Model Y Towing - Experiences Post here

[SilverSp33d3r]

Given that the Model Y has been shipping with the tow package for a while now I have yet to see any experiences being posted. If you have one or have found any please post here.

I’m specifically looking at towing a 1900lb “bushwhacker” trailer.
I’ve read about Model x towing but am looking specifically for model y real world experiences.

 

[KJD]

Have been wondering the same thing and looking at two different trailers as possible options.

Bambi 16RB Floorplan | Travel Trailers | Airstream

Alto F1743 Travel Trailers | Safari Condo

The airstream looks more aero dynamic but the safari is lighter by a fair amount. Not sure what one would be best with the Y.

Not familiar with the bushwhacker. Thoughts on any of these choices ?

 

[Ken43]

Have been wondering the same thing and looking at two different trailers as possible options.

Bambi 16RB Floorplan | Travel Trailers | Airstream

... Thoughts on any of these choices ?

I curious about the ultra-light travel trailer options for the Y also. The Bambi 16RB caught my eye but the hitch weight is 430 pounds, and I read that the limit for the Y is 350 pounds.
I wonder if anyone has consider the Forest RIver R-pod 171. 252 lb hitch weight and 2504 dry weight?

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/travel-trailers/r-pod/RP-171

 

[BLW2]

I posted a thread yesterday looking for towing experiences.
so far no response
now I see this thread....
I guess not many folks have actually towed with the Y. Not much of anything on youtube and nothing here. Find it a little hard to believe really. How many total model Y's have been delivered at this point, an nothing?

Sorry, can't really answer your questions about campers. I haven't looked very much at the little travel trailers available these days. I used to have a little 10ft box pupup tent trailer several years ago, before upgrading to a class C motorhome. Back in those days I used to participate at a forum on that topic.... the little a-liner type trailers were becoming very popular for couples. I remember looking at them a bit at RV shows and thinking they were pretty slick for one or two people I wonder if they might be good options.

I did briefly speak with an older couple in one of those teardrop things last month at a CG up in the NC mountains. Looking up bushwacker online, it might have been one. Seems like it was a bit small...I think she mentioned something about not being able to stand, and complained about having to crawl out in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. It was nifty looking for sure....

 

[Flybuddy]

I currently have a trailer that will be pretty close to the max towing capability and I'm also curious on experiences. I ordered the tow hitch on the 17th. It seems like they don't provide shipping info if it's going to a service center so I'm in limbo for now. I've got an appt at service center on Thursday (80 miles) for paint issue and was hoping for install at same time. No response on emails, will call.

 

[wycolo]

Put the LP and batteries inside the MY. Those are what is loading down the tongue. Or convert batteries to Li-Ion to save much weight. Or leave batteries at home and rely on MY pack. Convert to quart-sized LP cyls to save all that tank weight. If you can save ~100lb tongue weight you are golden and won't have to put up with all that handling lumpiness.
--

 

[PagodaY]

My wife is intrigued with the idea, but what kind of impact would towing have on range? Any guesstimates?

 

[KJD]

My wife is intrigued with the idea, but what kind of impact would towing have on range? Any guesstimates?

We don't have much data for the Y yet. We can make some guesses from data recorded by @ohmman in the X towing thread.

Model X Travel Trailer Consumption Analysis

 

[steve841]

What I'd like to know: Can I keep the ball mount installed without messing with sensors?

A little extra protection goes a LONG way.

 

[BLW2]

I used to keep the bar and ball in my truck all the time. Was getting an estimate after getting rear ended in my silverado a few years back. Happened to not have it in at the time...
the body shop estimator told me that he sees lots of trucks totaled from what would otherwise be repairable rear ends. The impact pushes the ball downward like a lever twisting the frame
so I'm quick to remove it now....

 

[ecarfan]

Have been wondering the same thing and looking at two different trailers as possible options.

Bambi 16RB Floorplan | Travel Trailers | Airstream

Alto F1743 Travel Trailers | Safari Condo

The airstream looks more aero dynamic but the safari is lighter by a fair amount. Not sure what one would be best with the Y.

As an X owner who tows an Alto F1743, in my opinion an Alto would be an excellent choice for towing with a Y. It’s the lightest trailer of it’s size, is of very high quality, and packs a lot of features into a compact space: queen size sleeping area, enclosed toilet/shower, table for two, kitchen with sink/microwave/stove/fridge and plenty of storage. For more comments see Towing with a Tesla

 

[steve841]

I used to keep the bar and ball in my truck all the time. Was getting an estimate after getting rear ended in my silverado a few years back. Happened to not have it in at the time...
the body shop estimator told me that he sees lots of trucks totaled from what would otherwise be repairable rear ends. The impact pushes the ball downward like a lever twisting the frame
so I'm quick to remove it now....

Unfortunately/fortunately, I've experienced the opposite on numerous occasions (not all personally).

This is meant for the clown not paying attention at a light and driving into you.

IMO if someone hits you hard enough to bend the hitch/bar, it would have destroyed the vehicle either way.

 

[BLW2]

just wanting to bump the thread, hoping others have used their Y to tow trailers. As I mentioned in my other thread, I'm evaluating how well a Y will tow my boat.... so just looking for the same thing as the OP here in this thread.... your experiences.

 

[Blup85]

just wanting to bump the thread, hoping others have used their Y to tow trailers. As I mentioned in my other thread, I'm evaluating how well a Y will tow my boat.... so just looking for the same thing as the OP here in this thread.... your experiences.

My mother is getting the tesla hitch installed and is planning to "try" tow a Forest river rpod. Its right at the max wieght, but she travels short distances.
My guess is it going to be the same watt/mile hit as ohmmans experience, less the efficiency difference between a MY and MX (~100 watts/mile?)
Hoping for arlund 600 to 650watts per mile so we can plan with ABRP.

 

[ecarfan]

My mother is getting the tesla hitch installed and is planning to "try" tow a Forest river rpod. Its right at the max wieght, but she travels short distances

I believe that trailer has electric brakes, correct? Please make sure she also installs a brake controller (Tesla won’t install that) to control the brakes on her trailer.

 

[dhrivnak]

......

Sorry, can't really answer your questions about campers. I haven't looked very much at the little travel trailers available these days. I used to have a little 10ft box pupup tent trailer several years ago, before upgrading to a class C motorhome. Back in those days I used to participate at a forum on that topic.... the little a-liner type trailers were becoming very popular for couples. I remember looking at them a bit at RV shows and thinking they were pretty slick for one or two people I wonder if they might be good options.
...

We have an ALiner and love it. Have pulled it more than 35,000 miles with my Volt. Unfortunately the Model 3 is too much of a pain with range effectively cut in half.

 

[craybeard]

I towed my utility trailer yesterday. First towing experience with the MY. We used to tow our teardrop camp trailer and utility trailer with a Model X so I have some means of comparison. A couple observations:

There is road noise transmitted through the hitch and into the MY frame, which can then be heard in the cabin. It’s not horribly loud but it does add extra noise in the cabin. Same thing happened on the MX. Hooking up is so much easier than it was on the MX. it’s still tight in there though. My hitch pin could only be inserted from the right side.

This trailer isn’t extremely heavy, 800 lbs curb weight, and we probably had another couple hundred pounds of stuff in it, but I could definitely tell that the MY will get pushed around more than the MX. This makes sense given the vast weight difference between the two vehicles. But something to keep in mind. I don’t think I would want to tow something that was near the maximum towing capacity without trailer breaks. Our tear drop trailer, Little Guy Silver Shadow, is around 1100 lbs curb weight and probably 1500-1600 loaded (wild guess but probably close) and doesn’t have trailer brakes. If I were to consider a heavier trailer I would insist on something with trailer breaks.

The safety chains rest on the plastic bumper lip below the hitch. This will scratch it all up over time. I’m going to figure something out to protect that area.

There is a lot of slop between the receiver and the drawbar. There is more up/down movement than I like. I have a clamp thing with a U-bolt and a metal plate that I used on a previous non-Tesla SUV. I’m not sure if it will work due to how recessed the receiver is. I’ll try though.

I had to move the ball down another notch from what is shown in this photo to get a more level trailer.

 

[Nakk]

The safety chains rest on the plastic bumper lip below the hitch. This will scratch it all up over time. I’m going to figure something out to protect that area.

My plan is to replace the chains with Amsteel rope. Amsteel has replaced wire rope in a lot of winching applications. the 3/8" Amsteel rope has an average strength of 16,200 pounds. That should do away with damage to the plastic bumper...

 

[BLW2]

interesting Craybeard, thanks.
and that is bad how the safety chains hang. Bad design. I'm not one to be so forgiving to the designers about stuff like that. In this case, that makes it even more clear that towing was not the primary design goal here....keeping the hitch covered hidden probably being more of a priority. I'm not entirely sure how I'll handle that issue. The only thing off the cuff that comes to mind without getting 'hands-on' with it is to tether your chains to the draw bar, or that lower ball in your case, with a bungee or something else that's strong enough to hold the chains straight back but that can break away.

based on the overall limited folks reporting actual towing experience, I'm thinking that the engineers likely and perhaps accurately assumed that the primary use of the hitch will be for bike racks, etc....

Sounds like you have not towed your camper with the Y. Any plans to? I'm not familiar with that model. My experience with RV's ...having owned a popup trailer and a motorhome, I've participated in a few RV forums for years....is that most folks tend to load them up more than they realize...and using the trailer's GVWR is often a good assumption. I'm not so sure though in the case of that little teardrop though. Doesn't look like you have much if anything in the way of water tanks, and very little storage space that would accumulate excessive 'stuff'.

 

[craybeard]

I haven’t towed the camper yet. I plan to in a couple weeks. That will be around 300 miles round trip. Should be a good test of the towing capability and range.

There isn’t a lot of room for gear in a teardrop. Ours has a small 10-12 gallon water tank that we’ve never used. No big propane tanks. No gray water tank at all. We put totes in the cabin area with our camping gear. It’s really not a lot of extra weight. Definitely not like some RVers that I’ve seen.

I ordered a chain hanger from Amazon. Will report back on it.

GR innovations llc Safety Chain Hanger Class 5 | Chain Saver | Trailer Towing Hitch