Towing and carrying loads with an electric car

22 September 2026 · 4 minute read

Electric cars tow well. Instant torque, a low centre of gravity and no gears to hunt make them steady and strong with a trailer on. The catch is range: towing costs energy the same way it costs fuel, and there is less of it to spend. This guide is about how much, which cars can, and how to plan a trip that tows.

What towing does to range

A trailer adds weight and, more importantly, drag. A small trailer or a couple of bikes on a rack costs 10 to 20%. A caravan or a box trailer at highway speed roughly halves the range, and a large caravan into a headwind can take more than half. A 400 km car becomes a 200 km car, which is a stop every hour and a half.

Speed matters more than usual. Towing at 90 km/h instead of 110 saves a quarter of the energy, and most trailers are rated for no more than that anyway.

Which cars can tow

Not all can, and the ones that can vary a lot. Small hatchbacks are often not rated to tow at all, or only a light unbraked trailer. Larger SUVs and utes tow 1,500 to 2,500 kg, and some electric pickups tow more than most diesels. The figure to look for is the braked towing capacity, and the towball download limit if you carry a heavy load on the ball. The car pages on ChargeAlong show a car's towing capacity where the data has it, and the car guide puts it among the other things to check.

A tow bar fitted after the sale must be one approved for the car. Many electric cars have a towing mode that adjusts the stability control and the range estimate.

Charging with a trailer on

The awkward part. Most charging bays are car sized and nose in, so a car with a caravan behind it either blocks the bay next door or cannot reach the cable. Some newer sites have drive through bays for trailers, and the site's page and photos usually show the layout. Where there are none, look for a site at the end of a row, plan to unhitch, or use a charger in a large car park where you can pull across.

Check the bay layout on each stop's page before you rely on it.
A rear port is easier with a trailer than a front one; know where yours is.
Charge to a higher percentage than usual: the next leg is shorter, but the stops you can use are fewer.

Planning a trip that tows

Put your towing range into the trip planner, not the car's normal range: half of it, or a figure from a trip you have done. Raise the reserve to 25% or more, and set the minimum charger power high so the stops are fast ones, because you will be making more of them. Then look at each stop's page for a bay you can get a trailer into. The planning guide covers the rest.