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Nothing could possibly go wrong
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this post was submitted on 26 Nov 2023
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That's not a problem that a small machine like this will fix though. The problem with EVs towing isn't that they don't have enough power to tow, it's that the energy consumption goes up significantly due to changes in aerodynamics and the loss of regen braking. Petrol and diesel cars have the same problem, but can refuel quickly. EVs can't.
Now imagine an autonomous trailer drone behind your EV. It's most likely going to be electric, as most new automotive things are going to be electric by now. Then there are two options:
In the first case you might as well use your own EV to tow. In the second case you might as well just rent or buy a vehicle meant for towing. I don't see how the economics of it are going to make sense.
Aero is very much fixable on these things. Sure you are not going to get zero losses but you can 100% get better than the 2 to 1 loss I get when I tow my caravan with my EV currently.
I don't lose regen on mine when towing, where you getting that from? I cant use one pedal, but that uses the brakes so I don't use that mode very often.
The good old airstream caravans despite being massively fat for their size actually get better miles per kwh and they aren't even modelled to modern aero standards.
The other problem are caravans, particularly American caravans, are massively fat. A lot of US caravans aren't actually towable within recommended limits by European cars.
Why do so many people think renting a vehicle when you already own one is cost effective, or a reasonable thing to do? Especially if you won't be using it much once you arrive at your destination.
Whereas the tow bot can be put to work while you're on holiday, and you still have transport.
Are you suggesting that the tow bot takes your camper to the site and then leaves? It's like a municipal resource?
More like an Uber, but you get the idea.
I don't buy a U-Haul truck just for the occasion that I'm moving, am I?
In a less snarky response, in case you can downscale your primary car to be more efficient and less costly, you can save significant amounts of money. In my country, weight, size, type of drivetrain and the sticker price all determine the amount of tax you pay on the vehicle. Getting a small, light vehicle instead of a big one you need for towing can definitely make sense financially, even if you are going to tow a caravan once a year and therefore have to rent a car to do so. Of course the individual circumstances really change a lot and in general people don't do this due to convenience or the simple fact that they do this more often.
But you also missed the point of my reply. The point is that these tow bots will essentially be a second vehicle on their own. It will be expensive to buy one, it will be expensive to rent one and it will be expensive to own one. It won't make sense as a product, even if you can still use your car when you arrive at your destination. The economics won't work out, I'm pretty sure of that.
The 5 year cost of a fairly base 2020 F150 is ~49k according to Kelly blue book - that's fuel, maintainence, depreciation, loan interest, etc. The 5 year cost of either a 2020 Civic or a 2020 Chevy Bolt is $37k.
$12k / 5 years = $2,400/year. If you'd spend less than that a year, you'd be better off renting a truck when you need it and driving a cheaper vehicle daily.
Do you not value your time at all, in this scenario? Renting a vehicle every time you need a truck is a massive time sink.
Think of how much extra you'd pay for a rental service that dropped the truck off at your house, picked it up, and handled all the annoying things like filling the car up or cleaning it out.
Then, just add that into your calculations. That number is going to depend on how far you live from rental places and how much you value your time. Ballpark it.
You are completely out to lunch, my friend.
So if you actually need a truck once in 5 years, would you really spend an extra ~$11k to avoid having to rent it?
Did you forget to switch accounts or something? Why are you replying to yourself?
Also, what a ridiculous scenario. Big vehicles come in handy far more often than you think.
Unless there's a bug in my app, that looks like it's a reply to you?
And yes, of course it's absurd, that's the point. Literally no one would spend the extra money to buy a truck to avoid the hassle of renting one once in 5 years. If you only rent a truck once a year, it's probably still not worth it to buy a truck instead of renting one. If you'd be renting a truck every weekend, it's probably worth it.
Or if you need a truck infrequently but on an emergency basis to e.g. trailer a colicing horse to a vet, you might not be able to rent a truck when you need one.
In surveys, only 25% of truck drivers tow more than once a year. Only 65% of truck drivers put anything in the bed more than once a year.
Yeah, big vehicles are pretty handy sometimes. They're pretty great if you have horses in your back yard; you can buy bedding by the pallet or buy 40 bales of hay. But according to truck drivers, a lot of them say they're driving pavement princesses. They want a truck for the aesthetics of being a truck driver, but if they had a hatchback instead they'd be renting a truck at most once or twice a year.
Big trucks can also be kinda inconvenient. They don't fit into garages anymore, long bed 4 door trucks have the turning radius of a barge, and it's pretty annoying if you want to take one of those fiberglass bed covers on and off a lot.