Public charging... whilst towing?

[Tracklover]

Evening, I am considering swapping my 330d to an EV.

If I did that, I'd need to do a fair bit of public charging. I also do a lot of towing, which I imagine would prevent me using most motorway superchargers, which are adjacent to single parking spaces.

Are larger bays available?

[Stevemr]

They are but not many.
For most you will have to unhitch.
Worth watching Andrew Dittonds you tube towing with an EV6.
What will you be towing?

[sawman]

Theres a filter on a better route planning app for trailer friendly charging stations.
There do seem to be a few more popping up where the charger is in the middle of 2 end on bays. Although if the cars socket is on the front, these may be a bit if a stretch.

I tow a sailing dinghy and have arrived at some trailer friendly chargers and still needed to unhitch to fit without blocking the place up

[TheRainMaker]

I don't think i’ve ever seen one yet, apart from press releases.

There was someone on here a few weeks ago saying they were going to try and report back, but I’ve not seen anything yet.

[ashenfie]

From someone who hates caravans may be ev’s are the future.

[RotorRambler]

Will be hard going compared to the 330D, a good tool for the job.

How often will you need to charge?

Towing a caravan typically reduces an EV’s range by 30–50%, mainly because of the caravan’s aerodynamic drag rather than its weight. For an EV that normally manages 280 miles, you might realistically see 140–180 miles while towing.

Tips for UK trips

• Start with a 100% charge from home.
• Plan charging stops every 100–150 miles rather than stretching the battery.
• Use apps such as ABRP (A Better Routeplanner), Zapmap or Electroverse to identify larger charging sites.
• If possible, book campsites with dedicated EV chargers.

[JQ]

I’ve used several Fastned drive-thru chargers. They’re not on motorways but generally on retail parks adjacent to motorway junctions so very convenient. Might be worth investigating if there any in a 100 mile radius of home, as that’s where you’ll need them.

I tow a camping trailer with my EV and never really have an issue but do investigate potential charging sites using Google Earth to check the configuration of chargers. For example, we go to North Wales a lot and there’s a huge station in Holywell that’s really easy to use with a trailer, despite it not being drive-thru.

[benny.c]

JQ, what sort of range reduction do you see and what size trailer is it please? I see plenty of discussion around caravans but it’s hard to find real world trailer examples. We’ve got a double height Lider Alicante and I reckon if we could get approx 180 miles it may be OK. Any less would be too much hassle.

[Tracklover]

Thanks for the input all. I'll be looking for something that gives me as much range as possible.

RotorRambler said:

Will be hard going compared to the 330D, a good tool for the job

Range wise, yes.

But in every other respect, no. It'll cost less to run, cost nothing to service, no blown turbo, spun bearings, snapped timing chains etc. ICE cars make little sense anymore.

[JQ]

benny.c said:

JQ, what sort of range reduction do you see and what size trailer is it please? I see plenty of discussion around caravans but it s hard to find real world trailer examples. We ve got a double height Lider Alicante and I reckon if we could get approx 180 miles it may be OK. Any less would be too much hassle.

About 20%, but I do drive slower with the trailer because the charger provision is shocking in North Wales - tend to charge at Holywell then charge there again on the way home. It’s a single axel Daxara camping trailer that’s been extended vertically, sits just below the roof line of my car. I get the impression that it’s wind resistance that’s the killer rather than weight so would imagine a caravan would be much worse for economy.

[SchillingTwo]

Tracklover said:

Range wise, yes.

But in every other respect, no. It'll cost less to run, cost nothing to service, no blown turbo, spun bearings, snapped timing chains etc. ICE cars make little sense anymore.

I’ve never had any if those happen.

Do you not put any oil in your engines?

[Stevemr]

See my thread on here about towing a caravan with an EV6. So far range is half. Getting 2kw a mile towing.

[benny.c]

JQ said:

About 20%, but I do drive slower with the trailer because the charger provision is shocking in North Wales - tend to charge at Holywell then charge there again on the way home. It s a single axel Daxara camping trailer that s been extended vertically, sits just below the roof line of my car. I get the impression that it s wind resistance that s the killer rather than weight so would imagine a caravan would be much worse for economy.

Thanks, that’s better than I thought it would be. Our trailer sits just below the roof too so maybe it would be similar. It’s obviously hard to demo an EV with tow bar and trailer so it would be a bit of a risk buying without knowing the actual range.

[Tracklover]

SchillingTwo said:

Ive never had any if those happen.

"I've never died of cancer. Therefore cancer isn't a big problem for society"

That's how ridiculous your argument is.

EVs are objectively simpler and objectively more reliable. There's plenty of data to prove that. Educate yourself.

SchillingTwo said:

Do you not put any oil in your engines?

Do you not put any cognitive ability into your head?

[Tracklover]

Stevemr said:

See my thread on here about towing a caravan with an EV6. So far range is half. Getting 2kw a mile towing.

How do you get on with recharging?

[GT6k]

Gridserve opens Electric Super Hub at Moto Tamworth - electrive.com https://share.google/Hi86FC3DquaSq4HIr

[Stevemr]

Tracklover said:

How do you get on with recharging?

Have not tried yet, will be updating thread when I do. Fully expecting to gave to unhitch to charge. Been reconorting various ionity chargers. Most look as if they will be ok.
From 20/80% I am reckoning on 100 miles.

[SWoll]

Tracklover said:

Range wise, yes.

But in every other respect, no. It'll cost less to run, cost nothing to service, no blown turbo, spun bearings, snapped timing chains etc. ICE cars make little sense anymore.

If you're doing a lot of public charging whilst towing the those running costs are going to still be pretty high, and unless you're buying a Tesla there will still be servicing costs to consider. At an average cost of 80p kWh for rapid cnarging youll be paying 30-40p per mile, the equivalent of 18-20mpg in an ICE vehicle.

Love EV's as daily cars and have run them for 7 years now as suit our use case perfectly, but would be a little wary of doing so with your stated requirements.

Edited by SWoll on Saturday 4th July 20:42