Travel Trailer Tow Report: 2024 Lightning Platinum towing Escape 19

[brtnstrns]

Since I see a lot of people doing utility-type hauling reports, figured I'd throw a camper in the mix since I know I'm not the only one who was cautiously optimistic for this kind of towing situation.

First, some context: We live in Seattle, which means we've got an insane plethora of camping options all well within a 200 mile radius. We've never done long road trips and don't have any real plans to with all the options that are nearby. If I was planning to do multiple week long trips across the country, I would probably not suggest someone to use the Lightning unless they were truly all-in on the full EV lifestyle.

TL;DR: fabulous tow vehicle for a small travel trailer and overall completely painless for the distances we're going.

This was our first camping trip towing our Escape 19 travel trailer with the Lightning. Have towed it over the years with a 2020 Tacoma and a 2024 Tundra Hybrid.

It's a 5,000lb GVWR trailer; we probably have it loaded somewhere between 3500-4500lbs at worst. 20 feet overall length. Height is 9 feet including the AC unit and width is 7 feet.

This trip was from Seattle to Fort Flagler State Park near Port Townsend, WA.

Left South Seattle with 100% charge. Planned the route with ABRP with a conservative assumption of 1.0 mi/kwh to be safe. It planned one stop in Silverdale, WA at a Tesla Supercharger.

Traffic was pretty light, I guess due to Spring Break, so we were doing speeds mostly between 50mph and 65mph. Since most Western Washington camp grounds are off state highways, I can't really imagine why there would be any reason to need to go over 65mph anywhere with a trailer in tow.

By the time we got near Silverdale, I was fairly certain we could make it the whole way to Fort Flagler without charging. But since I've never used a fast charger on either of our EVs before, I figure I'd see what it's all about, especially with the trailer situation.

All but two of the Superchargers were open, so I just drove straight into the far charger. Out of caution, I stayed as far to the right as possible, but I'm pretty sure these chargers must be the updated ones with longer cords, because I think it could have easily reached if I went into the spot like normal.

1.3 mi/kwh for this leg.

Took less than 10 minutes to charge from 64% to 80%: less time than it took us to go to the bathroom and let the dog stretch its legs. Completely painless.

Left Silverdale and made it to Fort Flagler with 56%. 1.2 mi/kwh for this leg.

On Sunday, decided I could easily make it the full 107 miles back home without charging. I used the 50A receptacle on the campsite pedestal to charge to 100% overnight. Traffic was pretty rough in some places getting home, so I'm sure that helped efficiency, but ultimately made it home with 40% battery and 1.2 mi/kwh.

I'm fairly confident after this trip that we could make it basically anywhere in Western Washington from our house on a single charging stop or less. I think I could get away with a full 150 miles towing our trailer for most trips, assuming there's a charging option at the end of the trip.

Our trailer is fairly low profile and stable and light weight, so I would not assume this efficiency for some of the more run-of-the-mill trailers that are much taller and sometimes wider. But I'm super happy with our specific towing situation for getting us where we want to go.

And I don't need to say anything additional about the actual towing experience. Same as everyone else: it's absolutely a phenomenal tow vehicle if you aren't freaked out by the range reduction.

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[The Weatherman]

Yes, those are V4 Tesla Superchargers I see in your charging pic.

 

[PreservedSwine]

Great write-up, thanks for posting. Haven’t been there in ages, but you drove right by my hometown of Gig Harbor. Love that area, camping around there is heaven

 

[YiKeS]

Great write up. Gives me more confidence in towing my boat this summer (180km one way). Fast chargers are on the route but why stop if you can avoid it

 

[Randall Stephens]

Since I see a lot of people doing utility-type hauling reports, figured I'd throw a camper in the mix since I know I'm not the only one who was cautiously optimistic for this kind of towing situation.

First, some context: We live in Seattle, which means we've got an insane plethora of camping options all well within a 200 mile radius. We've never done long road trips and don't have any real plans to with all the options that are nearby. If I was planning to do multiple week long trips across the country, I would probably not suggest someone to use the Lightning unless they were truly all-in on the full EV lifestyle.

TL;DR: fabulous tow vehicle for a small travel trailer and overall completely painless for the distances we're going.

This was our first camping trip towing our Escape 19 travel trailer with the Lightning. Have towed it over the years with a 2020 Tacoma and a 2024 Tundra Hybrid.

It's a 5,000lb GVWR trailer; we probably have it loaded somewhere between 3500-4500lbs at worst. 20 feet overall length. Height is 9 feet including the AC unit and width is 7 feet.

This trip was from Seattle to Fort Flagler State Park near Port Townsend, WA.

Left South Seattle with 100% charge. Planned the route with ABRP with a conservative assumption of 1.0 mi/kwh to be safe. It planned one stop in Silverdale, WA at a Tesla Supercharger.

Traffic was pretty light, I guess due to Spring Break, so we were doing speeds mostly between 50mph and 65mph. Since most Western Washington camp grounds are off state highways, I can't really imagine why there would be any reason to need to go over 65mph anywhere with a trailer in tow.

By the time we got near Silverdale, I was fairly certain we could make it the whole way to Fort Flagler without charging. But since I've never used a fast charger on either of our EVs before, I figure I'd see what it's all about, especially with the trailer situation.

All but two of the Superchargers were open, so I just drove straight into the far charger. Out of caution, I stayed as far to the right as possible, but I'm pretty sure these chargers must be the updated ones with longer cords, because I think it could have easily reached if I went into the spot like normal.

1.3 mi/kwh for this leg.

Took less than 10 minutes to charge from 64% to 80%: less time than it took us to go to the bathroom and let the dog stretch its legs. Completely painless.

Left Silverdale and made it to Fort Flagler with 56%. 1.2 mi/kwh for this leg.

On Sunday, decided I could easily make it the full 107 miles back home without charging. I used the 50A receptacle on the campsite pedestal to charge to 100% overnight. Traffic was pretty rough in some places getting home, so I'm sure that helped efficiency, but ultimately made it home with 40% battery and 1.2 mi/kwh.

I'm fairly confident after this trip that we could make it basically anywhere in Western Washington from our house on a single charging stop or less. I think I could get away with a full 150 miles towing our trailer for most trips, assuming there's a charging option at the end of the trip.

Our trailer is fairly low profile and stable and light weight, so I would not assume this efficiency for some of the more run-of-the-mill trailers that are much taller and sometimes wider. But I'm super happy with our specific towing situation for getting us where we want to go.

And I don't need to say anything additional about the actual towing experience. Same as everyone else: it's absolutely a phenomenal tow vehicle if you aren't freaked out by the range reduction.

Naughty naughty not running a front plate how do you rate Flagler vs Worden for camping?

 

[brtnstrns]

Naughty naughty not running a front plate how do you rate Flagler vs Worden for camping?

lol! The dealer didn't install it. I actually installed it today so I could stop paying non-Good-to-Go tag prices.

We haven't camped at Fort Warden yet but I need to get there.

I'm especially fond of Flagler since we were coincidentally staying there the weekend the Aurora Borealis was visible last year and it was truly insane.

 

[abcut973]

Awesome trip. I was in Seattle last December with a rental EV subaru solterra. Family and I enjoyed our visit there.

 

[RaspPiDude]

Thank you for sharing! What is your tow hitch setup for that size trailer?

 

[brtnstrns]

Thank you for sharing! What is your tow hitch setup for that size trailer?

The hitch is a 6000lb Fastway E2 Round Bar WDH. However, I didn’t use it for this trip because I wanted to see how the Lightning handled it on its own.

I’m going to move to a normal hitch setup without WDH to save 60lbs or so on the tongue. The Lightning doesn’t sag anywhere close to how much the Tundra and Tacoma sagged under the weight. It handles the load so much better than my previous trucks; it really is impressive to me.

 

[johaanryberg]

Thanks for the write up! We just did a round-trip from the Bay Area to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. Lots of elevation changes. Towing a 5000 pound, 21 foot Winnebago travel trailer.
You can see our total trip data in the picture attached.
Pretty long trip for our family, but only unhooked the trailer two times for charging.

 

[RaspPiDude]

I’m going to move to a normal hitch setup without WDH to save 60lbs or so on the tongue. .

Aha, thanks! I'm thinking of doing the exact same thing for our 3500lb TT. I'm just not sure if the WDH helps to provide sway control that I'm not realizing.

 

[brtnstrns]

Aha, thanks! I'm thinking of doing the exact same thing for our 3500lb TT. I'm just not sure if the WDH helps to provide sway control that I'm not realizing.

I mean if it is a WDH with sway control, it’ll definitely help if a swaying event happens, so I think it’s really more of a personal question at that point for how much safety factor you’re after.

For me, personally, between the trailer being small compared to the truck, having dual axles, and having to worry about hitching and unhitching times while having to charge, I feel the tradeoff is worth it knowing that an uncontrollable sway event is unlikely and knowing how to react with the brake controller if it does happen someday.

 

[indyaces]

Thanks for the post, I dont tow yet, but plan to in the future now with my first truck.

I did not opt for the upgraded tow package just the stock with the trailers button etc, do you have the upgraded tow package, and is there any value in this truck for the advanced tow package, when you have to stop every 150 miles.

I didnt see the value of the upgraded tow package looks like it had more advanced cooling etc, but any towing I do will likely be 150 miles or less

 

[climateguy]

I'm towing an Escape 17B. According to the manufacturer, its "dry weight", unloaded, is 2640 lbs. The Escape 19 is 3150 lbs. I'm on my first long trip towing the trailer. We've gone from Ferndale which is a bit north of Bellingham, to Tucson so far. I've concluded that, at 55 mph, if I start with a battery charged to 95% and intend to only go as low as 5%, that I could confidently go 150 miles.

However, when I was thinking of going through inland northern California my quickest route was going to require charging at Mt Shasta, then at Susanville. There were Tesla chargers at Susanville. But the distance was 131 miles. I saw no other fast chargers I could use nearby, if the Susanville chargers were not functional. I decided to take another route where the distance between chargers was less and there were backup chargers reasonably nearby.

I've been able to successfully charge at all the charging stations I've used so far on this trip, except one. The failure to charge was at a Tesla station at a Home Depot near Victorville CA. I tried 3 different chargers at the station, using 2 different adapters (Ford and A2Z). All attempts produced error indications immediately. I even pulled up beside a Ford F-150 Lightning that was successfully charging and tried the next charger - this failed to charge as well. It was disconcerting, as the evidence pointed to there must be something wrong with my truck.

I went to another Tesla charging station a few miles away and had no difficulty. I've charged successfully at a number of Tesla stations before the failure to charge at Victorville and after. However, on this trip, I've not had to use the exact same model of charger. The Victorville chargers were solid white - similar to the type I've successfully charged with in Silverdale, WA. I suspect these are V4. All the other Tesla chargers I've used on this trip were an older style that I suspect are V3. I didn't try calling anyone when the chargers would not work for me as I knew there was a nearby backup possibility.

So I remain more conservative when choosing my routes. I make sure there is a good backup plan. One thought that came to mind is if things look bad I can always disconnect the trailer which would immediately double whatever range I have left which would give a bit more flexibility in dealing with the situation.

At the camping spots we set up in there are always people who ask how I like towing with the Lightning. Most seem already to know that the range is reduced. I just say if I keep to 55 mph, charge to 95% and aim to discharge to 5%, I might be confident about having 150 miles towing my 3000 - 3500 lb loaded trailer.

I say this is my first long trip, and the big difference compared to towing with a gas powered vehicle is the necessity to plan routes with chargers top of mind. I say this thing goes up mountains like they are not there, the A/C works great in Tucson when its 104 F, and I like driving by gas stations.

Obviously, ICE towing is more convenient. But the whole point of transitioning transportation away from the CO2 emissions of fossil fuels is to address the problem of climate change. Why not try to leave this planet less damaged so our kids and grandkids might possibly have a chance to live?

I understand that the US Energy Secretary publicly calls any attempt to stop the increase in CO2 concentration in the atmosphere a "sinister goal". I expect that the moderator of this forum wants to try to discourage any mention of why most of us drive EVs.

When I first started to try to wake people up to what scientists had discovered about climate change starting in 1988, I would never have believed that almost 37 years later so many people would want to deny reality that the US would elect would be fascists who want to reverse everything that people before them have done to address this problem.

 

[brtnstrns]

I'm towing an Escape 17B. According to the manufacturer, its "dry weight", unloaded, is 2640 lbs. The Escape 19 is 3150 lbs. I'm on my first long trip towing the trailer. We've gone from Ferndale which is a bit north of Bellingham, to Tucson so far. I've concluded that, at 55 mph, if I start with a battery charged to 95% and intend to only go as low as 5%, that I could confidently go 150 miles.

However, when I was thinking of going through inland northern California my quickest route was going to require charging at Mt Shasta, then at Susanville. There were Tesla chargers at Susanville. But the distance was 131 miles. I saw no other fast chargers I could use nearby, if the Susanville chargers were not functional. I decided to take another route where the distance between chargers was less and there were backup chargers reasonably nearby.

I've been able to successfully charge at all the charging stations I've used so far on this trip, except one. The failure to charge was at a Tesla station at a Home Depot near Victorville CA. I tried 3 different chargers at the station, using 2 different adapters (Ford and A2Z). All attempts produced error indications immediately. I even pulled up beside a Ford F-150 Lightning that was successfully charging and tried the next charger - this failed to charge as well. It was disconcerting, as the evidence pointed to there must be something wrong with my truck.

I went to another Tesla charging station a few miles away and had no difficulty. I've charged successfully at a number of Tesla stations before the failure to charge at Victorville and after. However, on this trip, I've not had to use the exact same model of charger. The Victorville chargers were solid white - similar to the type I've successfully charged with in Silverdale, WA. I suspect these are V4. All the other Tesla chargers I've used on this trip were an older style that I suspect are V3. I didn't try calling anyone when the chargers would not work for me as I knew there was a nearby backup possibility.

So I remain more conservative when choosing my routes. I make sure there is a good backup plan. One thought that came to mind is if things look bad I can always disconnect the trailer which would immediately double whatever range I have left which would give a bit more flexibility in dealing with the situation.

At the camping spots we set up in there are always people who ask how I like towing with the Lightning. Most seem already to know that the range is reduced. I just say if I keep to 55 mph, charge to 95% and aim to discharge to 5%, I might be confident about having 150 miles towing my 3000 - 3500 lb loaded trailer.

I say this is my first long trip, and the big difference compared to towing with a gas powered vehicle is the necessity to plan routes with chargers top of mind. I say this thing goes up mountains like they are not there, the A/C works great in Tucson when its 104 F, and I like driving by gas stations.

Obviously, ICE towing is more convenient. But the whole point of transitioning transportation away from the CO2 emissions of fossil fuels is to address the problem of climate change. Why not try to leave this planet less damaged so our kids and grandkids might possibly have a chance to live?

I understand that the US Energy Secretary publicly calls any attempt to stop the increase in CO2 concentration in the atmosphere a "sinister goal". I expect that the moderator of this forum wants to try to discourage any mention of why most of us drive EVs.

When I first started to try to wake people up to what scientists had discovered about climate change starting in 1988, I would never have believed that almost 37 years later so many people would want to deny reality that the US would elect would be fascists who want to reverse everything that people before them have done to address this problem.

That’s awesome that you’re traveling that far with the trailer in tow. And glad to hear there’s another Escape being towed by a Lightning out there!

I’m a firm believer in the superiority of fiberglass trailers and Escapes are great examples of them.

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