Cybertruck range while towing is HORRIBLE!

[Tambo]

I just purchased a ATC 8.5x28' toy hauler over I picked up over the weekend. Cruise set to 60mph to try to be efficient as possible and not hold up traffic too much. Pretty flat terrain. I was getting 1.2KW/Mi, so I definitely need to get the range extender when that is available. Where I pickup the trailer, it was 120mi to the superchager in the direction I wanted to go. As soon as I figured out there was no way I would make it, I detoured to a supercharger 80 miles away so it was a little dicey and definitely will need alot of planning.

I think one of the things I need to do is try to make the trailer as aerodynamic is possible. For instance, the underbelly is just open framing and there is a spare tire hanging down. I need to see if enclosing that will decrease the turbulence under the trailer and maybe remove the spare tire underbelly mount and just put the spare somewhere inside. There are some other ideas I had like making/finding some molding to smooth out the air for the awning frame and there is a fairly large cover for the maxair fans that I believe are there you want to drive with the fans open, but I might remove that for a lower profile. I also may see if removing the propane tanks makes a difference as I plan to add a sizable solar system and proboly wound't use the propane much anyways.

I plan to document this journey to see how much I can improve the towing range for a RV and will report back to this forum at a later time.

-JT

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[Terryaki]

So I towed a 20 foot trailer to pick up some roll up doors for a project I’m building. The entire trip including pickup and drop off at final destination is about 80 miles each way.

let me put this way. I am never going to do this again in the cybertruck. The range is literally half!

Averaging 856 WH/Mi!

I arrived at the supercharger station (my 3rd stop during that trip) with 0%.

Still love the truck though! ?

I mean ... physics 'n all.

 

[Terryaki]

I wish Tesla would come out with a 200kWh pack option (plus the range extender....maybe 50kwh extra) for those who either want to tow or have real world >500miles without towing.

Anyone doing that much towing should just stick with gas or diesel for the time being.

 

[tcmeyers]

Why is Chris90702L tow stat so contrasting with cyber_moonlight ?!

Maybe because a boat is more streamlined?

 

[Cybertruck 1974]

I towed a 3500lb airstream basecamp from my home over the 17 to Santa Cruz, CA and up the coast to Half Moon Bay, CA then back home. It took 7hrs because I stopped 7 times to perform work. Round trip was 208 miles. I started with 100% 315 miles range. I stopped and charged at mile 160 because I had 20 miles left on my range indicator and i wasnt going to make it home. That being said, alot of uphill, windy on coast and temp ranged from 105 to 71 degrees because of areas I drove. Yep, it sucks down the juice but everywhere in the US, won't be a problem. There's chargers everywhere. Better than the Silverado, it has a huge 200k battery that will take forever to charge. Better to stop and take breaks more often than to sit in a lot charging for 2hrs each time.

 

[gooshjkc]

I said once before in a previous post. Gas/diesel trucks are still king when it comes to towing for now. They had over 70+ years to perfect it. All EVs whether it’s the CT or any other EV truck is not going to stand up gas/diesel when towing. Maybe in 10+ years or less the battery tech will good enough where it can compete. Also, studies have shown only 35% of truck owners tow. That figure is not going to increase. If anything it will get less. In the meantime, CT and other EV trucks can do short distances with no problem. In that respect, gas/diesel truck have met its match.

 

[fgaryamy]

Well said! and HAHAHA it looks like you're in Cali so you must not be use to Texas size! Thanks for all your help pointing out areas to improve the towing...

One thing that has not been pointed out is that "streamlining" is achieved best by removing all possible causes of turbulance. Yes, the shape of both vehicles is important, but any change in height from the nose of the towing vehicle to the tail of the towed vehicle is your enemy. This includes that slanted tonneou, which of course MUST remain closed during towing. Any change in vertical height (I know, all heights are vertical, but I'm emphasising a point.). Any change in vertical height causes the air flow to increase or decrease speed over the surface, which, in turn, causes a change in air pressure at that point. Different adjacent air pressures cause turbulance. That sucks...pun intended. Everywhere you have an up or down change in the surface along the air stream, you have suck. This is why all 18 wheeler cabs look alike from the windshield back and they all have shrouds to minimize the air space betyween the cab and the trailer. The attempt is to eliminite that huge sucking between cab and trailer due to the height suddenly going from 9 ft to zero then sharply back up to 9ft. The good thing is that from the windshield to the tail end of the trailer is ALL THE SAME HEIGHT EXCEPT for the space between the cab and the trailer. The other place for improvement is the height of the vehicles off the ground. This sucks, too; but it's because of change in the horizontal air stream finding its way under the cab and trailer. So shield up your sides to as close to the pavement as you dare.

So if you can make your vehicle look like a perfectly straight link of sausage nosing its way down the highway as close to the ground as possible, you've done your job at reducing drag and sucking as much as possible. You'll still get sucking at the tail and yes some at the nose....but less, actually at the nose.

Anyone want to tell me the actual height of the big rigs on the road. I just guessed 9 ft.

Last note. Our biggest enemy is the space between the tailgate and the first vertical structure on the trailer. If you could just put a wrap around that space. Look again at the shrouds on the cabs of 18 wheelers.

 

[BannedByTMC]

A bed cap that is flat from the peak of the CT roof all the way back would probably help a lot. Something like this:

 

[NXTruck]

Wheres the Tesla areo aluminum trailer with a 100kwh battery? Do they not want people plugging in a 800v plug? Put the battery in the slippery trailer instead of the bed!

 

[fgaryamy]

A bed cap that is flat from the peak of the CT roof all the way back would probably help a lot. Something like this:

Exactly. You put my words into form. Good job!

 

[fgaryamy]

A bed cap that is flat from the peak of the CT roof all the way back would probably help a lot. Something like this:

Exactly. You put my thoughts into form. Good job!

 

[ÆCIII]

So I towed a 20 foot trailer to pick up some roll up doors for a project I’m building. The entire trip including pickup and drop off at final destination is about 80 miles each way.

let me put this way. I am never going to do this again in the cybertruck. The range is literally half!

Averaging 856 WH/Mi!

I arrived at the supercharger station (my 3rd stop during that trip) with 0%.

Still love the truck though! ?

Cybertruck range when towing isn't 'HORRIBLE'. It's about what is expected for the weight. '20 foot trailer' tells us nothing. You need to tell us the weight. A 20-Foot trailer could be carrying/adding a lot of gross weight.

One can't expect to double or nearly triple the weight being transported, and then not expect an appropriate increase in energy required. Laws of physics don't play the games of 'free stuff' or 'something for nothing'.

Towing reduces the range in ICE vehicles too, but the refill is quicker albeit multiples more expensive as well. Yes, heavy load towing range is an Achilles heel for the Cybertruck, but this has been known for some time. I'm not sure emotional labels like 'HORRIBLE' are warranted, because they imply a lack of efficiency or engineering which is just not true with the Cybertruck. I say for the weight it moves, the Cybertruck still does pretty well; why not just show the math and let others be informed?

I have a problem with emotional labels because those are what spreaders of FUD and the MSM use in attempts to gaslight peoples' perceptions.

I think we need a new composite metric for referencing Cybertruck, Tesla Semi, or EV efficiency when vehicles are frequently used for towing - which could be Energy per Distance per unit of Weight, such as the following example:

Watt Hours/Mile/Short-Ton] (Wh/mi/st) ​

- or - ​

Watt Hours/Kilometer/Metric-Ton (Wh/km/t)​

Using this formula, a sample trailer weight of 7000 lbs (since the OP didn't provide any for his 20 foot trailer) plus 6800 lbs for the Cybertruck, would result in the following for 856 Wh/mi:

856 Wh/mi / ((7000 + 6800 lb)/2000 lb) = 856/6.9 = 124.05 Wh/mi/st or ​

124 Watt-Hours per Short-Ton-Mile​

​

- or - (Converting to Metric)​

​

531 Wh/km / ((3175 + 3084 kg)/1000 kg) = 531/6.259 = 84.83 Wh/km/t or ​

85 Watt-Hours per Metric-Ton-Kilometer​

​

(Edited to include estimated 6800 lb weight of the Cybertruck)​

If everyone towing with EVs would quantify their energy usage in this way, there would be much more consistent results across various weights towed, and we could truly learn the nature and limitations of our vehicles under certain conditions. Right now everyone is just pointing out how their results are different than not towing at all, but that doesn't tell us anything useful relative to the extra weight they've added to move.

But seriously, why use a label like 'HORRIBLE' while not using mathematical context or even providing weight towed? Let's try to better than the MSM shall we? - because the MSM already has a monopoly on attempts to gaslight people.

- ÆCIII

 

[BannedByTMC]

It's about what is expected for the weight. '20 foot trailer' tells us nothing. You need to tell us the weight. A 20-Foot trailer could be carrying/adding a lot of gross weight.

I think you may be over emphasizing weight when aerodynamics play a greater roll when long distance towing at speed. Once the vehicle and trailer are up to speed the weight impact is much less, (unless a lot of hill climbing is involved.)

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