Anyone towing a Nucamp Tab 400 Boondock trailer?

[ctuan13]

We are thinking of buying one of these trailers. It's a teardrop style trailer at 2,940 lbs dry with a GAWR of 3,900 lbs. Tongue weight is 385 lbs.

We have a '16 Grand Cherokee Ecodiesel that we will use to tow this in the mountains where no DCFCs exist. However, I would really like to be able to use our Lightning to tow it on the interstate once the Tesla chargers are available. The usual route would be from Kansas City to Red Lodge, MT going I-29 and I-90.

I think we would need to get 1.4 - 1.5 miles per kw for this to be realistic. Obviously higher would be better. I'm willing to drive 55mph to make this happen.

Would plan on staying in the camper two nights to make the trip.

The camper has 400ah of LifeP04 battery at 12 volts with 620 watts of solar and a 3,000 watt inverter so pro power wouldn't be needed at night making the trip.

Hoping to hear from anyone pulling this trailer or something similar.

Thanks.

https://nucamprv.com/tab400-camper/

I have a Tab 320S Boondock, I fully admit due to health issues and life, I haven't taken it on any trips yet. Ive been working on upgrades, mods and customizations little by little over the last year. But I'm hoping to do a dry run next week and I'll let you know when I do, what I get for efficiency!

Side note, you're absolutely right about the quality. They truly are a cut above in the RV world. The cabinets, drawers and furniture is incredible and the fit and finish is amazing. Also the Alde heating system is by far one of my favorite features. Radiant heat is a game changer

Picture when I picked it up last November:

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[Hammick]

So the TAB dealer let me pull one of his TAB 400s today. It was near ideal conditions. 69 degrees and 3 mph winds from the Southeast. I did a 48 mile run (24 headed East and 24 back West). 56 mph on Bluecruise which was 55 mph GPS indicated. Trailer was empty and truck was empty except for me. Got 1.2 kw per mile into the wind and 1.3 kw per mile with the wind for an average on the trip meter of 1.3 kw per mile. A little disappointed but about what I expected. I was surprised the truck was showing the outside temperature was using between 1 -2 percent of the energy. Accessory use was between 1 - 2 percent which I assume is the trailer lights and emergency brake wire. I don't think the refrigerator was running but I might have been charging the RV 100ah battery. I had the truck in tow haul mode with one pedal on. I really didn't use the brakes much at all.

If we buy a TAB 400 I wouldn't be comfortable towing it long distances unless I knew there was a functional DCFC every 100 miles. If you tried to push 150 miles and some crazy winds kick up you could be headed for a campground assuming there was one within range.

I don't think RV towing is really going to feasible for a while at least here in the Midwest, WY, SD, MT, etc.. It will require bigger batteries, different battery technology, axle driven RV or a shit ton of chargers.

The TAB 400 is a lightweight single axle trailer. Couldn't imagine pulling a 30' double axle wind sail but I know some people are doing it.

 

[Hammick]

Forgot to mention our Lariat ER has new Michelin Defender AS tires and the TAB has the boondock package with all terrain radials.

 

[JRT]

Seems about right to me, I'd get a nice used diesel SUV to be honest, then you can pull anything easliy and that light weight trailer would have almost no impact on mpg.

 

[Hammick]

Seems about right to me, I'd get a nice used diesel SUV to be honest, then you can pull anything easliy and that light weight trailer would have almost no impact on mpg.

Thanks. I did just that in early January. A 2016 Grand Cherokee Ecodiiesel with 116k miles. It has the factory air suspension. Will use it when we camp in the mountains.

 

[Ecstatic]

If we buy a TAB 400 I wouldn't be comfortable towing it long distances unless I knew there was a functional DCFC every 100 miles.

I think you would be fine along the interstates. With the SCs opening up I think even I-90 thru eastern Montana and North Dakota will now be possible. The problem will be how far off the interstate you can go, but with all the chargers being installed recently here in the NW I don’t think it will be but a few more years until pretty much every small town is within reach. I don’t tow, but I have a Pro SR with an aerodynamic camper almost ready for use.

 

[Hammick]

I think you would be fine along the interstates. With the SCs opening up I think even I-90 thru eastern Montana and North Dakota will now be possible. The problem will be how far off the interstate you can go, but with all the chargers being installed recently here in the NW I don’t think it will be but a few more years until pretty much every small town is within reach. I don’t tow, but I have a Pro SR with an aerodynamic camper almost ready for use.

They need to get those superchargers upgraded or they are worthless to anyone but Tesla drivers.

 

[ytwytw]

I got Airstream Basecamp 20 without the X upgrade and actually very happy with the light Travel Traveler and the aero shape of airstream

Efficiency is about 380Wh per KM driving at 90km/h

If im driving 105km/h, the efficieny go down to 560Wh per KM

Also don't park like me for juice, i did it because another station is broken

 

[GoHawks]

I got Airstream Basecamp 20 without the X upgrade and actually very happy with the light Travel Traveler and the aero shape of airstream

Efficiency is about 380Wh per KM driving at 90km/h

If im driving 105km/h, the efficieny go down to 560Wh per KM

Also don't park like me for juice, i did it because another station is broken

How often are you measuring efficiency and how accurate are your measurements? I ask because your data shows a roughly 45-50% increase in efficiency for the approximately 10mph speed decrease. I understand speed not weight is the killer in efficiency but I have not done the road test work at highway speeds to document the difference at real highway speeds. Thanks in advance.

 

[Hammick]

Can someone smarter than me convert these numbers to miles/kwh? I'm interested to see how the Basecamp compares to the TAB 400. Thanks.

 

[GoHawks]

Can someone smarter than me convert these numbers to miles/kwh? I'm interested to see how the Basecamp compares to the TAB 400. Thanks.

Efficiency is about 380Wh per KM driving at 90km/h. -> 1/.380 = 2.63 km/kwh -> 2.63km x .621 = 1.63 miles/khw

If im driving 105km/h, the efficieny go down to 560Wh per KM -> 1/.560 = 1.78 km/kwh -> 1.78km x .621 = 1.105 mpkwh

That is why I was asking how accurate his measurements/calcs were at ~ 55mph and 65 mph because those are very different efficiency numbers.

 

[Hammick]

Well I successfully towed our '23' TAB 400 Boondock from Denville, NJ to Kansas City, Missouri. About 1,300 miles. It tows better than a 3/4 ton Duramax. I'm not going to sugarcoat it though. It was painful at times, especially out East where the charger spots were tight. Had to drop the trailer probably 25% of the time. I used EA exclusively except for one instance on the way out where a Sheetz in Ohio was under construction and all the chargers were down. The Ford NAV wasn't aware the chargers were down and I had neglected to check the EA app. Luckily there was an EVgo nearby or I would have been stranded (was at 21% SOC). These new chargers had been up for a month and EVgo didn't have them listed on their app and the Ford Nav wasn't aware they existed. Thank GOD my remote co-pilot/wife found it on Plugshare as I was losing my mind at that point.

I was getting between .9 - 1.4 miles/kwh towing depending on wind, temp and speed. Initially I was charging to 95% because of my fear of running out of juice and/or broken chargers. Was only comfortable gong about 85 miles at first. Once I learned the GOM was extremely conservative with a trailer attached I started charging to about 85% to speed things up.

I camped four nights on the way back (planned on three nights). The 50a chargers at the campsites worked great with the Ford charger with one exception. The 50a at the Terra Haute Campground started smoking and nearly caught fire. Luckily I caught it before it burned up my charger. The breaker didn't pop so must have been undersized wiring or a faulty breaker. Luckily I had a working EA charger nearby to visit in the morning.

My last and longest jaunt was 117 miles. Had charged to 96% and arrived home at 39%. I had a decent tailwind on this one so got 1.4 miles/kwh. I would never intentionally try to go 150 miles towing with the Lightning but it could probably be done.

IMHO you cannot rely solely on the Ford Navigation when towing a trailer long distances. It did some really crazy routing at times (especially around Indianapolis) that could have left me stranded if I didn't double check routes with Apple and Google maps. Actually my wife was my remote co-pilot and did a great job of figuring out routes, chargers and campgrounds when things didn't go as planned.

I won't be towing this trailer long distances with the Lighting until the charging infrastructure improves.

In summary the Lightning is the best and worst towing vehicle I've ever owned.

 

[NJAdales2]

Well I successfully towed our '23' TAB 400 Boondock from Denville, NJ to Kansas City, Missouri. About 1,300 miles. It tows better than a 3/4 ton Duramax. I'm not going to sugarcoat it though. It was painful at times, especially out East where the charger spots were tight. Had to drop the trailer probably 25% of the time. I used EA exclusively except for one instance on the way out where a Sheetz in Ohio was under construction and all the chargers were down. The Ford NAV wasn't aware the chargers were down and I had neglected to check the EA app. Luckily there was an EVgo nearby or I would have been stranded (was at 21% SOC). These new chargers had been up for a month and EVgo didn't have them listed on their app and the Ford Nav wasn't aware they existed. Thank GOD my remote co-pilot/wife found it on Plugshare as I was losing my mind at that point.

I was getting between .9 - 1.4 miles/kwh towing depending on wind, temp and speed. Initially I was charging to 95% because of my fear of running out of juice and/or broken chargers. Was only comfortable gong about 85 miles at first. Once I learned the GOM was extremely conservative with a trailer attached I started charging to about 85% to speed things up.

I camped four nights on the way back (planned on three nights). The 50a chargers at the campsites worked great with the Ford charger with one exception. The 50a at the Terra Haute Campground started smoking and nearly caught fire. Luckily I caught it before it burned up my charger. The breaker didn't pop so must have been undersized wiring or a faulty breaker. Luckily I had a working EA charger nearby to visit in the morning.

My last and longest jaunt was 117 miles. Had charged to 96% and arrived home at 39%. I had a decent tailwind on this one so got 1.4 miles/kwh. I would never intentionally try to go 150 miles towing with the Lightning but it could probably be done.

IMHO you cannot rely solely on the Ford Navigation when towing a trailer long distances. It did some really crazy routing at times (especially around Indianapolis) that could have left me stranded if I didn't double check routes with Apple and Google maps. Actually my wife was my remote co-pilot and did a great job of figuring out routes, chargers and campgrounds when things didn't go as planned.

I won't be towing this trailer long distances with the Lighting until the charging infrastructure improves.

In summary the Lightning is the best and worst towing vehicle I've ever owned.

Congratulations on getting the 400 Boondock! I hope it was a good camping experience for you on your return to Kansas City and that you decide it was well worth the trip back-and-forth to NJ to get it and to tow it home with your Lightning. Thanks so much for posting all the details as it is good info as my husband and I contemplate our first camping trip this spring towing our 400 with our Lariat ER.

A few questions: did you drive back through PA on I-80? If so, what speeds were you driving for the most part? And did you notice about how many miles/kWh you were getting on that part of the trip? Were the chargers on your route through PA on the highway itself?

Besides the problem charging at the campground in Terre Haute, were there any issues from camp ground management about charging the truck at the campsite (Did you mention it in advance at any of them?)? Thanks!

 

[Hammick]

Congratulations on getting the 400 Boondock! I hope it was a good camping experience for you on your return to Kansas City and that you decide it was well worth the trip back-and-forth to NJ to get it and to tow it home with your Lightning. Thanks so much for posting all the details as it is good info as my husband and I contemplate our first camping trip this spring towing our 400 with our Lariat ER.

A few questions: did you drive back through PA on I-80? If so, what speeds were you driving for the most part? And did you notice about how many miles/kWh you were getting on that part of the trip? Were the chargers on your route through PA on the highway itself?

Besides the problem charging at the campground in Terre Haute, were there any issues from camp ground management about charging the truck at the campsite (Did you mention it in advance at any of them?)? Thanks!

Yes it was worth it as I saved 13k buying a lightly used '23 vs a new '24 and received a lot of extras.

The route I took from Denville to KC is listed below. I didn't have any problems with management charging at the campgrounds but I didn't tell them I had an EV (the Lightning is pretty much incognito). I did have some concern about not being able to charge. I'm guessing most of the RV parks that don't let you charge are because of politics. If you see certain flags probably best to steer clear

Most of my driving through PA was at 55 mph. I would increase speed once I know I could easily make the next charger. Rarely did I ever go above 65 mph but even at 80 mph you don't even know the TAB is back there. I suggest you keep it at 55 mph and increase speed as you get more comfortable. I don't like dropping below 1.2 miles/kwh if I have to go 80 or more miles to the next charger.

My average through PA was right around 1.2 - 1.3 miles/kwh at 55mph. The EA chargers are right off I-80 pretty much at Walmarts and Sheetz stations.

I need to fine tune my TAB 400 trailer setting in the Ford system. I believe I had most of my dimensions correct but probably need to fine tune the range setting. I think I had it set to 150 miles. The GOM was never accurate but the arrival percentage of the navigation seemed very accurate. I also used Apple Maps with CarPlay quite a bit as I had planned my trip mostly using Apple Maps.

Prio to this trip I had a lot of long distance experience with the Lightning ER going to Montana from Kansas City. Parts of South Dakota and most of Wyoming is sparse charging. Even with all this experience towing was like starting over. I was pretty nervous about making it from Denville through the Poconos to my first two charging stops. Most of it is elevation gain. The guy I bought the trailer from has a Rivian R1T and assured me I would be fine. By the second day I was pretty comfortable.

Just spend a lot of time planning your charging stops and have backups. I did all EA because it's what I am used to and is a lot cheaper than EVgo. If you use both EA and EVgo you should have lots of options.




NY to KC TAB trip

1. EA 28 W Main St, Denville, NJ 07834 to -
Pocono Vacation Park 110 Arnie Way, Stroudsburg, PA 18360: 48 miles
(I didn't end up staying here because it looked like a Meth compound. Ended up staying at a campground close to State College). I charged at the EA in Stroudsburg; located at the Walmart, was crowded and I had to decouple. Probably my worst charging experience


2. Pocono Vacation Park EA Stroudsburg, PA -
EA 2511 New Berwick Hwy, Bloomsburg, PA 17815: 68 miles



4. EA Bloomsburg, PA -
EA 101 Valley Vista Dr, State College, PA 16803: 93.5 miles
(My first camping night was at Seven Mountains Campground close to State College, PA; I took small highways south of I-80 from Bloomsburg. Not fun at night pulling a trailer. In hindsight I should have stayed on I-80 then dropped South to the campground.


5. EA State College, PA -
EA 4354 US-220 BUS, Bedford, PA 15522: 72.6 miles


6. EA Bedford, PA -
EA 4692 PA-51, Belle Vernon, PA 15012 85.7 miles


7. EA Belle Vernon PA -
Barkcamp State Park 65330 Barkcamp Park Rd Belmont, OH 43718 83 miles
(I wish I would have arrived earlier at this campground. It was very scenic, mostly empty and had full hookups including water and sewer. I dewinterized the 400 and took advantage of the hookups and showed in the TAB instead of the nasty campground showers).


8. Barkcamp State Park -
EA 61205 Southgate Rd, Cambridge, OH 43725 32 miles


9. EA Cambridge, OH -
EA 5200 Westpointe Plaza Drive, Columbus, OH 43228 89 miles


10. EA Columbus, OH -
EA 7680 Brandt Pike, Huber Heights, OH 45424 53.6 miles


11. EA Huber Heights, OH -
EA 11351 E Washington St, Indianapolis, IN 46229: 105 miles


12. EA 11351 E. Washington St, Indianapolis IN -
Terra Haute Campground 5995 E Sony Dr Terra Haute, IN 86 miles


13. Terra Haute Campground -
EA 1810 Ave of Mid-America, Effingham, IL 62401 (Firefly grill): 75 miles
(I-70 is in atrocious shape in most of Indiana so make sure you secure everything in the TAB. Lost one of the kitchen light trim rings and just found it yesterday wedged under the HVAC ducting under the front bunk. I will remove both of these trim rings as part of our future prep for a long trip)


15. EA Effingham, IL -
EA 1040 Collinsville Crossing Blvd, Collinsville, IL 62234 90.3 miles
(the spineless Walmart manager sent the parking lot security guards to make me decouple the trailer even though people had plenty of room to get around me and I was with the Lightning/trailer the entire time)


16. EA Collinsville, IL -
EA 2897 Veterans Memorial Pkwy, St Charles, MO 63303 34.6 miles
(after my experience in Collinsville I decided to skip charging at St. Charles as it would have been much the same. My remote co-pilot reserved a spot for me at the Hickory Ridge Campground 58 miles West of St. Charles on I-70. The hookups were nice but I would avoid this campground unless you need to score some Meth )


17. EA St. Charles, MO - Hickory Ridge Campground to
EA 2150 Main St, Boonville, MO 65233 69.2 miles


18. EA Boonville MO - Home 117 miles

 

[NJAdales2]

Thanks for all that additional helpful info! It is so good to have some real experience to consider that involves the same TT and TV. As a new T@B owner(And even as time goes on with it), you may find a lot of helpful info and experience on the several T@B and Nucamp FB groups. A good forum of long-standing, too, is tab-tv.vanillacommunity.com.

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