I can't say that I think a 5000 pound largish SUV would be my first choice to tow.
Having said that, I'm not really seeing much danger on the mechanical or electrical side.
Everything I've seen suggests that the gearboxes are splash lubricated - meaning that whether the car is running or not they get the same lubrication.
Unlike most of the other modern EVs, Tesla uses induction motors - which means that spinning the motor with the computers off won't do anything, because there aren't any permanent magnets, and the car won't be providing any current to generate a field.
Of course, it's still over five thousand pounds, and it won't have any brakes coming on when you hit the brakes, either. Conventional trailers are legally required to have brakes above 3,500 pounds I believe.
I'm also not sure how you'd tie the tow bar to the car's frame. Obviously something that has been dealt with for a lot of cars, but not that easy in the era of crumple zones and airbags and strong aerodynamic fairings.
I think there's probably a good opportunity here for Tesla - with a force sensing tow bar, they could make the 3 and/or Y really easy to tow.
I'm thinking it'd have a "toad" mode in which it uses the motors and steering to minimize the impact to the towing vehicle - help it accelerate, help it slow down, help it turn, all based on force detection in the tow bar - with just enough regen to keep the battery level the same are the end of the trip (a tiny fraction more rolling load resistance in exchange for not affecting acceleration or braking performance.)
With full autonomy supposedly around the corner on those cars, some folks have also suggested what they called baby elephant mode - no physical connection, but you tell the car to follow the RV very closely and do whatever it does. Of course, that uses the car's battery power during the drive, though drafting that close will reduce the aerodynamic drag considerably.
Having said that, I'm not really seeing much danger on the mechanical or electrical side.
Everything I've seen suggests that the gearboxes are splash lubricated - meaning that whether the car is running or not they get the same lubrication.
Unlike most of the other modern EVs, Tesla uses induction motors - which means that spinning the motor with the computers off won't do anything, because there aren't any permanent magnets, and the car won't be providing any current to generate a field.
Of course, it's still over five thousand pounds, and it won't have any brakes coming on when you hit the brakes, either. Conventional trailers are legally required to have brakes above 3,500 pounds I believe.
I'm also not sure how you'd tie the tow bar to the car's frame. Obviously something that has been dealt with for a lot of cars, but not that easy in the era of crumple zones and airbags and strong aerodynamic fairings.
I think there's probably a good opportunity here for Tesla - with a force sensing tow bar, they could make the 3 and/or Y really easy to tow.
I'm thinking it'd have a "toad" mode in which it uses the motors and steering to minimize the impact to the towing vehicle - help it accelerate, help it slow down, help it turn, all based on force detection in the tow bar - with just enough regen to keep the battery level the same are the end of the trip (a tiny fraction more rolling load resistance in exchange for not affecting acceleration or braking performance.)
With full autonomy supposedly around the corner on those cars, some folks have also suggested what they called baby elephant mode - no physical connection, but you tell the car to follow the RV very closely and do whatever it does. Of course, that uses the car's battery power during the drive, though drafting that close will reduce the aerodynamic drag considerably.
