#1

Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 7:56 am
by Nthurrzzz (deleted)
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I have wanted to shift to an electric vehicle (EV) for a number of years but a car that can tow my 2018 Eriba Troll 530 and meet my needs has been out of reach until now. Recently I became the proud owner of a Kia EV6 GT-Line (rear wheel drive) to replace my Skoda Superb and the transition has been fantastic. Towing with an electric vehicle is a completely different experience from a conventional combustion engine car.

There is a lot of curiosity, some doubt and too much misinformation out there. The bottom line is that the EV6 is a quiet, powerful, brilliant handling towing vehicle. A fantastic, effortless experience. And a perfect pairing with an Eriba. It is certainly turning heads.

The EV6 can legally tow up to 1600kg. Well within the Eriba family. My Eriba it is plated 1400kg (inc payload) although I tend to tow it 1200kg-1300kg. I have read that although weight plays a part, aerodynamics has the biggest impact. The Eriba is perfectly placed being one of the most aerodynamic caravans on the market with it's original classic design, pop-top roof and slanted/pointed from making it very stable to tow and more efficient than the run-of-the-mill white box caravans.

I have always towed quite at quite conservative speeds. Even with my previous very capable diesel. I have never been one to fly down a motorway dragging a box behind me at dangerous speeds. So the shift to towing with an EV with an eye on efficiency was an easy transition. My EV6 has an advertised range of 328 miles on a 100% charge when it is not towing. Range is affected by a number of factors including types of roads, driving style ands whether you are in eco or sport mode. Conventional cars rarely get close to their mpg, and I have found my EV6 range is around 290 miles the way I drive it. Others I have talked to achieve ranges above the advertised figure. When towing, the range is more or less halved. Towing with conventional cars is also severely affected too, but rarely mentioned.

On my first trip towing, I set off with 100% charge in the morning of the ridiculous July 2022 heatwave. It was already 33C. I drove 71.5 miles on a mixture of roads and speeds including a 60mph stretch on the motorway. I averaged 2.6mi/kWh and arrived with 66% charge remaining. It was a dream to tow. I had expected a lot more energy would have been used and was both surprised and pleased to arrive with 66% charge remaining. This certainly removes any range anxiety I initial had. The return tow was the same effortless experience. Same route in reverse and I achieved a slightly lower efficiency of 2.3 mi/kWh.

According the the stats, the vast majority of caravan trips are within 100 miles, I know mine certainly are, so this performance easily accommodates this. For the time being I’ll stick within 100miles as I get to understand the car when it tows. I will eventually do longer trips and will plan for 1 stop for a 100 to 180 mile journey and 2 stops for a 180 to 250 mile journey to provide a modest range left once unhooked at the destination. I have never towed further than 250 miles in a single trip in my old diesel, so doubt I’ll be doing it in the EV. Perhaps once I get used to my comfortable range I’ll have a trip into Europe and see how that goes.

The Kia Ev6 is a brilliant EV that is fabulous to tow with. A perfect match for an Eriba.
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~ N

~ 530, Kia EV6 GT-Line


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Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 8:42 am | Scroll up

#2

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 8:01 am
by Islay Corbel (deleted)
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How long does it take to charge up? We're doin 1200 kms to the Haute Savoie next week. Don't see us in an electric car. Surely most people travel more than 100 miles!


Betty, 1998 Triton 430 and Colin, a Renault Mégane.
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#3

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 8:40 am
by Nthurrzzz (deleted)
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Quote: Islay Corbel wrote in post #2
How long does it take to charge up? We're doin 1200 kms to the Haute Savoie next week. Don't see us in an electric car. Surely most people travel more than 100 miles!


18 mins from 10 to 80% with a rapid charger. Actually the majority of single trips in a day in the UK are under 100 miles.

If all your journeys are only 1200km then EV is probably not for you. Personally I have never towed more than 250miles in a single day in all the years I have towed and on that distance I always have a couple of stops to stretch my legs, go to the loo and have a sandwich or coffee. So planning to charge will barely make any difference to what I have been doing for years.

I looked back at all my touring trips around the uk where I go from site to site and they are all easily achievable with my new set up. The public charging network is still in development with different parts of the country better supported than others, but it is rapidly changing. Compared to 3 years ago it us unrecognisable. Even over the last 12 months there have been thousands of chargers added to the network and there is no sign of that slowing down. When you look aeurope they are even further ahead with public charging.


~ N

~ 530, Kia EV6 GT-Line


Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 12:37 pm | Scroll up

#4

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 8:51 am
by eribaMotters | 5.544 Posts

For the short haul towing trips the future has obviously arrived. Every tow report I have seen on an electric cars ability is glowing. As above we travel longer distances, we always have and also travel into France which means by the time you reach a crossing point at a silly hour of the morning we would be out of power.
If in your position I would be considering electric [Hyundai Ioniq 5 has caught my eye], but for now I'll have to wait for the range and charging infrastructure can cope with my needs. How long will this be I wonder.

Colin


Forum Moderator. aka Oscar - Audi A3 1.5 petrol _ ex 430, 552, camplet trailer tent, 310, now a nice white 2017 430.


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#5

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 9:18 am
by Steamdrivenandy | 1.035 Posts

It is the problem most people face with EV's. The great majority of journeys are v short, with the odd 100 milers all of which can be handled by an EV. But then there are the holiday or business long hauls, whether solo or towing and they're the couple of trips a year where you don't want to mess about and they're the ones that cause people to think the time isn't right yet.

I have another issue though.

Our garages are in a block on the edge of a barn/farmyard development and none of them have power. We have another drive on the opposite side of the development but it is at the bottom of our garden 40ft from the house. The actual house supply comes in at the opposite end, so 70 ft or so from the drive. We do have a cable from an external point on the lounge wall which runs across under our side garden to a trellis fence that is our boundary to a mews footpath. The cable runs down the fence to a light on a post by the drive/footpath gate.

If we take power from the point of entry we have to run it under the side garden (15ft) along the fence line and then bury it to get past our entry gate . Then it can emerge and join the light cable down to the drive and have a charging point fitted somewhere there. I assume that it wouldn't be possible to run a charger off the light cable which just runs to a 13amp junction in the lounge. Doing so would be a hell of a lot simpler but presumably the power isn't up to it.

The thought of the cost of running cables to the drive from the meter box is scary.

Pic is of the drive with our previous car parked. The footpath gate is on the left behind the car.

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I had nothing to do on this hot afternoon
But to settle down and write you a line


Skoda Karoq 1.5 Petrol DSG


Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 9:22 am | Scroll up

#6

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 9:38 am
by PhilipM | 208 Posts

Hello,

Did you go for the model with V2L and have you tried powering your Eriba from the vehicle battery? Caravan YouTuber Andew Ditton has recently switched to an EV6 and has some interesting videos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot0vUGmrAys



Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 9:38 am | Scroll up

#7

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 12:28 pm
by Nthurrzzz (deleted)
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Quote: PhilipM wrote in post #6
Hello,

Did you go for the model with V2L and have you tried powering your Eriba from the vehicle battery? Caravan YouTuber Andew Ditton has recently switched to an EV6 and has some interesting videos.




Hi,

All the EV6’s offer the V2L power, just the lowest trim doesn’t include the adapter which I believe you can buy separately.

I have tried it and can confirm it is fantastic and just the same as if you are on mains. A game changer for off grid.


~ N

~ 530, Kia EV6 GT-Line


Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 12:29 pm | Scroll up

#8

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 12:36 pm
by Nthurrzzz (deleted)
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Quote: Steamdrivenandy wrote in post #5
It is the problem most people face with EV's. The great majority of journeys are v short, with the odd 100 milers all of which can be handled by an EV. But then there are the holiday or business long hauls, whether solo or towing and they're the couple of trips a year where you don't want to mess about and they're the ones that cause people to think the time isn't right yet.



Worth noting the EV6 can comfortably cover 300 miles solo on a single charge. With a 25 minute stop for a coffee at a rapid charger, the range adds another 200+ miles. Making a 500 mile trip easily achievable.

Towing with the Eriba the range is about 140miles. With a 25 minute coffe & charge stop that grows well in excess of 200 miles.


~ N

~ 530, Kia EV6 GT-Line


Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 12:41 pm | Scroll up

#9

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 12:42 pm
by Nthurrzzz (deleted)
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Out of all the caravans on the market, the Eriba is probably they best one for matching to an EV due to its aerodynamic design.


~ N

~ 530, Kia EV6 GT-Line
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#10

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 1:39 pm
by Aaron Calder | 3.834 Posts

Out of curiosity, I just checked the EV6 GT-line price list and note that the manufacturer's RRP ranges from £44,195 to £56,095.

I shall be sticking with my 12 year old, 30mpg towing, 400 mile range Audi for the foreseeable future.


Forum Administrator
2003 Triton 420 and Audi A4 2.0Tfsi S-line SE Cabriolet
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#11

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 1:53 pm
by Morphy | 972 Posts

Plus 1 for sticking with my diesel for the moment just to out of reach electric towing cars at the moment. They are very good if you have deep pockets but for me to swap I would have to put up around 40K plus. Now with that amount of money to put in I can buy a lot of fuel for 40K like the idea but until they drop in price it is a non starter.


New Troll 540GT on the way Silver Skoda Octavia Scout residing in sunny Lancashire.


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Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 3:09 pm | Scroll up

#12

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 2:03 pm
by AlanC | 107 Posts

One thought that has come to me is if you need to charge the car at a service station, then the caravan has to be parked up and secured while you move the car to the charge point.

So getting back to the caravan or lorry park, possibly going against the incoming traffic could be an issue.

For example, at Gloucester Services north and south bound the caravan park is first on the left with the car park and charge point further on in the car park on the left. As far as I can see there is no way a car can get back to the caravan park once charged up.

On a trip north last week I noticed that Hopewood Services had 14 (I think) Tesla charge points with 4 in use, with only 4 charge points for other vehicles all in use, and a couple of people waiting.

There are a lot of infrastructures that will need to be adjusted if electric vehicles are to become the norm, not just installing charge points.

Alan


Liz and Alan
Troll 530 Touring 2015 now pushing a Honda CR-V
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#13

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 2:44 pm
by Steamdrivenandy | 1.035 Posts

And long distance journeys stop offs tend to mean urine soaked lorry parks or caravan pull throughs full of cars and vans, with overcrowded overpriced facilities. As a caravanner I want much, much better than that.


I had nothing to do on this hot afternoon
But to settle down and write you a line


Skoda Karoq 1.5 Petrol DSG


Last edited Tue Aug 02, 2022 2:45 pm | Scroll up

#14

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 5:41 pm
by Islay Corbel (deleted)
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I don't know what it's like in Britain, but fewer and fewer people actually buy their car here. It's all done by leasing. It will be interesting to see how that develops with cars that can tow. Or, we'll just be renting a towing vehicle for when we need one.


Betty, 1998 Triton 430 and Colin, a Renault Mégane.
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#15

RE: Towing with my Kia EV6 (electric)

in We've got it down to a T Tue Aug 02, 2022 6:01 pm
by eribaMotters | 5.544 Posts

I believe more people go the pcp, rental, contract hire route or similar than purchase on new cars in the UK. Hiring a car to tow with is not an easy thing to do.

Colin


Forum Moderator. aka Oscar - Audi A3 1.5 petrol _ ex 430, 552, camplet trailer tent, 310, now a nice white 2017 430.


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