camping Kitchen) on Kickstarter!

I bought the Air Cruiser @AirCruiser about a year ago and love it. The kitchen Cruiser is now live on Kickstarter! Nice and portable it seems, while it doesn't use the gear tunnel, it has almost the same functionality of the more expensive/integrated options.

Does look pretty cool. For the Rivian it would be even better to have induction instead of propane. I'm considering it...

Millertimr said:

I bought the Air Cruiser @AirCruiser about a year ago and love it. The kitchen Cruiser is now live on Kickstarter! Nice and portable it seems, while it doesn't use the gear tunnel, it has almost the same functionality of the more expensive/integrated options.

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Interesting concept and the price isn't terrible considering the use case.

I see 2 cons that are applicable in this instance, since it is being discussed in a Rivian forum.

As stated in the first response, induction might be a better fit for an electric vehicle. I get it, it's for camping, so you're likely to have propane, but maybe have an induction option for those that dont want an open flame... Maybe that makes it too expensive?

Also, according to the marketing measurements it is 18" tall when packed up. While that is compact and great, it won't fit in an R1T with a tonneau cover, unless maybe the handle and feet are removable. But then it becomes less convenient... Unless I am mistaken, There is like 17" of clearance in a R1T bed with a tonneau. That's what I measured and got confirmation on from others, before I decided too order my cover. Maybe the R1T isn't the intended market?

Otherwise, pretty cool product. Hope it sells well! Looks like the kickstarter has done well.

This looks cool, I was just looking at buying a teardrop trailer specifically for the galley. I have some concerns based on the videos from the kickstarter page.

The legs don't look adjustable once they are unfolded. Most campsites I've been to don't have a perfectly flat surface, so placing a cooking appliance on something that wobbles is not a great experience. Is there anyway to level or adjust each leg so that it's more level?

They mention it's made with space-grade aluminum, but looking at the video there were some spots where it looks like it was flexing (like when they were installing the faucet or closing the lid with the handle).

I mean it's neat, but this seems like just a stand/case for a tabletop butane stove ($30), a collapsible camp sink ($20), and a camp faucet ($100?). I'm having a hard time justifying a $400 early bird Kickstarter price for this. Maybe I'm missing something?

Meinthe303 said:

Interesting concept and the price isn't terrible considering the use case.

I see 2 cons that are applicable in this instance, since it is being discussed in a Rivian forum.

As stated in the first response, induction might be a better fit for an electric vehicle. I get it, it's for camping, so you're likely to have propane, but maybe have an induction option for those that dont want an open flame... Maybe that makes it too expensive?

Also, according to the marketing measurements it is 18" tall when packed up. While that is compact and great, it won't fit in an R1T with a tonneau cover, unless maybe the handle and feet are removable. But then it becomes less convenient... Unless I am mistaken, There is like 17" of clearance in a R1T bed with a tonneau. That's what I measured and got confirmation on from others, before I decided too order my cover. Maybe the R1T isn't the intended market?

Otherwise, pretty cool product. Hope it sells well! Looks like the kickstarter has done well.

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You are correct it is 17" to the underside of the tonneau. The height of the unit was the first thing I looked for as well. I guess you could lay it on its back as it's only 16" deep but IDK.

Joseph D said:

You are correct it is 17" to the underside of the tonneau. The height of the unit was the first think I looked for as well. I guess you could lay it on its back as it's only 16" deep but IDK.

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Good point, I didn't catch that! However, I assume that means you wouldn't be able to conveniently leave utensils in the drawers which (I think) is a marketing strategy of the unit... Making it less convenient... Who knows... Still a cool idea for most trucks or SUVs though. I'd consider it for trial, if it fit under the tonneau cover.

Millertimr said:

I bought the Air Cruiser @AirCruiser about a year ago and love it. The kitchen Cruiser is now live on Kickstarter! Nice and portable it seems, while it doesn't use the gear tunnel, it has almost the same functionality of the more expensive/integrated options.

Click to expand...

It's not electric.

I definitely do not want to be using precious electricity while camping, and in fact have set up my generator to be able to charge just in case (requires special wiring for EVSE). I have this and love the versatility. My generator also runs from propane, and my trailer has a large supply of propane (many times the energy of the whole truck battery). For tent camping I carry a generic normal propane bottle.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Cuisinar...and-Grill/696022986?athbdg=L1600&from=/search

SwampNut said:

I definitely do not want to be using precious electricity while camping, and in fact have set up my generator to be able to charge just in case (requires special wiring for EVSE). I have this and love the versatility. My generator also runs from propane, and my trailer has a large supply of propane (many times the energy of the whole truck battery). For tent camping I carry a generic normal propane bottle.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Cuisinar...and-Grill/696022986?athbdg=L1600&from=/search

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Electricity has an essentially infinite supply through PV and other sources.
Gas always needs to be stored, monitored and replenished.

In the real world, electricity doesn't have an infinite supply, and I have always been far more constrained by it than by liquid/gas fuels. Only been camping for many decades though, WTF do I know. I'm considering adding a few hundred watts of solar to the RV, but that won't help for tent camping. And the cost is high when I already do own a generator.

SwampNut said:

In the real world, electricity doesn't have an infinite supply, and I have always been far more constrained by it than by liquid/gas fuels. Only been camping for many decades though, WTF do I know. I'm considering adding a few hundred watts of solar to the RV, but that won't help for tent camping. And the cost is high when I already do own a generator.

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We seem to be talking about several different use cases here.
The OP for this thread is a Kitchen Cruiser which would work for "car camping" where you don't drag it far from the car. Backpacking is a different case. (I probably have more experience in all types of camping since I am very old.)

You seem to have "range anxiety" which is common among those without much EV experience since you have gone to the trouble of buying a gas generator and stockpile lots of propane in your truck.

I would like you to consider shifting from the old ways of propane camping to use the very large battery in your truck. The amount of energy you will draw from the battery with induction cooking is actually very small and can easily be replenished by solar PV (infinite amount available) as well as any of the several orders of magnitude more common (than propane) electric outlets.
(Tests I have done with my induction cooker show that you can cook even large meals with just a few kWh of energy.)

I have even done tent camping close to my EV using only electricity from a small "solar battery". Some people are even cooking with electricity while backpacking using small appliances and batteries.

I am not talking about backpacking, which I never do nor do I have range anxiety. They’re just numbers and you have to work it out. I’d recommend that you consider how convenient and easy and cheap propane is.

SwampNut said:

I am not talking about backpacking, which I never do nor do I have range anxiety. They’re just numbers and you have to work it out. I’d recommend that you consider how convenient and easy and cheap propane is.

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Electricity is cheaper and more convenient.

Also false in many cases. There’s no DCFC near a lot of adventure and camping areas, and 12 hour charging is not at all convenient. One hour of grilling would cost about 60 cents at many Supercharger rates, but an hour of propane for the same energy is only 10 cents. You may camp where power is plentiful and cheap, I often don’t.

I hate liquid fuels and prefer electric. I also live in the real world where physics applies. I fill the propane about once a year with very little effort since it gets done while I stock the RV supplies.

Doing the math on this is shocking. DCFC rates cost so much more than propane. Never would have guessed. The national average cost of 91000 btu of propane is $2.65. That converts to about 23kWh of usable power. Most public charging around here costs 40-60 cents per k, so it would cost about $11. Wow. I have super cheap home charging so that would be $1.20.