Cross Country Trip with Moving Trailer

[bondo]

We're traveling from California to Michigan with a 12' long moving trailer and wanted to hear about any experiences with charging & trailers and range calculations. What's the best way to deal with EV charging when pulling a trailer? Are the Rivian & Flying J charging stations the best for pull through charging setup?

Thanks so much,

James

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[WaterboyNorCal]

Keep your speed at 65mph or lower. I have an SR Lightning and I have seen consumption drop below 1 mile/kWh when towing if I don't keep speeds down, or if there is ANY headwind. I have also gotten closer to 1.4 mpkWh on flat ground at elevation (thin air) with a trailer flatbed with inflated whitewater rafts - similar to a 20ft travel trailer as far as wind resistance. But I was able to keep my speed at 60mph, which really helps. There are a lot of places where that might not be possible for safety reasons, so obviously you will have to adjust as necessary. I have found that Rivian and Tesla have the most locations where you can pull-through with a trailer, but your mileage may vary depending on your route. I haven't used Flying J yet - but I know of a few locations where they have pull-thru options for EV charging. Let us know how it goes - good luck!

 

[RickLightning]

You should assume 1 mile per kWh. You might do better, you may do worse. If you properly setup the trailer in the truck's systems, it will automatically adjust to 50%, and then record history and adjust. It will also adjust sensors. WHEN YOU DISCONNECT AFTER RETURNING THE TRAILER, MAKE SURE YOU GO INTO THE MENUS AND SELECT "NO TRAILER". Often it doesn't take, and you have to redo it. You will notice the range projection jump up as soon as it does take.

As to pull through locations, you can use apps like ABRP and PlugShare and select those as a preference, but you may find you either need to nose in with the trailer partially blocking the lane, or pull up sideways and block more than one charger. Or, you have to unhook the trailer.

I would join Tesla's membership the morning of your trip, then immediately downgrade, which takes effect in 30 days. $12.99 (plus taxes in CA) saves you 25%. It will be the lowest cost charging on your entire trip. Rivian and Pilot / Flying J compete for the highest cost charging.

 

[DavidS]

Assuming you’re traveling on 80, the first half of your trip you’ll need to stop early, often, and long, as there are some fairly large gaps without fast charging including across the Great Salt Lake, Wyoming, and western Nebraska. Also, anytime after late September can be a problem with winter weather in that same area. Wyoming traffic travels around 85 mph but you’re going to have to be slower than that to make it. Evanston to Rock Springs is 104 miles and Rawlings to Laramie is about 100.

 

[K6CCC]

Your profile shows you are in the Los Angeles area, so I am going to guess that you are first going to take I-15. The 120 stall Tesla station in Barstow has a couple pull through spots, but if those are not available, there are SO MANY stalls, you should have no problem parallel parking and taking a half dozen spaces. Next is Baker. The new V4 station in the NE end of town has about 10 pull through stalls. Can't help you beyond there.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Looking forward to your trip report once this journey is complete, maybe document it on this thread as you make progress!

 

[nagyfan3]

We're traveling from California to Michigan with a 12' long moving trailer and wanted to hear about any experiences with charging & trailers and range calculations. What's the best way to deal with EV charging when pulling a trailer? Are the Rivian & Flying J charging stations the best for pull through charging setup?

Thanks so much,

James

I have a 2025 lightning lariat. I towed a U-Haul toy hauler that was over 25 feet with a 1965 mustang for 500 miles. Be prepared to get 1.0-1.3 Kw\Hr or even less depending on winds and grade. Be prepared to stop a lot to charge. Most tesla chargers u can pull into the end spot and slightly block exit but that’s better than taking up 5 spots by going parallel to the charging ports.

 

[bondo]

Thank you all so very much for this information!!

I just signed up for Tesla's membership and for the Rivian charging network + I already have EA, EV Go & Plugshare. I also upgraded to the ABRP Premium & bought a bluetooth OBDII scanner to track my Watt Hours per mile.

I'll keep you posted on how it all works out

 

[Nikos]

We're traveling from California to Michigan with a 12' long moving trailer and wanted to hear about any experiences with charging & trailers and range calculations. What's the best way to deal with EV charging when pulling a trailer? Are the Rivian & Flying J charging stations the best for pull through charging setup?

Thanks so much,

James

James…don’t be afraid. Do your planning, pick your locations every 100 miles, choose your alternates if they are close to each other and maintain your speed at 60 mph. Don’t know what this moving trailer looks like but if it is a UHaul look alike, rectangular brick, you may have to slow down to 55 mph.
I tow a 25 ft camper going places along the southeast and 500+ miles away, and I maintain 55 mph on the interstates. Tailwind helps but headwinds will tax your consumption plan. Either way adapt with the conditions. If there not any pull-thrus be prepared to unhitch the trailer on the side. You need to be considerate to others using the charging stations. I have been towing the last 4 years with no issues. Planning is the key. I am a pilot so my training and flight planning has helped me all the time. Aircraft when they run out of fuel, they tend to fly no more. Plan ahead, it is easy.
I give the chores to my wife, which she is more attentive to our battery SOC and mileage on every trip we take.
Cooperate, use the Tesla app, EA app, EV Go app and all other apps to your benefit. The first time you do it, you will be cautious but you will learn a lot. Plus you will learn from your machine and the machine will learn from you.
Good luck and trust yourself.
Have a pleasant trip.

 

[RickLightning]

In the future, don't signup until the morning of the trip, you're just wasting money.

And use ABRP to prioritize the networks you want - using Rivian is going to cost you significantly more I believe.

 

[WaterboyNorCal]

Yep - Rick makes a good point. No reason to sign up for Tesla or any other membership pricing until the last minute, assuming that you just want to keep them for a month. Agree that Rivian chargers will cost you more, but there are some locations where the physical arrangement of chargers will make it worthwhile, so that you can pull thru without blocking other chargers or anyone's ability to maneuver through the location. And as Nikos said, be prepared to detach the trailer - obviously this is a "last resort" option, but you need to be flexible when the infrastructure simply does not support pull-thru charging very well yet.

 

[CD4TNF]

You've watched Aging Wheels entertaining video of EV truck towing long distances? Should give you an idea of how it all plays out. He used a Silverado EV truck, but similar strategy will apply.



Robert's other video on aerodynamics matters for EV truck towing is also good.




I second situational awareness of backup chargers. Helps to know what chargers are in the area.

 

[K6CCC]

I just signed up for Tesla's membership and for the Rivian charging network + I already have EA, EV Go & Plugshare. I also upgraded to the ABRP Premium & bought a bluetooth OBDII scanner to track my Watt Hours per mile.

As mentioned, both Tesla and E.A. memberships will save you money in one or two charge sessions. Cancel the membership before the month runs out (set a calendar reminder). Check the next day and MAKE SURE it has cancelled - I had E.A. confirm the cancellation, but continue to auto-renew until I caught it on my credit card bill.

When doing you pre-departure charging planning, I use PlugShare.com and pay attention to the photos that are posted. You can also check Google Earth (including Street View) to confirm what is available for trailer pull through.

Next suggestion is to detail and document you pre-trip research. For a couple of trips I have taken I have a spreadsheet with charging options along the way. That way I can quickly determine what is coming ahead during the trip. Note: I keep this as a Google Sheet rather than an Excel Spreadsheet so that it is easily accessible from my phone. Here is an extract from a trip last fall.

 

[EV Engineer]

Goodluck. Pleaes report back.


My personal opinion is you are about to embark on what is the Lightning's weakest point.
It still works but it's almost akin to taking a Nissan leaf cross country.

Do you have a SR or an ER?

WIth a SR you realistically need to be mapping out sites every 75 miles or so. (80%-10kwH) x 1.0miles/kWh = 70 miles between chargers.

1. Charge to 90% if you think you'll need it. An extra 10 minutes of charging is exponentially better than not making the next stop.

2. Speed kills. I would plan on no faster than 60mPH.

3. Enjoy the drive. I imagine after 300 miles you'll have it pretty dialed in but those first few stops might get hairy, especially in a SR.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

Assuming you're taking the 40 from Barstow...

• In addition to the SCs, The RAN in Barstow has a pull-aside station.
• The EA in needles has plenty of space for charging with a trailer. Neither SC in Needles is worth using.
• The Pilot/Flying J in Yucca has a pull-aside (sort of) if it's not busy.
• The RAN in Kingman has space for a towing vehicle.
• The One 9 in Ash Fork is okay, but you might block traffic or the other charger.
• The Williams EA is okay if you come in from the West side of the charging stalls.
• The Flagstaff EA is no good for trailers. Use the RAN.
• The Winslow EA isn't great. Use the Pilot/Flying J.
• Holbrook's RAN is okay.
• The IONNA in Gallup is great.
• The Flying J in Jamestown is great.
• Lots of options in Albuquerque.
• Haven't towed much past there.

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