Quantifying the Impact of Towing on BEV Energy Use: Instrumented On Road Testing and Chassis Dynamometer Reproduction

Electrification is rapidly entering all vehicle classes, including light- and heavy-duty trucks designed for heavy towing capabilities. Still, the quantitative impact of towing on battery-electric vehicle (BEV) energy use and range remains under-characterized. We conducted controlled towing tests with a Ford F-150 Lightning using two trailers of different sizes and varying payloads to isolate aerodynamic and mass effects across the vehicle’s rated towing capacity. The vehicle was instrumented at the CAN bus level to capture motor power, torque, speed, and other related internal signals. On-road testing consisted of repeated back-and-forth passes on level, straight road segments at set speeds focusing on highway operation, where aerodynamic drag is stronger and real-world towing use cases occur. From these data, we extracted road load equations and dynamometer coefficients for each trailer combination, then reproduced equivalent conditions on a four-wheel drive chassis dynamometer across several standard cycles. Results showed a significant increase in energy consumption and a corresponding range penalty. Additional impacts, such as thermal management of the motors and battery, were quantified. Dynamometer tests of varying characteristics (highway, urban, steady state speeds and accelerations) allowed isolation of specific behaviors in functions like regenerative braking and torque-split strategy. Dynamometer results aligned with on-road measurements, validating the method for repeatable laboratory evaluation of towing scenarios. This study offers this validated methodology and dataset to: quantify towing impacts on BEVs, inform range prediction and route planning, support labeling and consumer guidance, and characterize sustained, high-load, real-world operation of vehicle components.