I would love to see the Tesla Semi with an RV trailer option. I think this would be the perfect RV, even though the range is shorter than say a Class A, which is roughly 1,000 miles on a tank of fuel, I think the other benefits would outweigh this. Any thoughts?
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Tesla Semi RV
- Thread starter Resist
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Xenoilphobe
Well-Known Member
roblab
Active Member
A diesel semi often has 300 gallons of fuel on board, so a standard semi can often go 2000 miles before needing to refuel, which often happens at the depot where they buy diesel at decent rates.
Either way, my wife and I decided a long time ago that motels were plentiful and priced fairly, costing far less than hauling a trailer or other fun things. My brother bought a 30' trailer for camping, and after one trip to the Grand Tetons, it's sat behind his house for the last twenty years. Just too much hassle. His wife was insistent that any dirt was at least their dirt, but my wife and I have never had to deal with dirt if we rented a good room at a good motel/hotel chain, and I don't have to buy a diesel pickup or semi to haul a trailer with. To each their own.
Either way, my wife and I decided a long time ago that motels were plentiful and priced fairly, costing far less than hauling a trailer or other fun things. My brother bought a 30' trailer for camping, and after one trip to the Grand Tetons, it's sat behind his house for the last twenty years. Just too much hassle. His wife was insistent that any dirt was at least their dirt, but my wife and I have never had to deal with dirt if we rented a good room at a good motel/hotel chain, and I don't have to buy a diesel pickup or semi to haul a trailer with. To each their own.
Xenoilphobe
Well-Known Member
MXLRplus
Active Member
Motorhomes are like boats.
The second best day of your life is when you bought your new motorhome.
Your best day is when you got rid of it to some poor schmuck.
The second best day of your life is when you bought your new motorhome.
Your best day is when you got rid of it to some poor schmuck.
If I get a motorhome I'm living in it full time
Freightliner Motorhomes – Renegade Verona Freightliner Motor Coach for Sale
Freightliner Motorhomes – Renegade Verona Freightliner Motor Coach for Sale
CyberGus
Not Just a Member
Throw in FSD and I'll shower and make breakfast while driving to work
I hope to make a Semi into a custom built expedition vehicle. That is build a cabin on the back and use it for some off grid camping and driving around the world. There are a host of challenges here though. Here’s my initial list of questions:
Is the frame built like a traditional heavy truck, meaning can the chassis rails be extended such that a camper box can be built in the back with a longer wheelbase than the current tractor design prototypes.
Can the battery be used to power the rear cabin at all, parked or underway. Is that considered V2H?
Can the battery be charged while underway via some type of massive solar array on the roof or 10kW rv generator built into the cabin. It wouldn’t be enough power to get very far but would help to minimize the rest time to recharge at the destination.
I could see driving 3-400 miles to a destination and then charging up on a campground overnight. Or better yet staying off grid for a few days while 5-6kw of solar combined with the 10kW generator recharged the battery for the next location.
I think this would be an amazing use of a Tesla semi and one I can come to figure out once they release some more specs and details in the near future. The Autopilot and FSD combined with no giant diesel very loud and very hot engine make this the ultimate motor home rig to me. Especially for off grid camping with the built in massive battery bank for refrigerators and AC and all the power I could want. I think it would be near perfect.
thanks,
Wayne
Is the frame built like a traditional heavy truck, meaning can the chassis rails be extended such that a camper box can be built in the back with a longer wheelbase than the current tractor design prototypes.
Can the battery be used to power the rear cabin at all, parked or underway. Is that considered V2H?
Can the battery be charged while underway via some type of massive solar array on the roof or 10kW rv generator built into the cabin. It wouldn’t be enough power to get very far but would help to minimize the rest time to recharge at the destination.
I could see driving 3-400 miles to a destination and then charging up on a campground overnight. Or better yet staying off grid for a few days while 5-6kw of solar combined with the 10kW generator recharged the battery for the next location.
I think this would be an amazing use of a Tesla semi and one I can come to figure out once they release some more specs and details in the near future. The Autopilot and FSD combined with no giant diesel very loud and very hot engine make this the ultimate motor home rig to me. Especially for off grid camping with the built in massive battery bank for refrigerators and AC and all the power I could want. I think it would be near perfect.
thanks,
Wayne
Having been a dedicated RV'er for 15 years, I really don't like to travel any other way. We're retired, so time is not the issue. We have taken two cross country trips and are planning our third. Unfortunately, our F250 will be pulling the fifth wheel for a long time. Just sorry I can't also tow Model S with us. Making an RV out of a Tesla Semi would be a perfect combo IMHO.
SmartElectric
Active Member
No. Tesla and most other EV's must be parked during charging sessions.
This makes no sense.
For reference, Semi is expected (based on range and energy consumption) to have a 600 kWh (300 mile range) or 1000 kWh (500 mile range) battery pack.
10 kW (solar or generator) over 1 hour would add 1/100th of the total capacity of the big battery pack ... 4 days to fully charge it ...
10 kW of solar with best panels is ~25 panels covering ~ 40 sq meters of linear space, think about that in terms of what size of trailer you'd be towing. ;-)
CyberGus
Not Just a Member
It's not that it's a terrible idea. In fact, trailers usually spend much more time parked being loaded/unloaded than they do in travel, so it would be advantageous to have a battery pack and/or solar on the trailer. This would add range to the semi and/or reduce time spent at charging stations.
Unfortunately, a 1000kWh battery pack is about $100,000, and the 10kW solar array is another $20k, so it's not really a cost-effective solution. Yet.
Get a giant fifth wheel and tow it with a dually Diesel smoker with a flatbed hitch balanced over the rear axle. Much better life, after you pump your xxxx and reload on water you can leave it at the RV park while visiting the local attractions. At least this is what my elderly patients tell me.
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