Quote:
Originally Posted by slowmover
There's a Tesla thread on AIR (Airforums) and for the life of me I fail to see the appeal of a hamstrung tow vehicle.
Given that the average RV'er travels but 25k miles in five years it isn't cost prohibitive to own a dedicated TV. I'm not in favor of such but I could see where with an EV as daily driver it could make sense. 25-mpg plus is possible with a 20-23' AS trailer. And that change in size brings a great deal of utility.
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I can certainly understand that those who have been towing for years with gas-powered vehicles would look at towing with an EV as a questionable exercise, to put it mildly.
For those who own a long distance EV like a Tesla, with fast DC charging, the nearly unanimous verdict is "I'm never buying an ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) vehicle again!". The reasons are numerous and I won't list them in this thread unless requested. I have owned my first Tesla for 3 years and driven 51,000 miles with it, visiting most of the Western states. It has been an unalloyed pleasure. Then I bought another Tesla. I have not purchased any gasoline in over two years. Now that my wife and I have decided we want to own a travel trailer, we will only tow with a Tesla.
A common response is "Teslas are just for rich people". Next year Tesla is beginning production of the Model 3, a new EV that will start at $35,000. See
https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/model3 . Not cheap, but when you factor in the lower operating costs and the longer lifetime of the vehicle (8 year unlimited mile drivetrain warranty) the ownership cost is in reality comparable to a sub $30,000 car. And the Model 3 will have towing capability.
A properly designed EV like a Tesla is a fundamentally better car in almost every way than anything else on the market. The only drawback is an EV cannot go as far on a charge as a conventional car can go on a tank of gas. Tesla has solved that problem with the Supercharger network, see
https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/supercharger
But when towing, the range of a Tesla is reduced by about half. Nevertheless, Tesla owners are towing trailers across the country and having a wonderful time doing it. See
https://teslaxcanada.com/ and they are not the only ones.
Burning fossil fuels for any purpose does enormous harm to the biosphere that we depend on. That statement is supported by massive amounts of data. It is no longer in dispute in any meaningful way. EVs can be powered by sustainable energy producing zero emissions. They are of course also powered by electricity produced by fossil fuels. But as the electrical grid becomes "cleaner" (an inexorable trend that cannot be stopped because it is driven by economics, sustainable energy costs are dropping rapidly) EVs become cleaner. Burning coal for electrical production is declining. Wind and solar power production is growing, and decreasing battery storage costs are making sustainable energy more and more economically attractive.
In contrast, conventional cars never become "cleaner", they can only use fossil fuels and will pollute the biosphere over their entire lifetime of use.
And that is why I will be towing a trailer with an EV.