- If you’ve ever thought there should really be a way to enjoy #VanLife in an RV-based Transformer, look no further than the SAIC Maxus Life Home V90 Villa Edition.
- With a luxury bar and living space, an elevator, and an upstairs Zen tea room, the V90 Villa would certainly draw attention at the campsite, even though it looks relatively normal when it's driving down the road.
- Unfortunately, this RV is meant for the China market, where it will sell for a little over $413,000.
When thinking of way to make an RV larger, most people think longer. Some imagine a wider motorhome. But the Chinese engineers behind the SAIC Maxus Life Home V90 Villa Edition had a different idea: why not extend upward? They didn't imagine just a simple pop-up roof, either, but a full-fledged upper level with a walk-out deck.
The two-story RV is full of surprises. When it's in driving mode, the V90 Villa Edition looks like a fairly standard RV. But when it opens up, Transformers style, at the spot where you’re planning to spend the night, it becomes more than a tiny home on wheels. First, you can extend the V90 Villa’s pop-out sides, which give the main floor a total size of 215 square feet. This space includes the living room, kitchen, "luxury bar," and bathroom.
Upstairs, which you reach via elevator, you’ll find the second-level extension gives you another 133 square feet that can be used as an "open, sunlight room," a Zen tea room, or a study, Maxus said, with windows that can transition from clear to opaque depending on your privacy needs. You can't store large furniture up there, so the company website shows the space with lots of low tables and pillows.
The V90 Villa Edition uses LED lighting in the taillights, as accent lights on the outside of the RV, and as a way to create a gentle atmosphere while you're out on the upper deck. The interior living spaces can be outfitted with any number of convenience and luxury items, such as a JBL sound system, washing machine, kitchenette and air conditioner. There's an app-driven infotainment screen in the dashboard with navigation. There's also a pull-out cooking area behind the RV's rear passenger-side wheel that can turn your campsite into a kitchen with an even better view.
We will note here that the company website doesn’t feature any actual pictures of the V90 Villa Edition, just renderings, including one of a Level 4 autonomous drive lidar sensor on the top of the front end. That said, SAIC Maxus sells a wide variety of RVs in China and other versions of the V90 are pictured on the company website. The basic (i.e., non-Villa) edition of the Life Home V90 starts at the equivalent of $70,960, but according to New Atlas, the V90 Villa Edition starts at just over $413,000.