Towing test for upcoming travel season

[B177y]

I posted a much abbreviated version in the "Towing/Hauling/Trailering" section under the Data Thread sticky.

Truck:
2024 Lightning Pro ER Max Tow

Trailer:
2018 JayFlight 242BHSW, ~6500 lbs for this test

Efficiency:
Ford dash: 0.9 mi/kwh

ABRP towing profile calibrated consumption: 0.96 mi/kwh @ 65 mph.

Distance:
135 mi round trip. 67 mi to Tesla Supercharger and 67 back.


I made a towing profile on ABRP that estimated 1.15 mi/kwh, which ended up being too optimistic. I wanted to get some real world and more accurate towing stats for upcoming summer fun. My previous tow rig was a 2001 F350 V-10 gasser. This will be my first "travel trailer season" with the Lightning.

My travel trailer is 24' long (30' from hitch to rear bumper), 11' tall (with air conditioner), 8' wide. Pretty square front, not really aerodynamic. Maximum weight on the sticker is 7250 lbs with weight from factory listed as 5726 lbs. I haven't been on a scale but I estimate that I am probably around 6500 lbs for this test run.

I did a round trip from Sequim, WA to the Tesla Supercharger in Forks, WA and back to Sequim. Left my house at 80% charge since it was a spur of the moment thing. Combination of 60 mph highway and congested streets with construction through Port Angeles. Just under 140 miles total. Truck displayed outside temps mid 50's to mid 60's, sunny and no real wind.

The Lightning tows like a dream! When I got home I adjusted my WDH (an old Eaz-lift) adding one more washer of downward force on the tow arms as I felt a little light on the front wheels going over some poor sections of road. I had the Eaz-lift adjusted per the Lightning's hitch setup menu where you add your trailer details and it guides you through the sequence of hitched with no arms, then hitch with arms attached, and you adjust your WDH to get into the "green zone". Other than that, compared to my old F350 the Lightning drives MUCH nicer and the torque is supreme.

The downside is that I will need to plan for stops where I can charge with the trailer attached or have sufficient area to drop it while I charge. There is one trip that my family has taken for the past few years that is 335 mi one way that will require 4 charge stops along I-5 and I-84. Many of the fast chargers along this route are not optimized for larger towing rigs, so I'll be digging through ABRP and PlugShare to check for trailer friendly stops.

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[VTbuckeye]

This weekend I drove across NY to pick up a 20 foot sailboat for my 15 year old son (he found a boat that he wanted, has been sailing/racing for years and it was a combination birthday/Christmas present). We left the trailer attached for all of our charging (stations were not busy). I tried to pick a spot on the end and did my best to keep the boat out of the way. Total length was probably 26 to 28 feet ball to end of mast. My efficiency was much better than the travel trailer as the boat hides behind the truck (4ft tall 7ft wide with only the mast and boom sticking above the hull).
Ideally I would find charging locations that are trailer friendly. Then try to pick an end spot that does not obstruct the flow of traffic. Then consider dropping the trailer in an adjacent parking spot. Thank goodness Ford put the charging port on the front end of the truck. Of the 4 places we charged only one would have worked with a rear charge port location.

 

[B177y]

I should have added that I was able to keep my trailer attached while I charged at the Tesla charger in Forks. I did exactly as you say and took the left most spot that was facing sideways instead of the usual pulling up towards the charger with the front of the truck. The total length of the truck and trailer still left about 10 ft of parking lot behind me and didn't obstruct traffic. I did have to back out of the spot about 20 ft but then this allowed me to make a u-turn and head out to the main road. This station I assume sees a lot of trailer traffic (as much as there is for EVs) as it is the main loop around the Olympic Peninsula. During the summer, there are literally thousands of RVs taking this route everyday.

 

[rockfish]

My travel trailer is 24' long (30' from hitch to rear bumper), 11' tall (with air conditioner), 8' wide. Pretty square front, not really aerodynamic. Maximum weight on the sticker is 7250 lbs with weight from factory listed as 5726 lbs. I haven't been on a scale but I estimate that I am probably around 6500 lbs for this test run.

This is pretty close to what i will be pulling for memorial day weekend. 24 ft. grand design Transcend. Its close to 7000 lbs as well. Great to read you had a good experience with it. I am excited for my upcoming trip, only pulling about 100 miles this time, it will be the first pull since i traded in my 2018 ICE lariat.

 

[B177y]

This is pretty close to what i will be pulling for memorial day weekend. 24 ft. grand design Transcend. Its close to 7000 lbs as well. Great to read you had a good experience with it. I am excited for my upcoming trip, only pulling about 100 miles this time, it will be the first pull since i traded in my 2018 ICE lariat.

If you get similar efficiency to me, you should be able to make your trip one way without having to stop, as long as you are at 100% SOC when you leave your house.

If you are allowed/able to L2 charge where you are staying, you can get to 100% for the return trip home. If not, I would plan on at least one DCFC stop to get home.

You will LOVE the towing performance of the Lightning!

 

[Yellow Buddy]

This is pretty close to what i will be pulling for memorial day weekend. 24 ft. grand design Transcend. Its close to 7000 lbs as well. Great to read you had a good experience with it. I am excited for my upcoming trip, only pulling about 100 miles this time, it will be the first pull since i traded in my 2018 ICE lariat.

I’ve got a 247BH. I saw 0.8mi/kWh on the last tow which was slightly disappointing, but I was moving at a good clip and it was pretty windy (20-30mph) Hoping to get a bit better next time out.

 

[flux capacitor]

Very informative so even with only getting .96 the equivalent 32.4 mpge (33.7kwh=1 gallon of gas) which is still amazing. I do not know of any ICE truck towing a 30ft trailer to get 32mpg. The only downside is the charging time. Seems like a good trade to me especially with prices at the pump now.

 

[B177y]

Very informative so even with only getting .96 the equivalent 32.4 mpge (33.7kwh=1 gallon of gas) which is still amazing. I do not know of any ICE truck towing a 30ft trailer to get 32mpg. The only downside is the charging time. Seems like a good trade to me especially with prices at the pump now.

Hadn't thought about the gas equivalent. That's an informative way to look at it.

 

[Yellow Buddy]

Very informative so even with only getting .96 the equivalent 32.4 mpge (33.7kwh=1 gallon of gas) which is still amazing. I do not know of any ICE truck towing a 30ft trailer to get 32mpg. The only downside is the charging time. Seems like a good trade to me especially with prices at the pump now.

Unfortunately MPGe is more a factor of energy and not necessarily cost. If we’re being fair, a $/mi would be a more accurate comparison.

For example, for me the residential rate is $0.16/kWh. For the first 100kWh, at .96mi/kWh would be $16/96mi or $0.17/mi.

The problem is when we stop to charge at a DCFC for $0.45/kWh or $0.47/mi.

At that point unfortunately a gas truck becomes more cost efficient around 7mpg, and I recall getting 12-14mpg on 93 octane. That means it would require $5.62/gallon gas prices to break even.

 

[MidAtlanticLightningClub]

Unfortunately MPGe is more a factor of energy and not necessarily cost. If we’re being fair, a $/mi would be a more accurate comparison.

For example, for me the residential rate is $0.16/kWh. For the first 100kWh, at .96mi/kWh would be $16/96mi or $0.17/mi.

The problem is when we stop to charge at a DCFC for $0.45/kWh or $0.47/mi.

At that point unfortunately a gas truck becomes more cost efficient around 7mpg, and I recall getting 12-14mpg on 93 octane. That means it would require $5.62/gallon gas prices to break even.

If you want to get the best deal on every trip you're right. However, most people do 90-95% of their charging at home. Overall that makes the Lightning much cheaper to operate.

 

[Yellow Buddy]

If you want to get the best deal on every trip you're right. However, most people do 90-95% of their charging at home. Overall that makes the Lightning much cheaper to operate.

Hence the first part of that calculation. And some folks like me - have solar. But even at $0.16/kWh at home - the national average - that’s the equivalent of $2/gallon at 12 mpg.

There’s potential savings, sure since gas is at $3.15/gallon. But IMO and the point was MPGe isn’t necessarily the right indicator. It doesn’t accurately reflect cost to the driver, and it doesn’t accurately capture the environmental impact.

 

[flux capacitor]

Unfortunately MPGe is more a factor of energy and not necessarily cost. If we’re being fair, a $/mi would be a more accurate comparison.

For example, for me the residential rate is $0.16/kWh. For the first 100kWh, at .96mi/kWh would be $16/96mi or $0.17/mi.

The problem is when we stop to charge at a DCFC for $0.45/kWh or $0.47/mi.

At that point unfortunately a gas truck becomes more cost efficient around 7mpg, and I recall getting 12-14mpg on 93 octane. That means it would require $5.62/gallon gas prices to break even.

in 14k miles I have only charged at a public charger once and that was just to figure out how it worked. My residential rate is average .1727/kwh 24/7. I do not have an example of you exact milage, but from my spreadsheet log I found one at 106 miles.

Charge Log 2025 Query

KWH_CHARGED	COST_PER_KWH	TOT_COST	MPGe	Miles per kwh	Charged Miles Added	Act Miles
43.3​	0.1727​	7.47791​	82.5​	2.45​	116​	106​

That equals $.07/mi. If I would had to charge at a public charger that same trip it would have worked out to 43.3kwh x $.48=$20.784/106mi would be $.20/mi If I got your 14mpg I would have used 7.57/gal at a cost of $42.55 = $2.49/mi So what do you rather spend $.20/mi or $2.49/mi?

I get on average 2.2-2.8 miles per kwh. The only time I lead foot it when I absolutely need it like for passing or to save my but to avoid an accident or giving someone a demo of what this truck can do. 98% of my driving is taking off easy and keeping my average up above 2.0mi/kwh.

Your example is misleading because you don't make an equal apples to apples comparison by showing the same cost per mile for gallons used. Even if I got less than 2.0mi/kwh I would still be in the green for cash saved.

 

[Yellow Buddy]

in 14k miles I have only charged at a public charger once and that was just to figure out how it worked. My residential rate is average .1727/kwh 24/7. I do not have an example of you exact milage, but from my spreadsheet log I found one at 106 miles.

Charge Log 2025 Query

KWH_CHARGED	COST_PER_KWH	TOT_COST	MPGe	Miles per kwh	Charged Miles Added	Act Miles
43.3​	0.1727​	7.47791​	82.5​	2.45​	116​	106​

That equals $.07/mi. If I would had to charge at a public charger that same trip it would have worked out to 43.3kwh x $.48=$20.784/106mi would be $.20/mi If I got your 14mpg I would have used 7.57/gal at a cost of $42.55 = $2.49/mi So what do you rather spend $.20/mi or $2.49/mi?

I get on average 2.2-2.8 miles per kwh. The only time I lead foot it when I absolutely need it like for passing or to save my but to avoid an accident or giving someone a demo of what this truck can do. 98% of my driving is taking off easy and keeping my average up above 2.0mi/kwh.

Your example is misleading because you don't make an equal apples to apples comparison by showing the same cost per mile for gallons used. Even if I got less than 2.0mi/kwh I would still be in the green for cash saved.

…this is a towing thread. We’re talking towing figures 12mpg in a gas vs 0.96mi/kWh in the Lightning (I get 0.8-1.5 depending on the trailer)

Redo your numbers with what you stated here:

Very informative so even with only getting .96 the equivalent 32.4 mpge

$0.1727/kWh divided by 0.96mi/kWh equals $0.1799/mi. At 12mpg, gas prices would need to be $2.159/gallon for a breakeven.

That’s only assuming you only tow a maximum of 110miles AND you stay at your destination long enough to have the equivalent rates to get back. Otherwise - as this is a towing thread for travel trailers - you’ll need to DCFC or, you’re only going 60 miles or so in your camper if you want to get home on the same charge.

Idk about other folks, but I bought my camper to go places. Most people buy their travel trailers to…travel with average pulls being 200-300miles. Factoring BOTH the cost of home plus on the road is the only way to accurately get a view of what it would cost.

There’s plenty of positives about pulling with an EV. It sure as heck pulls a lot smoother. The power in unbeatable through mountains. It sure gives a lot more boondocking options. You can save a bunch of money by picking a rustic (no-electric, water, sewer) site with Pro Power. The general rhetoric about MPGe however sets unrealistic expectations to new buyers who will then see a post like yours “32.4mpgE” and might think oh it costs 1/3 if I buy an EV to pull…

 

[flux capacitor]

…this is a towing thread. We’re talking towing figures 12mpg in a gas vs 0.96mi/kWh in the Lightning (I get 0.8-1.5 depending on the trailer)

Redo your numbers with what you stated here:



$0.1727/kWh divided by 0.96mi/kWh equals $0.1799/mi. At 12mpg, gas prices would need to be $2.159/gallon for a breakeven.

That’s only assuming you only tow a maximum of 110miles AND you stay at your destination long enough to have the equivalent rates to get back. Otherwise - as this is a towing thread for travel trailers - you’ll need to DCFC or, you’re only going 60 miles or so in your camper if you want to get home on the same charge.

Idk about other folks, but I bought my camper to go places. Most people buy their travel trailers to…travel with average pulls being 200-300miles. Factoring BOTH the cost of home plus on the road is the only way to accurately get a view of what it would cost.

There’s plenty of positives about pulling with an EV. It sure as heck pulls a lot smoother. The power in unbeatable through mountains. It sure gives a lot more boondocking options. You can save a bunch of money by picking a rustic (no-electric, water, sewer) site with Pro Power. The general rhetoric about MPGe however sets unrealistic expectations to new buyers who will then see a post like yours “32.4mpgE” and might think oh it costs 1/3 if I buy an EV to pull…

I cannot redo my numbers unless I get the actual miles traveled and the kwh charged. The .9mil/kwh on the dash is an average estimate (a ball park figure). It is nowhere close to actual that's why I document my actual charge history and actual mileage. Give me the kwh charged at the charge station and the actual mileage of the truck not the miles added calculation. I have not towed anything with my truck.

 

[hturnerfamily]

in the course of a current move, we've towed our 6x12 single-axle enclosed cargo trailer, fully loaded, maybe 5-6k lbs, over 115 miles with no issues, netting about 1.5-1.6 mil/kwh in good weather, little wind, and little terrain... SR PRO... generally 30% left when arriving...

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