Semi-rural block outside Hobart, Model Y finally ordered — do I actually need to keep a second car for towing?
Been going back and forth on this for the better part of a year and finally signed the novated lease paperwork on a Model Y last week, delivery expected October. We're about 20 minutes out of town on a couple of acres, occasional trailer loads of firewood and the odd trip hauling the tinnie down to the coast, plus a run into Launceston every month or so for stuff we can't get locally.
Currently a one-car household, old Territory's going to the wreckers once the Y turns up. Everyone I've read says EVs are fine for daily driving but towing absolutely wrecks the range, and I don't want to be the guy stuck at 40km remaining range towing a trailer down a road with nothing for 60km.
Trying to work out if I actually need to keep something with a tow bar as a backup for the handful of times a year I'd need it, or if renting a ute for those specific days is the more sensible option. Anyone in a similar semi-rural setup who's made the jump to one car and actually regretted it, or not?
Filed under: Road Trips & Regional
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5 answers
5 ANSWERS
@jonno1985July 24, 2026
Towing on any current EV takes a real bite, roughly half your unladen range with anything more than a box trailer, worse again with the tinnie if it's got any weight in it. For a handful of trips a year like you're describing, renting a ute those specific days works out cheaper than owning a second vehicle you barely touch otherwise.
That's basically what I expected to hear. Does the tinnie do less damage than the trailer being lower profile, or is weight the bigger factor at the speeds I'd actually be driving?
Weight matters more than shape until you're up around highway speed, so if they're a similar all-up weight it won't be far off either way. Shape only really shows up once you're past 90, more a Midland Highway problem than a trip into Launceston.
@fi_macJuly 24, 2026
Kept my ute for exactly this and don't regret it, but I'm out doing property work most weekends, not a handful of times a year. If it's genuinely occasional like yours, renting comes out ahead financially every time.
@just_lurking22July 24, 2026
We just rent a ute twice a year.
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