Need advice on Coast to Coast relocation towing

[Ottoman]

Hey Guys,

Looking for some advice/thoughts from the seasoned veterans.
I have a Gen 1 R1T quad on the 21's.
I am relocating from LA to NJ (2,800 miles) at the beginning of April.
It's me, my GF and my Boston terrier.

I have a 750 sq ft 1 bdrm apartment

My biggest Concern is range obviously.

2800 miles at 55 miles an hour plus charging stops is going to be 3-4 days at best if you are cannonballing it.

I'm seriously considering downsizing and selling all the big items (Queen sized bed, sectional couch, coffee table, media center etc). to try and play tetris and squeeze personal affects/things I care about into a 4x8 plus the bed of the truck/gear tunnel.

While the 4x8 is ~$300 less than the 5x8 my main goal is to try and reduce the Aero-drag as much as possible to have the least impact on range.

Visuals for help:

Questions:

1.) Has anyone towed long distances with the 4x8 vs 5x8 U-haul trailers A-B testing ? With the height/width of the R1T would there still be a noticeable efficiency improvement by sticking to the 4x8 being both shorter and narrower? or I don't need to be as neurotic about downsizing and have more breathing room and get the the 5x8 since it will sit in the "wake" of the taller wider Rivian.

2.) Distance wise the difference is negligible between the 3 routes, I would like to take I-70 or I-80 as it's more scenic vs I-40 through the desert. Is there a noticeable difference in efficiency/charging availability doing one vs the other? Will those mountain views be a major price to pay? or it kinda evens out over those distances.

3.) How worried do I have to be about staying at hotels and waking up in the morning to the trailer being stolen? If I secure the trailer hitch and the receiver is that enough? or should I be unhitching every night and parking it against a wall and boxing it etc? (I plan on trying to put the expensive stuff in the secure bed where possible)


Any other general advice or tips that I didn't consider would be appreciated!

Thanks!

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[beatle]

Ship your stuff, drive the truck.

I'd wager you'll enjoy the trip far more by stopping half as much, not worrying about the trailer itself, and you might even save money. All that extra DCFC, shorter travel days, and more hotels and meals add up. I am sure there are people who've done it and enjoyed it, but I would not tow a trailer across the US even if I weren't driving an EV.

A wise(ass) man once said:

 

[Ottoman]

I have pondered that as well..

Gemini Estimates 240miles range @ 2.0 mi/kWh @ 55mph with the smaller trailer and 14-16 stops

without the trailer is 2.5 mi/kWh @ 70mph with 10-12 stops and ~ $150 less in charging

I dunno how stressful towing and maneuvering that tiny trailer around will be.


shipping is in the multiple thousands

 

[SolartoEV]

No way you get 2 kwh with any trailer. At 55 you are going to be close to 1.5. Maybe even lower.

That being said. If you have the time to do it, it's no problem. Plan to stop every 150 miles. That's at least 18 times. With 150 miles taking about 3 hours to drive and close to 45 minutes of charging, driving 600 miles a day would be 16 hours of travel time. 5 ish days.

Very doable.

Just not setting any records

 

[BigSkies]

My advice is to take the amount of time you think it will take and double it for planning purposes.

This sounds painful if you're in a time crunch. It could be fun(ish) if you have time to enjoy the journey.

Whoever isn't driving is on navigation duty, checking Plugshare for any issues with upcoming charger stops. Lower range gives you fewer options to bail when something isn't going right.

Sell anything you're not 100% sure you want on the other end. It's less painful that way for a lot of reasons.

Filter overnights stops for ones that have L2 chargers.

Think carefully about security of your things. Thieves are known to target Uhauls at hotels.

Shipping is expensive because it's worth it (my philosophy). At least after you sell the big stuff that is expensive to move.

I do give you credit for Staying Adventurous.

 

[schlosrat]

When I did this a bit over a year ago (FL space coast to Seattle), I went with U-Haul U-boxes that I loaded and unloaded, and they picked up and shipped. One nice thing about those is that they easily tow behind an R1T (if you should need to do that), and they can be taken off thier little trailer and loaded on a semi or flatbed, etc., which is what U-Haul will do when they drop them off for you to pack, pick them back up, and then drop them off again at your destination.

Cheaper than pods or just about anything else I looked at, and you probably only need one of them. I needed 9...

Enjoy the drive!

 

[VSG]

No way you get 2 kwh with any trailer. At 55 you are going to be close to 1.5. Maybe even lower.

I towed a car on a Uhaul auto trailer, total weight ~6000lbs, and got an efficiency of 1.7 kWh/mile on my Gen 1 R1T (normal lifetime non-towing efficiency = 2.2 kWh/mile). If the OP normally gets 2.5 kWh/mile, and is driving a trailer at 55 mph, then 1.9 kWh/mile seems reasonable.

Driving 55 mph will greatly reduce your aero loss. (I think that's what Uhaul says is the maximum when towing their trailers?) I suggest renting the 5x8 for 1 day then driving a hundred miles just to see what sort of mileage you get - that will greatly help your planning. It will also let you know if you'll be comfortable doing this - your Rivian is not going to have any trouble at all with this load, but it requires more attention from you if you're not used to it. Neither the 4x8 nor the 5x8 is big enough for a mattress, let alone a sectional.

Don't try to do it in the shortest time. That would just be miserable. Take some time to hit some attractions along the way, especially places that are away from either end of your route because those are the places that you would be less likely to get to otherwise. If you plan on averaging 400 miles a day then it will take 1 week and you will end up charging 2-3 times a day (plus overnight - stay in places with free overnight charging to save lots of time and money!). That pace will give you the opportunity to spend half a day or even most of some days at places you want to visit.

You can get a cheap wheel lock for the trailer. Keep it hitched (with a locking hitch pin) when you park, and park under a street lamp and near the hotel entrance if possible. You can back up to a wall or a truck if available. Load expensive stuff in boxes in the back of the trailer where they would have to unload everything to get at it. Heavy stuff near the door where if someone breaks in they won't want to spend the energy to get through to the stuff in back. Take common-sense precautions, but I wouldn't stress about it too much - the chance of have a problem is extremely small. The biggest risk IMO is probably leaving it loaded up overnight in LA the night before you go.

Avoid I-80 through WY - very limited charging. And if you're going to be traveling at 55 mph, no need to take the interstates - there are many other roads (e.g state routes) that will get you there just as fast, are far less crowded, and have more interesting scenery/stops along the way.

The mountains can be quite cold in April. Preheat your cabin/battery before you start out in the morning and that will reduce your range loss. DCFC is likely to be slow first thing in the morning.

Use ABRP to plan, then update your plan every day while you're on the road to correct for actual vs projected usage. You can spend 10 minutes at one of your charging stops to do this. Monitoring and correcting your plan as you go will give you confidence about the legs yet to come. Also, check which charging networks your plan is using. Make sure you have the apps installed and test them locally if possible before you set out. If you find yourself using one or two networks a lot (e.g. EA or Tesla), consider signing up for a 1-month membership for those networks - it will save you a lot of money (~25%) and the monthly fee will pay for itself in 1 or 2 charges.

 

[beatle]

I have pondered that as well..

Gemini Estimates 240miles range @ 2.0 mi/kWh @ 55mph with the smaller trailer and 14-16 stops

without the trailer is 2.5 mi/kWh @ 70mph with 10-12 stops and ~ $150 less in charging

I dunno how stressful towing and maneuvering that tiny trailer around will be.

shipping is in the multiple thousands

I don't think those numbers are realistic. In the winter, I get 1.87mi/kwh while averaging 70mph on flat terrain with no weather - and that's with a dual motor. DCFC stops can be pretty expensive, longer, and more annoying while towing a trailer. Are you also budgeting an additional hotel night or two? It looks like just renting a 5x8 trailer is around $800. While I think it's still possible to save a few hundred bucks to DIY, it also sounds like a great way to potentially ruin a nice cross country trip. I can be pretty frugal myself, but this isn't something to cheap out on.

 

[RivianRiverRat]

I got 1.6 towing a 4x8 packed to the gills with heavy equipment
Also consider charging stops with a trailer behind you
EDIT Looking at an old pic it is a 5x not a 4x8

 

[Ottoman]

I appreciate everyone's input and taking the time to reply, Thank you

Definitely food for thought.

It sounds like I will be better off taking I-40 then and I-70 is a non starter

while not nearly as pretty..

it's 4,000 Ft less elevation change (and far more gradual in grade change)

The temps will be in the 60's rather than the 20's which will be better for the batteries as well as losses to running the heater.

EV charging is also easier on I-40 especially with a trailer (Walmart parking lots for example vs a tight parking lot on I-40)

The main area of concern is the stretch between Flagstaff and Albuquerque when chargers are more sparse.

 

[Ottoman]

I got 1.6 towing a 4x8 packed to the gills with heavy equipment
Also consider charging stops with a trailer behind you

WOW. was this the standard U-haul narrow/small 4x8?

 

[schlosrat]

WOW. was this the standard U-haul narrow/small 4x8?

Keep in mind that @RivianRiverRat didn't mention his average speed. For towing, speed can really tank your efficiency. If he was keeping up with traffic on an interstate, that could really tank the efficiency and might make things different. Also, tires make a difference. If he's driving on off-road AT tires vs. AS, that will also take things down a few tenths.

If I were you, I'd take @VSG's advice and rent one to take it for a drive. Empty or full will not really matter. The real driver is speed. Take it into some hills at 55 mph and see what you get.

 

[ndmiller]

Fly the Girlfriend and Boston to NJ (What Exit?), grab a buddy and take a week roadtrip of epic proportions. Take the northern route or the southern, both offer a dozen cities with Diners Drive-In and Dive restaurants along with some of the coolest places to see in the US.

Range, milage, towing, Mi/KWH who cares, just enjoy the US. It maybe the last time you'll be able to do something like this if the GF is for realsssss.

 

[RivianRiverRat]

WOW. was this the standard U-haul narrow/small 4x8?

it was the 5x and it was loaded down
Adding to @scholsrat comment also
20” ATs with Bridgestone Revo 3
Trip was from Huntsville AL to Chattanooga TN on Hwy 72
Some stop and go
A lot of 70 mph
Some mountains

 

[schlosrat]

Fly the Girlfriend and Boston to NJ (What Exit?), grab a buddy and take a week roadtrip of epic proportions. Take the northern route or the southern, both offer a dozen cities with Diners Drive-In and Dive restaurants along with some of the coolest places to see in the US.

Range, milage, towing, Mi/KWH who cares, just enjoy the US. It maybe the last time you'll be able to do something like this if the GF is for realsssss.

I second this recommendation! I flew the wife and her dog, shipped her Crosstrek, loaded my R1T to the gills with all the stuff we didn't want to pack and have to wait for, and had U-Haul move the rest in their pods. If I could have taken a buddy with me for the trip and taken more time, I would have enjoyed it sooooo much more. I did it in 5 days on my own without a trailer. With a trailer, it's sure to take longer just from the decreased efficiency and more/longer DCFC stops.

It's a road trip adventure! Make the most of it. Your life will be soooo much simpler if you pack a pod and have that shipped vs. pulling even a small trailer. But no matter what you decide to do, definitely give yourself more time and make an adventure of it.

Pro tip: Sign yourself up for 1 month of the Tesla subscription and take a NACS adapter. Not only are there a lot more Tesla charging options, but they also tend to be less busy (or they were when I did this). You'll pay for your 1/mo Tesla membership in the first couple of days, and after that, it's just saving you money. DCFC is not cheap! If you go this way, you do need to start your charging session in the Tesla phone app (or you did when I did it - maybe they've fixed that). It's really not hard to do, and it will save you $$!

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