EVs changing the face of caravanning.

[ProfJohnL]

EV's towing caravans will never work out.

Where do you park the caravan for an hour a couple of times a day while you recharge them?

We'll still be towing with IC engines in another two decades

Some people already DO tow with EV's, so your first statement is already disproven. As battery technology improves both capacity and the time need to recharge will improve on newer models.

I agree the facilities for vehicles with trailers is not wide spread, The present situation is not cast in stone and as facilities expand across the UK each recharge station will have to work out its own solution, or restrict charging to solo vehicles.,

And I also agree its likely that ICE vehicles will still be being used for several decades to come, but their numbers will dwindle over time, and as dino juice stations become less numerous, and prohibitively expensive.

 

[otherclive]

EV's towing caravans will never work out.

Where do you park the caravan for an hour a couple of times a day while you recharge them?

We'll still be towing with IC engines in another two decades

Might be worth searching some threads on this forum which will show quite clearly that it is possible to tow a good weight caravan with an EV over decent distances. Yes it’s not yet as easy as with an ICE but your statement once again is ill informed.

Be nice if you did not set out to be so blatantly controversial on your posts.

 

[Hutch]

EV's towing caravans will never work out.

Where do you park the caravan for an hour a couple of times a day while you recharge them?

We'll still be towing with IC engines in another two decades

Read the Towing bits on EV's

 

[Dustydog]

EV's towing caravans will never work out.


Wrong. EVs are towing now. An ever increasing number of sites have already installed charging points,eg South Meadows, Belford Northumberland

Where do you park the caravan for an hour a couple of times a day while you recharge them?


Rome wasn’t built in a day, but the infrastructure is growing rapidly, motorway services excepted.

We'll still be towing with IC engines in another two decades

Probably but by then there will be more EVs

I was a sceptic but from personal experience can endorse EVs rapid progressive development continues . The battery ranges improve .Look how much the conventional aspirated diesel has progressed . Well EVs are improving even faster. I expect costs will reduce too. Let’s have some optimism 👏👏

 

[JezzerB]

Oh good grief Hoomer . Thank fully others beat me to it. Quite glad I was having a near disastrous day yesterday and missed this!!!!!

 

[otherclive]

Whilst this thread is about EVs and caravanning, it has parallels in the world of commercial transport, and particularly trucks. The same questions arise...Can you possibly have a large truck requiring either battery change, or recharge. The cost for downtime mitigate against it. But do they? The link from The Guardian discusses developments that are currently underway, some of which will undoubtedly appear on our roads in the not too distant future, and could feed into the powertrain of towing vehicles too.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...ecarbonise-trucks-lorries-carbon-footprint-uk

 

[ProfJohnL]

In this instance the Guardian is well behind the times (no pun intended) as all the technologies it mentions in the article have previously been announced months or years earlier.

But it is goods vehicles are certainly a significant contributor to most countries emissions and anything to reduce their emissions has to be a good thing. One major aspect of goods deleiveries that are moving fairly quickly, are the adoption of BEV vans for last mile deliveries.

 

[Dustydog]

British Gas are replacing all ice vans at renewal with Vauxhall Vivaro EV vans. They intend to be market leaders in the EV field. All their engineers will have chargers fitted at their homes , where possible. Other firms are doing the same, eg Amazon. My son tells me pilot schemes at BG with EV s has been ongoing a few years now. They have opted for the Vivaro, which is a large van but had a greater range.
So maybe a step into CVS is closer than we think.

 

[otherclive]

British Gas are replacing all ice vans at renewal with Vauxhall Vivaro EV vans. They intend to be market leaders in the EV field. All their engineers will have chargers fitted at their homes , where possible. Other firms are doing the same, eg Amazon. My son tells me pilot schemes at BG with EV s has been ongoing a few years now. They have opted for the Vivaro, which is a large van but had a greater range.
So maybe a step into CVS is closer than we think.

At our local Lidls it’s quite a regular occurrence to see the BG van plugged in to the charging points.

 

[Buckman]

One of the reasons why hydrogen may be better in the long run once they find a way to produce it reasonably cheaply as it is cleaner than battery technology. A HGV can travel further and has less down time.

 

[otherclive]

In this instance the Guardian is well behind the times (no pun intended) as all the technologies it mentions in the article have previously been announced months or years earlier.

But it is goods vehicles are certainly a significant contributor to most countries emissions and anything to reduce their emissions has to be a good thing. One major aspect of goods deleiveries that are moving fairly quickly, are the adoption of BEV vans for last mile deliveries.

I don’t see why you needed to have a “pop” at the Guardian article as it’s well known that the technologies have been around, some for over 100+ years. The articles thrust was to inform on the developments in heavy commercial vehicle development and the various mix of technology that companies and organisations are actively investigating. In that respect it succeeded as many people may not be aware of the extensive work being progressed as most of the electric or alternative energy sources might seem to be discussed in the context of cars.

 

[ProfJohnL]

I don’t see why you needed to have a “pop” at the Guardian article as it’s well known that the technologies have been around, some for over 100+ years. The articles thrust was to inform on the developments in heavy commercial vehicle development and the various mix of technology that companies and organisations are actively investigating. In that respect it succeeded as many people may not be aware of the extensive work being progressed as most of the electric or alternative energy sources might seem to be discussed in the context of cars.

It wasn't a "pop". It was a statement of fact, Nothing wrong with its content, just that it's not new news. I have seen all the mentioned initiatives elsewhere, and in fact I and others, have previously posted about some of the HGV schemes here on PCF.

 

[Buckman]

It wasn't a "pop". It was a statement of fact, Nothing wrong with its content, just that it's not new news. I have seen all the mentioned initiatives elsewhere, and in fact I and others, have previously posted about some of the HGV schemes here on PCF.

Plus it is an article from the Guardian!

 

[otherclive]

Plus it is an article from the Guardian!

Which can be read for free unlike TT and TDT 😂

 

[Buckman]

Which can be read for free unlike TT and TDT 😂

Very true, but then saw no point in reading the Guardian even for free. Only good for bottom of a budgie cage or a long drop.

 

[otherclive]

Very true, but then saw no point in reading the Guardian even for free. Only good for bottom of a budgie cage or a long drop.

I guess it takes all sorts, but I like to have a spread of news, I go to BBC, Guardian, CNN, NYT, Der Speigel.... which gives me a good all round view of what's happening. At work I used to have the DT delivered daily as part of the job, but I asked my secretary to cancel it as there was work to do.

 

[Dustydog]

I guess it takes all sorts, but I like to have a spread of news, I go to BBC, Guardian, CNN, NYT, Der Speigel.... which gives me a good all round view of what's happening. At work I used to have the DT delivered daily as part of the job, but I asked my secretary to cancel it as there was work to do.

OMG Clive , you have lost the plot!
All I read is PCv. I get a great spread of news , banter and chastisement for free🤪🤪

 

[otherclive]

OMG Clive , you have lost the plot!
All I read is PCv. I get a great spread of news , banter and chastisement for free🤪🤪

I think that you may be correct, but I’m still trying to work out how Buckman at #140 manages to accomplish both actions with a digital newspaper. 🦜and 🚽

 

[Buckman]

I think that you may be correct, but I’m still trying to work out how Buckman at #140 manages to accomplish both actions with a digital newspaper. 🦜and 🚽

We have a virtual budgie cage and a virtual long drop!

 

[Hoomer]

Might be worth searching some threads on this forum which will show quite clearly that it is possible to tow a good weight caravan with an EV over decent distances. Yes it’s not yet as easy as with an ICE but your statement once again is ill informed.

Be nice if you did not set out to be so blatantly controversial on your posts.

Having sat drinking a coffee in my petrol engined dinosaur watching a Tesla driver have a melt down when the charger refused to connect, I'll reserve judgement on our brave sometimes new electric future.
We MAY get to see EV's as mainstream towers of caravans in my lifetime, but they will be very different from what we see now. It will be back to the 500-750kg caravan future.
And EV running costs go up exponentially when towing. 5p/mile to 13p/mile. Makes dropping from 26mpg to 20mpg seem positively frugal.

'Controversial'? Not agreeing with everyone isn't 'controversial', it's having a different opinion.
Think of me as the brightly coloured caravan parked in the neatly parked rows of gleaming white conformity.

 

[Gafferbill]

.....you are not the only one

My prediction is that in 2029 you will see the most pronounced change of policy U turn you have ever seen.

 

[ProfJohnL]

...
And EV running costs go up exponentially when towing. 5p/mile to 13p/mile. Makes dropping from 26mpg to 20mpg seem positively frugal.
...

That is factually incorrect, the running costs do not increase exponentially they will increase proportionally with energy usage.

 

[Tobes]

Having sat drinking a coffee in my petrol engined dinosaur watching a Tesla driver have a melt down when the charger refused to connect, I'll reserve judgement on our brave sometimes new electric future.

Some chargers are a PITA - its true, and some just work...

We MAY get to see EV's as mainstream towers of caravans in my lifetime, but they will be very different from what we see now. It will be back to the 500-750kg caravan future.

But I already tow a 1500Kg caravan with an EV? Why would it go backwards?

And EV running costs go up exponentially when towing. 5p/mile to 13p/mile. Makes dropping from 26mpg to 20mpg seem positively frugal.

Your numbers are out. At £1.70 a litre for fuel, 20mpg is 38.6p/mile. 26mpg is 29.7p/mile.
Charged from home, (7.5p/kWh) I get 3.3 mile per kWh solo. Thats 2.2p/mile. Towing that goes to about 1.7m per kWh or 4.4p.mile. Public charging in a motorway service area - Grid serve are now charging 50p/kWh for their fastest chargers so 15p/mile Solo and 28p/mile towing. Still less than petrol.

'Controversial'? Not agreeing with everyone isn't 'controversial', it's having a different opinion.
Think of me as the brightly coloured caravan parked in the neatly parked rows of gleaming white conformity.

Disagreement is fine. Presentation of hearsay as truth is asking to be challenged. Think of me as the brightly shining beacon of truth, guiding the way past the fog of myth.

 

[Hoomer]

£68,000 Tesla, towing 1,600kg a hundred miles or so and recharging in an hour or so.
£35,000 4x4 towing 2,000kg caravan three hundred miles or so and refilling in five minutes or so

£33,000 buys a lot of diesel, over 200,000 miles worth.

I'll stick with dinosaur fuel until we get hydrogen fuelled cars.

 

[Tobes]

£68,000 Tesla, towing 1,600kg a hundred miles or so and recharging in an hour or so.
£35,000 4x4 towing 2,000kg caravan three hundred miles or so and refilling in five minutes or so

£33,000 buys a lot of diesel, over 200,000 miles worth.

I'll stick with dinosaur fuel until we get hydrogen fuelled cars.

Ah - thats more like it.
Yes EVs are not cheap, but you could look at a Kia EV6 - On the road at £41K. Granted £8K still buys a lot of diesel.
10% - 80% charge in an EV6 is potentially as low as 18 mins for an extra 100 or so miles. Thats about 2 hours of towing.

So it depends what you want to do (how you tow). If, like some, you want to tow for 6 hours + have a 5 min break, and then tow for another 6 hours - diesel will be your only choice for now.
But if - like others, 80% - 90% of your driving is solo, and you just tow for holidays, and you like to take a break every couple of hours anyway, it can be a perfectly usable choice.

Everything is dependant on your own situation. In my situation, my 55K EV costs me my car allowance and £1540 tax in 4 years. The same 33k diesel 4x4 would cost me my car allowance and £19K tax in 4 years.

So IF you are a cash buyer who only ever tows long distance and hardly drives solo, a diesel might be cheaper.
IF you have a different set of circumstances - like you are a company car driver, an EV may be considerably cheaper.

On the Hydrogen cars part - They are here now - Toyota Mirai. Just more expensive than an EV and completely impractical. Fancy one?