Best Auto Companies in Elkhart, United States
The 47 best Auto companies in Elkhart, United States in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: Thor Industries.
Our analysis of 50 Auto companies
$9.4b in tracked funding; 94% of the stack-profiled cohort runs cloud-native; funding activity peaked in 2025.
Ranked: Best Auto companies in Elkhart
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Stage | Founder | Founded | Tech stack | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thor Industries Manufacturer & distributor of recreational vehicles and its parts and accessories | $108M | 190 mo ago | Public | Wade Thompson Co-Founder | 1980 | PrismicApple iCloud MailNode.js+20 | 175 patents RV composite structures, interior components, and bidirectional power conversion systems for motorhomes | — |
| 2 | Supreme Corporation Manufacturer and supplier of truck bodies | $2M | 174 mo ago | Acquired | — | 1974 | — | 41 patents Patents concentrated in textiles | — |
| 3 | Midwest Automotive Designs Manufactures and markets luxury and RV vans | — | 143 mo ago | Acquired | Harry Schmink CEO | 2001 | WordPressMySQLRedis+31 | — | — |
| 4 | GDRV Manufacturer of RV trailers | — | 146 mo ago | Acquired | Don Clark CEO and Co-Founder | 2012 | Cart FunctionalityMagentoApple iCloud Mail+36 | — | — |
| 5 | Heartland Manufacturer of recreational vehicles | — | 230 mo ago | Acquired | — | 2003 | WordPressApple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365+37 | 46 patents Design and manufacturing of aseptic beverage containers and dispensing packaging. | — |
| 6 | Forest River Manufacturer of recreational vehicles | — | 252 mo ago | Series B | Peter Liegl Founder | 1996 | Apple iCloud MailWindows ServerYouTube+22 | 29 patents RV and marine accessory systems: retractable patios, door/ramp assemblies, modular interiors, lighting. | 1 partnership |
| 7 | Alliance Recreational Vehicles Provider of dealership services for recreational vehicles | — | — | Unfunded | — | 2019 | SanityApple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365+20 | — | — |
| 8 | american hauler AMERICAN HAULER American Hauler is dedicated to manufacturing and providing through its dealer network one of… | — | — | Private | Tom Lilly CEO | 2003 | JoomlaPHPBootstrap+13 | — | — |
Top 6 Auto companies in Elkhart
#1
Public · Elkhart, Indiana · founded 1980 · 24900 employees$108.1Mraised▾
Thor Industries is a designer, manufacturer, and distributor of recreational vehicles and related parts and accessories. It has acquired Cruiser RV LLC Recreational Travel Trailers, Dvr and KZRV LP. The Company divested its bus business in 2013 to focus on its core RV business. Its RV brands include Airstream, DRV, Cruiser RV, Heartland RV and others. In 2022, the company recorded annual revenues of $13.93B and a net profit of $0.79B.
- Sep 2010Post IPO$108.1M
#2
Acquired · Elkhart, Indiana · founded 1974 · 276 employees$1.8Mraised▾
Supreme Corporation is a manufacturer and supplier of truck bodies. Manufactures cutaway, dry freight, refrigerated, curtain side, furniture, stake, discreet armor, full armor, and cash-in-transit for trucks.
- Jan 2012Post IPO$1.8M
#3
Acquired · Elkhart, Indiana · founded 2001 · 130 employees—raised▾
Manufactures and markets luxury and RV vans
- Sep 2014Series A—
#4
Acquired · Elkhart, Indiana · founded 2012 · 1804 employees—raised▾
Grand Design RV designs and manufactures recreational vehicle trailers. The company markets a range of towable fifth wheels, toy haulers, and travel trailers under multiple brand names such as Solitude, Reflection, Transcend, Imagine, and Momentum. Its trailers feature insulated roofs & walls, temperature control systems, universal docking station, custom floorplans & furnishing, etc. The company also manufactures & distributes RV related gears, apparel, and accessories.
- 2014Series A—
#5
Acquired · Elkhart, Indiana · founded 2003 · 12703 employees—raised▾
Heartland is the RV(Recreational Vehicle) manufacturer. Manufactures various designs of RVs. Heartland introduced their patented 5th wheel which allowed towing by short-bed, extended-cab truck. Located in Elkhart, IN with additional locations in Howe, LaGrange, and Nappanee.
- 2007Seed—
#6
Series B · Elkhart, Indiana · founded 1996 · 12631 employees—raised▾
Manufacturer of recreational vehicles
- Jul 2005Series B—
Funding & investor landscape
Notable founders
Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage
Share of Auto coverage by sub-theme.
Regulatory-risk over time rising
Funding & growth over time
funding rising · growth rising
How research on Autonomous Vehicles is moving in the United States
A read on the academic research around Autonomous Vehicles — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 3,252 United States-affiliated papers.
- Carnegie Mellon University89
- Purdue University West Lafayette76
- University of California, Berkeley69
- Northeastern University64
- Stanford University55
- Computer vision12→111
- Human–computer interaction2→64
- Perception2→59
- Robustness (evolution)3→53
- Trajectory12→61
- Human–computer interaction3→65
- Transport engineering11→66
- Computer vision2→54
- Reinforcement learning3→46
- Automotive engineering5→48
- Humanities4→108
- Philosophy1→64
- Context (archaeology)1→54
- Computer security2→48
- Transport engineering4→30
Where autonomous vehicles is researched across United States
Location clusters by institution affiliation — each city's volume, stance tone, and a quick read on its hot topic, what's advancing, the opening opportunity, and the main concern.
Who's filing autonomous vehicles patents in the United States
United States autonomous vehicles patent filing is accelerating — 19,294 filings from 4,355 assignees (2016–2025), led by Waymo, Baidu USA, GM Cruise Holdings; annual filings 885→1348.
- Waymo1688
- Baidu USA1034
- GM Cruise Holdings767
- FORD Global TECH589
- Qualcomm565
- Tusimple547
- UBER Technologies527
- UATC507
Common questions
Rohit lives in the feed. He covers what's moving right now — the funding rounds, launches and shifts breaking across the trade press — and ties them back to where the sector is heading.