Howard
New member
- First Name
- Howard
- Joined
- Apr 11, 2024
- Threads
- 1
- Messages
- 4
- Reaction score
- 1
- Location
- Philadelphia, PA
- Vehicles
- F150 Lightning Std Range '23, Tesla Model 3 '19
- Thread starter
- #1
I wanted to share some info about my first towing experience with my 2023 F150 Lightning standard range so others doing similar might have a better idea of what to expect towing a small utility trailer.
I had to move my John Deere X350 mower from near Philadelphia PA across the state to the Dubois PA area. Instead of dealing with getting the mower into the bed I opted to rent a U-Haul 5x9 trailer. It was a piece of cake putting the mower in, just lower the mesh ramp and drive it up. The mower and trailer together weighed about 1800 lbs. We're moving, so I also loaded the truck with maybe 800 lbs or so of belongings inside and in the bed.
One "feature" of this trailer is it has a max speed of 55mph, perfect in this case as keeping the aero penalty under control is key. The trip was 283 miles and I've done it many times unloaded. In perfect weather, which this trip was pretty close, I get about 2.1 or 2.2 miles/kwh going up there when traveling at ~70mph. With the trailer and extra load, traveling at 55mph, I averaged 2.0 miles/kwh for this trip. That was with temps around 75F, give or take, and an ~8mph headwind most of the way.
Naturally the charging situation with trailer attached gets a bit tricky so some planning ahead is a good idea. And even more so in this case since this trailer doesn't have a tongue jack and decoupling it while loaded isn't straight forward.
As it turned out I left early with 84% in the tank (instead of 100%) and I was going to charge before going up the PA Turnpike NE extension ahead of the climb into the Pocono Mtns. I knew the stop I planned in Quakertown would be ok as long as it wasn't busy, I drove right by and got back on the NE Extension, it was too busy. So I continued north and then turned west on Rt80. Fortunately I was able to easily reach (i.e. 30+ miles remaining) the stops I normally use, and those stops are near ideal when towing, with either pulling straight in or straight through. One charge was at a Loves truckstop in Mifflinville and the other at a Flying-J in Mill Hall PA.
So we all know towing a travel trailer with an F150 lightning is very limiting, but towing this little utility trailer... not so much.
I had to move my John Deere X350 mower from near Philadelphia PA across the state to the Dubois PA area. Instead of dealing with getting the mower into the bed I opted to rent a U-Haul 5x9 trailer. It was a piece of cake putting the mower in, just lower the mesh ramp and drive it up. The mower and trailer together weighed about 1800 lbs. We're moving, so I also loaded the truck with maybe 800 lbs or so of belongings inside and in the bed.
One "feature" of this trailer is it has a max speed of 55mph, perfect in this case as keeping the aero penalty under control is key. The trip was 283 miles and I've done it many times unloaded. In perfect weather, which this trip was pretty close, I get about 2.1 or 2.2 miles/kwh going up there when traveling at ~70mph. With the trailer and extra load, traveling at 55mph, I averaged 2.0 miles/kwh for this trip. That was with temps around 75F, give or take, and an ~8mph headwind most of the way.
Naturally the charging situation with trailer attached gets a bit tricky so some planning ahead is a good idea. And even more so in this case since this trailer doesn't have a tongue jack and decoupling it while loaded isn't straight forward.
As it turned out I left early with 84% in the tank (instead of 100%) and I was going to charge before going up the PA Turnpike NE extension ahead of the climb into the Pocono Mtns. I knew the stop I planned in Quakertown would be ok as long as it wasn't busy, I drove right by and got back on the NE Extension, it was too busy. So I continued north and then turned west on Rt80. Fortunately I was able to easily reach (i.e. 30+ miles remaining) the stops I normally use, and those stops are near ideal when towing, with either pulling straight in or straight through. One charge was at a Loves truckstop in Mifflinville and the other at a Flying-J in Mill Hall PA.
So we all know towing a travel trailer with an F150 lightning is very limiting, but towing this little utility trailer... not so much.
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