With the UK government banning all sales of new cars and vans powered entirely by petrol and diesel by 2030 the purchase of electric vehicles is on the rise, but how will this affect you and your towing abilities?
15.1% of the new car market is currently held by electric vehicles with 2022 seeing the new registration of 224,919 electric vehicles. With nearly a third of all-electric vehicles bought in 2022 this brings the total registered electric vehicles to 621,416 within the UK.
Germany currently has the highest plug-in electric vehicle sales in Europe with the UK sitting closely behind with the second highest sales. With over 40% of car models now available as plug-ins, it is easy to see why the market for electric vehicles is booming and expected to continue growing.
However, despite the rapidly growing market, electric vehicles and hybrids are still only estimated to cover between only 2% and 3% of all vehicles currently on the road in the UK.
With a survey conducted by Hilton, 59% of Britain’s have said they are planning to travel more in 2023. With 39% of people surveyed saying they plan to spend their 2023 holidays within the UK and 23% saying they mostly be taking road trips could we see electric car sales increase more than expected?
It is currently estimated that in the UK there are 550,000 touring caravans, 365,000 caravan homes and 225,000 motorhomes. With people spending roughly 50 million nights each year in caravans.
With towing caravans currently dominating the market with a whopping 70.5% market share it is no surprise that 11 road accidents per day are caused by caravans in the UK.
So what can you safely and legally tow in the UK with an electric vehicle? We have looked at the 20 most popular electric vehicles of 2022 and what the manufacturers have said about their towing capacity.
- Tesla Model 3 has a towing capacity of 910kg
- Kia e-Niro has a towing capacity of 750kg
- Tesla Model Y has a towing capacity of 1600kg
- Hyundai Ioniq 5 has a towing capacity of 1600kg
- Kia EV6 has a towing capacity of 1600kg
- Ford Mustang Mach-E has a towing capacity of 1500kg
- Fiat 500 Electric is not approved for towing
- BMW iX has a towing capacity of 2500kg
- Mercedes EQS, Saloon model has a towing capacity of 750kg and the SUV model has a towing capacity of 1800kg
- Skoda Enyaq, RWD model has a towing capacity of 1000kg and the AWD has a towing capacity of 1200kg
- Polestar 2 has a towing capacity of 1500kg
- Renault Megane E-Tech has a towing capacity of 900kg
- MG 4 EV has a towing capacity of 500kg
- BMW i4 has a towing capacity of 1600kg
- Porsche Taycan is not approved for towing
- Volvo XC40, FWD model has a towing capacity of 1500kg and the AWD model has a towing capacity of 1800kg
- Volvo C40, FWD model has a towing capacity of 1500kg and the Recharge AWD model has a towing capacity of 1800kg
- Mercedes-Benz EQA has a towing capacity of 1800kg
- Audi E-tron has a towing capacity of 1800kg
- Tesla Model X has a towing capacity of 2300kg
Just don’t forget the maximum unbraked towing capacity for any vehicle is 750kg anything above this must be braked.
So overall the BMW iX has the highest towing capacity in the electric vehicle family, however when towing at full capacity the BMW iX can see a loss in range of up to 50% which is quite a significant drop compared to the Tesla Model X which only loses 29% range.
Tesla still dominates the UK electric vehicle market, but with the increase on electric vehicles entering the market and the increase of UK-based holidays/road trips will this be the same at the end of 2023?
To get a competitive price for your electrical vehicle tow bar get in touch today on 0114 360 7080, or for an online quote visit https://www.ultimatetowbars.co.uk/local-towbar-fitting/
Figures are from 3rd parties and do not in any way reflect the opinions of Ultimate Towbars.