A Tesla Model Y was spotted towing a full-size tractor-trailer. Why? We don’t know. Is it smart? Probably not. Does it look badass? Absolutely.
Electric vehicles are not known for their incredible towing capabilities when it comes to heavy capacity. They can pull them, but it affects their range so much that it isn’t popular yet.
This is expected to change when electric pickup trucks with longer ranges come to market, like the Tesla Cybertruck with range extender and the Chevy Silverado Electric. In the meantime, consumer electric vehicles pulling big weights are more of a novelty.
That’s why we were particularly surprised to see this Tesla Model Y spotted towing a full-size semi-trailer in Harlingen, Texas, via u/Efrojas16 on Reddit:
Even if empty, a semi-trailer weighs between 10,000 and 15,000 pounds, which is several times the Model Y’s rated 3,500-lbs towing capacity.
Top comment by Ezekiel Wheeler
That's a converter dolly, usually used for running doubles (2 trailers). The converter dolly has air brakes like the front axle of a truck (so no spring brakes that would apply without air) but the trailer DOES have spring brakes and would not roll without an air supply. I don't think the tesla is supplying air to this combo. My guess is that this trailer has had it's springs caged, or it's slack adjusters backed off so the brakes don't apply. It's a relatively newer refer so it's not one of the old trailers without spring brakes. The reefer also is missing some panels on it so my guess is this is a parts trailer or one with serious repair work being done and this is yard move from one parking spot to the other. Surprising some repair facility, junk yard or whatever would use a tesla for it, but who knows. Also, there's almost no "tongue weight" with a converter dolly setup, so the car's rear suspension isn't holding much up, which I believe is part of what the tow ratings for cars means as most trailers for cars/pickups have a fair amount of "tongue weight". I know about semis and teslas, nothing about little truck towing.
Now, that’s not a smart idea.
We don’t have the context of this strange sighting. Hopefully, the Model Y was only pulling the trailer a short distance, but that’s still most likely illegal, as I doubt that Model Y is able to control the air brakes on the trailer.
Regardless of the legality and danger risk, it’s also not a good idea because Tesla can void your warranty if something happens and you get caught, like with this video going viral, for example.
But despite all those issues, it’s still impressive to see a small electric SUV pull such a large and heavy trailer seemingly effortlessly.
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