EV Towing Caravan 2024 - Range, cost, charging, pros and cons

[@perlundin86]

As always, Great video Andrew! And I can just confirm and agrees in everything you said! Since I work with Kia, I've made two caravan trips with an EV6 last year, one GT-Line AWD and one GT. In February I bought my own EV6 GT-Line AWD and in June we went on our yearly summer vacation with our Adria Adora 522 UP with a total weight of 1500 kg. We weren't supposed to go on such a long trip that we did but due to the weather in the Scandinavian countries we ended up, as usual, in Croatia. We first drove from Stockholm to Gothenburg, took the ferry to Fredrikshavn in Denmark and then drove to Grenen in northern Denmark. It was raining and really strong wind so we just stayed there for 24 hours, changed our plans and drove to Croatia. It was our first trip with an EV in Europe and our first really long trip with an EV and a caravan. It has never during the whole trip been any problem and in total, the trip took about 2,5-3 hours more compared to when we have been going to Croatia with a petrol or diesel car. Quite a small price to pay for going on a sunny vacation and making the smallest environmental footprint as possible. In total, we have been driving 5700km with an average consumption of 32.1km/100km. in these figures, about 400km of the trip in Croatia without the caravan are included. With that data excluded, maybe the consumption would have landed on 35kWh/100km is my guess. And thats pretty much in line with the increase in consumption in a petrol or diesel car. In other words, as you already mentioned, the consumption doubles while towing. The cost for charging, well, it could have been lower but we got lazy and did not plan our charging stops after the price. We just charged alongside the autobahn when we needed, just like filling up a petrol car. In total, the cost for charging were about 1100€ and about 100€ less compared when we made the same trip last year with a petrol car. If we had just planned our trip after the Ionity charging stations, the cost for charging would have been much lower. The only thing that we experienced that was annoying is that when you are facing strong head wind, this affects the range very much. And since an EV has smaller margins from the beginning, this becomes very noticeable. So, a bit more range would be great. Let's say about 100km more would be very appreciated. When I now have the facit, would I make the same trip again with en EV and Caravan? Absolutely! And would I ever go bak to towing with a petrol or diesel car? Never!

[@andrewjditton]

That's very interesting indeed! Thanks for sharing your information from such a long trip. For the UK reader, you equated about 1.8 mi/kWh on your trip. As you say, a headwind can make such a big difference. All the best!

[@andrewjditton]

Do you already tow with an EV? If so, please comment and let us know how many miles per kWh you're getting, and your favourite and least favourite aspects of EV towing. This info will be very useful for people considering an EV for towing. Thanks!

[@andrewducros1127]

Hi Andrew. I tow with an Ioniq 6 towing a sprite Coastline 1450kg. I get 1.6 to 1.8 on the motorway and 2 to 2.4 on A and B roads. And I love it!

[@donalgalvin5838]

I can get 25km per kw/hr with VW Id4 with a roof box and bike on top doing 90km on the French motorways. Chargers everywhere but most you have to unhitch which is a pain in the bum.

[@stephenmacnaughton9741]

I’m towing with a Model Y long range. I’m averaging about 2 miles per kWh. My caravan is a Swift Alpine 4 weighing 1300kg. My only bug bear is having to unhitch to charge, more pull through charging bays would be nice.

[@waynecartwright7276]

Been towing with our D4-3 for 2 years now, 1.6-2.2 miles per kwh . Having so much torque it's a great tow car. We generally use our caravan for weekends so don't go that far but have done 80 miles on 50% of the battery.

[@davidfyork]

I tow a Freedom Carpento 410 (quite an aerodynamic shape) with a Tesla Model 3 Long Range. Without the caravan I get just over 4 miles per kWh / about 300 miles range real world, with the caravan that goes down to just under 3 miles per kWh / about 200 miles. At two thirds normal range, I’m rather pleased at that. Also my Carpento was custom fitted without any gas, but has an EcoFlow battery instead, so is completely fossil-free caravanning! P.S. Loved the outro with Dougal and Ted, the best bit 😂

[@janetbowen7854]

Lovely vlog, Andrew, thank you. We don't tow, or have an EV, but I still watch because you're so interesting, entertaining and compelling. I also look forward to seeing Dougal and Ted 🐾🐶❤️ xxx

[@declanjennings896]

Seems a folding camper + EV would make a great combo

[@SJ-12561]

I note someone has already commented on dragging an Eriba behind an EV6, but thought I'd add more data. We tow an Eriba 540 touring with an EV6 2WD GT-Line. We typically see around 2.3mi/kWh on a mixed journey (some hills, some motorway, some A/B road) when fully loaded. So probably around 1300kgs We've seen higher in dreadful weather when almost empty! With our previous slab-fronted Bailey Vigo, we'd typically see around 1.7mi/kWh, sometimes a little better. The Bailey, when fully loaded, would be around 1475kg. Interestingly, when nearly empty, the Bailey wouldn't give us any better mileage. As you said, and echoed by another commenter, we're sometimes amazed that people think we're interested in their opinion on our choice of vehicle. But as relative newcomers to caravanning, I've been quite shocked at how old-fashioned the entire industry seems to be. Despite this, it's now becoming quite uncommon for us to be the only people using an EV on a typical larger site. Yet the industry continues to bury it's head in the sand :)

[@andrewjditton]

Thanks for your very interesting observations and data. Unfortunately the industry has always been way behind the times in so many aspects. I still remember testing a motorhome in 2007 that was fitted with... a cassette player!

[@avidviewer1]

Very interesting indeed. Thanks so much!

[@w-wanderers]

Another great video Andrew. We've just bought a Tesla Model Y to tow our Bailey Discovery D4-4. We're looking forward to getting the towbar fitted and getting away in the caravan in an EV! Thanks for sharing great content.

[@hfp77]

Hi Andrew, yesterday I just came back from my trip from Germany to Southwest England. 2500km in total. With my Ioniq5 and my Everest mini camper I need 26 kWh per 100 km driving between 90 and 95 km/h. Going 110 km/h it will go up to 32 kWh per 100 km. The front of my small camper is only 1.8x2.2m it has the same width as my car which is good when driving one lane roads. The typical distance between to charging stops 10-90% is around 200 km in this configuration.

[@andrewjditton]

That's very useful and reassuring to know, thank you! For those reading this comment in the UK, that is 2.4 mi/kWh at about 60, and 1.9 mi/kWh at about 70. This certainly reinforces the point that the sizes of the front and the aerodynamics of the trailer play a huge part. Many thanks.

[@tomstours2220]

Have my dreams come true? A sequence of videos by the great Andrew Dutton? Yes please!!! Thank you.

[@yaminthegrey]

Hari OM Neat and to the point! I recently did a costing on my E-Transit van; averaging just over 3m/kWh and the big journey undertaken worked out at almost exactly 10p/mile. Was pretty chuffed with that! I know that's different from caravan towing, but lots of folk are under the impression that vans just won't work on electric and I am actually bettering even the averages Ford themselves advertise... but I do tend to be a steady-eddy driver, which makes a difference. I really see the average drop when I have no option but to use dual/motorways. YAM xx

[@nealeTH]

I tow an Eriba Troll 530 (the larger Eriba) with an EV6 and get 2.1 to 2.6. Typically 2.3. I have just come back from a mini break - only 48 miles away arrived with 74% remaining (started with 100%). Driving home along same route started at 86% arrived home 58%. If I had dropped my speed and driven a bit more carefully I probably could saved 5%. I had air con on too. As it was a short trip I didn’t need to. The aerodynamics is the magic sauce and the Eribas are probably the most aerodynamic caravans you can get on the market. Like you my only problem is with people who haven’t even sat in an EV lecturing me on how you can’t tow with them despite them watching me arrive and unhook my Eriba. I find an increasing number of people are cautiously interested, if a bit sceptical. I am happy to have a chat if they have questions. Their questions tend to come from a place of misinformation that the oil-lobby funded media have pushed out. I am not interested if they want to lecture me. It’s not my job to convert them, I have no care what they drive. I have no idea why they care so much what I drive and feel they can come over to give an unwanted option. Perhaps my biggest irritation of this is where the owners or wardens of a caravan site (private not the club sires) lecture me from a deeply ignorant and uniformed angle. Again forcing an opinion on me that I really am not interested in. They end up stopping me from charging because ‘they can’t afford it’ even though I am happy to pay. Ironically the site full of huge caravans and motorhomes, with TVs, air conditioning, portable heaters in awnings going 24/7 drawing considerably more than the EV would who don’t have to pay a supplement. I look forward to the change to metered electricity as my use of energy, even with an EV, will be considerably less than those around me. I tend to jest with these site owners (though this type tend to have zero humour) that after the Luton airport car park fire where a diesel car blew up and destroyed 1400 cars, I get extremely anxious when a diesel car pitches near my caravan... These interactions with the opinionated caravan site owners leave a bad taste that affects the stay and I don’t ever return to them. They clearly prefer an empty pitch to my money. People who have never driven an EV, or towed with one, will not have a grasp of how completely different it is from a regular petrol,or diesel car. They think it’s just the same but either an electric ‘engine’. I suspect that if most people tried one, they would convert immediately and never go back. Petrol and diesel cars feel positively Victorian when you have to drive one having owned an EV.

[@user-tv8sm6so9y]

That fire had nothing to do with the Vehicle being a Diesel, The Diesel Vehicle involved had an "ELECTRICAL" Fire, So get off the EV Agenda Crusade, EV's are Great and the EV6 is the best one on the market, I'd have an EV6 in a Heartbeat but I don't want to keep having to stop every 60 to 120 miles to recharge it in the middle of winter in the Snow and the Rain, I love the V2L feature of the EV6 and it is a ground breaking feature to have, If only Kia would fit it with a 100/120Kwh Battery then it would be perfect, Although I drive a Diesel MPV that can do up to 64.2MPG and 46 to 56mpg when Towing I still think the EV6 is the best Inovative Car on the road today, No other Car can match the EV6 where everything about it just works,

[@petesig93]

Great video summary of towing with an EV and charging in the UK. You sure have some great charging stations and a nice set-up with the Cravan Club sites. I am amazed at the size of that Adria caravan you are towing! Here in Australia any caravan that big would weigh in at at least 2 tonnes with a tow-bal weight of 160-180kg and be WAY outside the possibility of towing with my Ioniq 6 (1,500kg braked tow weight and 100kg tow-ball load). There are really only a small selection of caravans that fit within these specs, mostly pokey little 10ft or 12 ft vans. I am towing a 750kg Jayco Swift camper-trailer, and even with this, because of its boxy shape, it kind of hammers the range, cutting it from 550-600km to about 300km with careful driving. I am amazed that you only get a 50% drop in range with such a big van.

[@djgeorgevdg]

What an AMAZING Video! Thank you so much! I recently upgraded my 2nd car to a citoren e-c4 and it has been marvelous and extremely cheap as I have only charged at home for 10p/kWh and I am probably going to upgrade my towing car to an EV - I'm thinking Kia EV9.

[@andrewjditton]

Great stuff. I've not yet tried the EV9... maybe I need to ask Kia if I can borrow one? Hmm.... Thanks for the idea!

[@jeanbeyers]

Our experience with the new Volvo EX30: We have the 'EX30 plus extend range' since the end of april. In may and june we went with the EX30 and Sprite caravan (6m and 1200kg max) for almost six weeks to France. A better caravan tower we did never have, but of course you do have to recharge often: the range was about 200 km with speed 85/90 km, witch means after 150 km you are looking for a charging point. Was no problem at all. Oké I know, we are pensionados and have a lot of time. So instead of in two days with the Volvo V40 Sport, now in three days with the EX30 to the Provence. Starting in the morning between 09.00 and 10.00 and looking for a camping around 16.00, witch means around 350 km per day. It was exactly we hoped for starting this 'adventure' ;-) If you have only two or three weeks, it's of course an other story, also recharging in France will be a little more difficult I presume. Fastned is perfect with car and caravan, at other stations you often need to separate car and caravan, and then you need a little more space then is abounded before the holiday season starts I think, but this goes for every EV.

[@crossdwr]

Great piece, Andrew. We're in Australia where chargers are too far apart yet to make it viable. But I'm am hanging out for when we get real long range EVs that will suit Australia. Please come and make a video out here! Many thanks for all the material on your site. Dave

[@andrewjditton]

That sounds like a fantastic idea! I'd love to.

[@petra3498]

Yeah. Andrew released a new video 😊 and as always a good one. Maybe we will see you at the caravan salon düsseldorf? (fingerscrossed)

[@AndrewSavageMI0OBR]

Thanks 👍

[@cliff6797]

Great video Andrew, very informative, particularly about the range issue and charging on route. In relation to your comment about how others view ev touring with a caravan, I think there are concerns about the huge charges some campsites are making for a hook up, and subsiding others when they are only using a fridge and a kettle. The sooner all hook ups are metered the better!

[@andrewjditton]

Yes - as the metered supply at Wyatts Covert proved, it was a far cheaper than using a public charger and very fair.

[@anneshirley1748]

Thanks for the video, enjoyed it even though I'm a car novice! Loved Dougs and Ted at the end too! Sending hugs xx

[@paulievins5862]

Ionic 5 towing Lunar Stellar from Seahouses to Lincoln. Just one stop at Leeming Bar. Very pleased with the drive, range (enough left over on each leg), ease of towing. And with normal driving and charging at home (most of the time) only £6 for the equivalent of a full tank, what's not to like. Your KZbins really helped me have the confidence to give it a go.

[@andrewjditton]

Glad it's all worked out Paul. Leeming Bar is one of my charging stops as well!

[@dennismatthews6660]

Thank you

[@ManxAndy]

Good afternoon Andrew….Dougal and Ted….very informative as always, top vlog.👍👌🇮🇲

[@garrygreen3210]

Excellent overview Andrew, thanks.

[@GaetanHobby]

Thank you Andrew 😉

[@1mw2mam]

Great video and nice timing. Just back from a weeks tour - Somerset, North Devon, South Devon with a Wiensberrg 360QD towed by our Enyaq 80x. As you say; very smooth and very powerful - cars would move out to overtake as we got to hills with an overtaking lane but the Enyaq would power up to the speed limit (on travel assist mode) and I'd see the 'overtaking' cars fall behind!. I added an external socket to the caravan and this made it easy to charge on the Camping and Caravan club sites and I'd get a 10 to 20% charge at 2kwh between our driving which might be used to 10% on a site seeing day. Nice charging station at Strawberry Fields farm shop (very good) at Buckfast with Osprey ultra rapid chargers and with 2 long bays that you don't need to unhitch for.

[@andrewjditton]

That all sounds very positive indeed! Thanks for sharing your experience, I'm sure others will find that reassuring.

[@Bradtheone]

Love the stars of the show 😬 great little EV insight vid ❤

[@carolynandcocohaywood2638]

Great video Andrew, thanks.

[@user-tv8sm6so9y]

Thats a beautifull Caravan but the elddis is a Happy Place and fun to Tow. I am convinced what you said about smaller Caravans as I was thinking the same back when you first bought it.👍

[@andrewjditton]

I totally agree!

[@dmbarry86]

I tow my Swift Sprint Grande Major 4 SB caravan (1385kg MRO) with my Hyundai Ioniq 5. Real-world range when not towing is 270 miles and when towing is 130 miles. I would love to see more widely available information on suitable charging stops for EV towers. Often I find that many services don't provide two-way access from the caravan parking area to and from the EV charging area. I often research ahead of time using Google maps and street view etc but it's the one thing that always gives me a bit of anxiety if I'm towing somewhere new.

[@mortenthenorwegian2875]

A very good video!

[@andrewjditton]

Thank you!

[@harrylinsdell8114]

Seems a lot of caravan dealerships are going bankrupt all of a sudden ,what's your thoughts on it Andrew and could you do a video about it

[@dolorescraig8322]

Hello Ted and Dougal. Oh, and Andrew......

[@commuterbranchline8132]

Great to see you all again out in a van towed by an EV. Our Tesla Model Y manages between 1.6- 2.1 miles per kWh of traveling in favourable conditions. This range of up to 150 ish miles is far longer than that of my bladder, so I’m happy to plan charging and comfort breaks accordingly.

[@andrewjditton]

That's the line I use! My car's range exceeds my own bladder! ;@) Thanks for the info.

[@commuterbranchline8132]

@@andrewjditton I bought my first EV in 2013, however I didn’t start commenting on the cars range being further than mine until 2018 when we upgraded to a Hyundai Kona which could easily achieve 300 miles! Great to see more EV towing, you , Ted & Dougal!

[@paulievins5862]

Public charging costs roughly the same as diesel. Might come down if there's more competition. But for normal life it's a great option. And as for towing, the ionic 5 is really planted to the road which makes towing so much more pleasurable. On the way up we stopped twice as this was the first time towing any distance. Weatherby didn't feel safe but Washington just before Newcastle was very easy. I remembered your mention of Leeming Bar on the way back, perfect for a 30 minute stop, sandwich etc

[@chrishealey3410]

Great vid and many thanks for the new conetent. As a recent ev convert with my wife and and her daily runabout (Renault Zoe) I absolutely get the towing positive for an EV. We also have the kia sorento diesel for towing our twin axle Coachman and as my daily company comuter, but as soon as the EV 9 drops a bit in purchase price, i will have a look. Still always got my 2 classic ford Capris and the wife has her GPZ Kawasaki for petrol head-on-ism!

[@andrewjditton]

Great stuff and sounds like a good plan. Have you heard that Ford are resurrecting the Capri name with its latest EV? Looks interesting - have a Google! All the best.

[@DelDelap]

Great overview, cant wait for you to try an Eriba.

[@pauljohnson2430]

Always love you videos, but still not convinced to go E.V. I am travelling 5000 + miles across Europe as a campsite assesor with Alan Rogers , I really dont think it would work for me. However try putting a Go Pod behind your E.V. I would be really interested to see your numbers. I still get average 38mpg towing my Go Pod with a 5 series BMW .

[@garyrichardson865]

Very informative, well done! 😃🚗👍x

[@andrewjditton]

Glad it was helpful!

[@stum8374]

Hi Andrew if your only getting 1.6-2 kwh as said before I would look at car spoilers ! I know you said you have looked but I would see if you can 'print' one from abs ???

[@andrewjditton]

Spoilers/wind deflectors were big in the 70s and 80s, but I'm not sure if they would make such a difference with a hatchback-shaped car like mine. However, maybe they would with something squarer at the back like the Kia EV9... certainly something worth looking into. Cheers.

[@robfee2065]

Long charging bays - do you know of a up to date list of such facilities. We also tow with an EV6 and its a delight except for the hassle of unhooking to charge.

[@weenedonpetrol]

Hi Andrew, as you may remember I was going to buy an electric BMW i4, but my circumstances changed and I’ve decided to do something I never thought I would ever do- buy a camp van. I’m going for a Van Worx Slipper XL and having an AMF K70 under floor wheelchair lift fitted - should be interesting!

[@andrewjditton]

Life is what happens when you've made other plans ;) Hope you enjoy the camper.

[@Wagons-Rule]

My major problem is that I just can’t afford/justify a new or even nearly new EV. Generally my budget is between 5 & 10k, and I would be concerned about a EV that could tow at that price. My next option would be a larger hybrid and would love to see some videos of those cars in my price point. Cheers David.

[@andrewjditton]

Agreed. However, this is all I have experience in. Hopefully those with the cars you mention might share their experiences too. All the best.

[@jacekkapanowski5815]

Well, frankly I’m surprised that by now you are not fed up with the inconvenience of EV, especially low range and long charging time. I guess when you are not in a hurry, it is not such a big deal. And with relatively low number of EVs on the road queues at the charging stations is not a problem yet. As I commented a while ago, I understand the appeal of quiet effortless acceleration etc. but that’s about all. The stability of towing comes from the weight of EV - you move around roughly half a tonne of batteries all the time.

[@dianarolph1770]

I agree with you that at the moment there is no queuing but…. who can see the future. And the altercations that will come with long queues? We do naturally queue ( not like other nations) but tempers fray proportionately with lengths of waiting times! I envisage chaos if not carnage- I don’t think this has been thought through!

[@jacekkapanowski5815]

@@dianarolph1770 of course it will get worse (i.e. queues at charging stations, shortage of grid power -> long charging) if EVs get more popular, let’s hope they won’t.

[@pontymike56]

not sure if charging the car via the caravan is a sensible thing to do, although it might have 13 amp socket outlets , is the caravan wirering designed to pass that much current for a long time, its discouraged at how now, it is recomended to install a special 13A exterior socket as a radial from the consumer unit,(if not fitting a charger of course)

[@andybutler3868]

Great video , but let’s consider family with kids , detaching to recharge on motorway ummmmm not sure it’s really family oriented

[@steamdrivenandy6880]

Isn't the problem not that some EV's can tow a caravan but more that most can't and finding out which ones can is a mind numbing plod through masses of info. Does anyone publish a straightforward list by towing limit?

[@alanwilkins139]

🙏❤️👍

[@davidmbell]

Interesting that the size / weight of the unit didn’t make a discernible difference to the range. Wonder if that’s particular to EV’s and if say a combustion engined car it would make a difference, torque/pulling power wise, hence poorer MPG? Have to wonder if the old “wind jammer” roof mounted fins/spoilers of the late 70s would make a difference if it’s all about the drag created by the front of the ‘van.

[@andrewjditton]

I had one of those! It made a difference when at the back of my Cortina Estate, but when on my Granada it was too far forward to make a difference. I think low profile caravans are the better option.

[@davidpinnington213]

@@andrewjditton - great video - I'm still lugging a near 3 ton of US made stream but I've had my eye on ev'sfor if and when we change the 2nd motor - anyway as a cyclist i can confirm aero is everything - when/if i get some free time iam going to study the low profile/whitebox/suv/truck with my cfd software

[@briancook1050]

We've been towing our xplore 554 with a ioniq for the past 14 months and now conpleted almost 4k miles of towing. Absolutely loved the experience of towing. Charging not so much vs. Petrol as it needs more planning and unhooking is something I could do without even if we have it down pat now. The amount of times ive been moving thr caravan across a car park using the motor mover while my partner sorts rhe car out with the charger, you do get some funny looks. We been getting around 2m per kwh in the warmer weather and close to 1.7 when it was colder. Interesting about the weight difference as we want to move to a larger ev to tow a dual axle in a couple of years, we were worried about a bigger hit to the miles per kwh. With an EV i feel more confident towing something two tons than i would with most ice due to the extra weight and torque of the EV.

[@andrewjditton]

Sounds like we have shared very similar experiences with our similar (same platform) cars! I'm not sure if the added tyre resistance of a twin axle might make a bigger difference... there are so many unanswered questions still. Of course, if Kia could lend me an EV9 for a few months.... ;)

[@briancook1050]

@@andrewjditton I really like the look of the ev9, it looks immense. I have my eye on the polestar 4 as its a bit smaller and seems to do more miles per kWh. Hope Kia gives you one to try!

[@campakilla1]

A Folding caravan should give better range then...🤔

[@MrCrunchbucket]

Hi Andrew, just wondered how low a state of charge you've gone to when towing and if you've noticed any drop in performance? I'm always ultra cautious when route planning and tend to arrive at site with around 35% charge remaining - this still gives us a range of well over 100 miles. EV6 RWD with two adults towing Eriba 530, laden weight about 1350kgs. We get between 1.9 - 2.4 m/kwh, typically about 2.1. The lower aerodynamic profile of the Eriba is a definite advantage and it's a rock steady tow.

[@andrewjditton]

Thanks for the interesting stats. I usually arrive with about 25-35% too. The lowest I got to was 10% and that has only happened once.

[@martynpotter2957]

You should not plug the ev into a caravan as the caravans electrical system is not built to the power required for an ev

[@SJ-12561]

Thought I'd best correct this rubbish in case anyone reads and believes it. According to the manufacturers I've spoken to, about the caravans I've owned, a constant 10A is fine. Not that I've ever drawn that much as it limits the use of the caravan electrics for other things. So I tend to set the car to charge at 6 amps, or occasionally 8 amps, and leave it overnight. Because yes, we can adjust the charge rate of the car. Probably best to leave dispensing advice to those of us who have EVs and use them to tow caravans... 🙄 We have actual knowledge and experience.