Think we're talking past each other and mainly in agreement.
That quoted post was in response to someone asking about towing effect and range, and at the time, the best source available was Rivian's estimate of it halving range. At this point, there's been a lot of third-party testing, and none of what I've seen suggests long-range towing is advisable, some tests finding truck range dropping below 100 miles under near-max load.
That's one reason I didn't even consider an electric when buying a new truck, though I'm more concerned with max payload than towing. I had an argument somewhere back in the abyss of this thread in stating that range reduction during towing is a problematic shortcoming for electric trucks. The battery-powered, EV-everything guys suggested that towing is a fringe use case 😄
As for self powered trailers, it's a creative short-term solution, not something I see taking over the industry. If batteries were dense and cheap enough for that, then you should also have longer range pickups that can tow decent ranges. The tech is kind of fascinating to me, though, controlling the trailer so that it matches vehicle speed and cuts weight to 0 and so that it can torque vector to self-correct swaying and other unwanted movement. Might ultimately end up being used for safety more than range and efficiency.
Some of the biggest names in RVs have been working on it for 5+ years now, including real world testing. But I think it could be far more impactful for freight tractor-trailers.
Range Energy’s Electric Trailer Could Redefine Cargo Hauling
Range Energy's powered electric trailers can reduce the trucking industry's carbon footprint while also boosting a semi-tractor's performance.
insideevs.com
