Does "Towing Mode" reduce range unnecessarily?

[Riviaenz]

The software from a year ago was actually pretty good. As soon as you selected towing mode it immediately dropped range by 50% but then adjusted fairly accurately based on your efficiency during the drive. Then they screwed it all up and you started getting 635 miles in tow mode and it’s been messed up ever since.

I‘d read about that phenomenon and was worried about it going into our first roadtrip. We didn’t experience that at all. The only time it was concerning was with the one leg I mentioned that the indicated range started dropping once we got further into the forest where elevation gently increased and speed limit was also higher (70s). And that was contrary to start of the leg which was level and slower speeds (~60mph). When I started noticing range drop from having been trending up I slowed and it helped to stem the fast drop. The start of the leg was good enough to where it climbed to about 160-170mi indicated range before it began dropping and as we got further into it I was staying comfortable estimating in my head that we’d make it and sure enough by the end of that segment we finished traveling 90 miles and having 12% SoC left over.

It would definitely have been a problem if range were crazy off like indicating 635mi. Still having had great results for the majority of the trip up to that point, with range in the 150-180 zone and still having some buffer I was really puzzled. On the return is when the elevation change became apparent as did the higher speeds. I watched speed for the return of that same road section and managed to get better range results. Then the rest of the trip was back to higher indicated and actual range once out of that part of the route.

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[Ronimal]

Seems like they could get you a better range estimate if you were able to input some info about whatever you are towing.

Is it a camper or a boat or an open trailer? What is the Weight, height, width?

it wouldn’t be too hard for them to maintain a database of towable‘s that you could select and have those parameters put it automatically. Or select something similar and then tweak. They could use all their data capture to refine the estimates for everyone.

With a bit of math and testing I feel like they should be able to estimate the towing penalty within a more reasonable range than they are today. Right now the estimates are pretty garbage and swing all over the place.

 

[jwanderson88]

I'm in Utah, where charging infrastructure is clustered around urban areas and rural areas have virtually none. There's a sand dune recreation area I often go to. I have to make it there and back with one 100% charge. I tow a trailer that weighs about 2000 pounds and a side-by-side that weights about the same. It isn't a huge load. It's about 150 miles to get there and back. I unhitch the truck and do some exploring., I don't even look at the mileage. It is wildly inaccurate and guaranteed to leave me stranded. I use the charge percent. If it takes 40% charge to get there, I need to reserve 40% to return. I like to have at least 10% at the end of the round trip so my truck doesn't have a fit. EV's are the ultimate pessimists.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

All we focus on when we tow is getting there and back. We have a 40 amp portable charger as well as the Rivien portable charger that can do 120v or 240v. We prefer charging at the destination.... if we know we are staying for 3 days or more even 120v charging is enough unless you need a ton of range to drive around while your there.

Towing a 5,000+ lb travel trailer we average between 1.0 and 1.25 miles per kwh.

Would be nice if there were a conserve mode for towing. I think that would be useful if your doing a lot of highway driving but the difference is probably negligible.

 

[azbill]

Seems like they could get you a better range estimate if you were able to input some info about whatever you are towing.

Is it a camper or a boat or an open trailer? What is the Weight, height, width?

it wouldn’t be too hard for them to maintain a database of towable‘s that you could select and have those parameters put it automatically. Or select something similar and then tweak. They could use all their data capture to refine the estimates for everyone.

With a bit of math and testing I feel like they should be able to estimate the towing penalty within a more reasonable range than they are today. Right now the estimates are pretty garbage and swing all over the place.

GM has this feature on their trucks.

 

[Gr8smiles]

Your range will be reduced regardless of what mode you’re in, tow mode just tries to show you that immediately. It’s estimated are wildly inaccurate and if you rely on them you will end up stranded. With a 6500lb boat you’re likely going to be in the range of 1.25mi/kWh or roughly 160 miles range on a full charge. Don’t trust the range estimate, trust your 15 minute efficiency meter and math. No matter how much you drive in tow mode it will not learn or adapt to be accurate.

Does anyone else get Bizaar Range estimates while Towing?

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