this post was submitted on 25 Jul 2026
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I don't know enough about physics or cars to really rebut you but this doesn't seem plausible to me.
I don't think aerodynamics are particularly relevant to towing? Prime movers (tractor trailers?) are about the least aerodynamic vehicle there is but they regularly tow more than 100 tonnes at highway speed.
If I had to guess I'd suggest the primary problem is the relationship between system weight of the vehicle and load, battery capacity, and the battery's weight. As in, if you want to be able to cart 1 ton for 200km then the additional battery requirement is another 300kg so that's really only an extra 700kg so you need more battery and heavier frame and so on.
Another problem I suppose, and I emphasize that this is supposition, is optimising motors for both torque and speed. The torque required to break inertia with lots of weight in sandy or muddy terrain.
The maximum weight for a tractor-trailer rig in the United States is 80,000 pounds, 40 short tons or 36.36 metric tons.
A tractor-trailer rig is surprisingly streamlined. The cab is shaped and sized for the front of the trailer to ride closely in its wake, often with fairings that reach as close to the trailer as practicable. Sure it's a brick, but it's ONE brick:
A pickup truck towing a trailer isn't anywhere near that slick, even with a gooseneck trailer, the trailer is often taller and wider than the cab. It's a brick, attached to another, larger brick being pulled through the turbulent disturbed air from the first brick:
In terms of torque, EVs have a significant advantage. Electric motors produce a lot more torque at low to zero RPM than internal combustion engines do. Limited slip differentials or all-wheel drive are solved problems.
The additional energy required to accelerate the additional weight up to speed isn't that much of a problem as an EV will get that back with regenerative braking. Well, some of it. Most trailers have brakes of their own that do help with braking distance but are there mostly to keep the hitch under tension to prevent jackknifing. An ICEV figures on losing all of that energy to friction braking, a BEV plans on recovering some of it. An electric pickup carrying 1000 pounds in the bed will be more efficient than one pulling a 1000 pound trailer, in most cases.
I'm not sure what you're getting at with this. Here in Australia road trains haul 90 metric tons of grain and fertilizer all the time, that doesn't include the weight of the trailers.
Regardless, I'm not quite sure what you're trying to illustrate - your example of a "streamlined vehicle" undoubtedly consumes a lot more diesel than your example of a vehicle which is not streamlined. Isn't that antithetical?
Yes, but a "truck" with a 4 ton towing capacity obviously needs motors with more torque than those on a tesla.
As little as 5 to 10% on the highway, not particularly significant. Installing regenerative brakes on a trailer is a lot of additional cost and complexity.
They very much are, depending on what you're towing, most of your fuel used goes into overcoming aerodynamic drag. If you tow a load of gravel on a trailer, compared to a caravan of the same weight, the difference in fuel used can be double.
Towing something that's not very aerodynamic can easily double your fuel use, which means half the range or less in an EV.
Aerodynamics are extremely relevant to towing. "Aging Wheels" on Youtube did a test and found that payload weight makes basically no difference at all, but a trailer with bad aerodynamics can cut an electric truck's range in half.