EP Tender, the trailer that extends the range of the electric car

The range of an electric car is the biggest drawback one can find when trying to make buying and using one of these vehicles feasible. Although battery capacity is steadily increasing and more distance can be covered on a single charge, and there is a growing number of service stations with a charger for these cars, it is the big catch that is held against EVs.

Several solutions are being worked on, in addition to the obvious one, increasing battery capacity. One of them comes in the form of a trailer. The EP Tender is precisely a trailer that can be used to increase the range of an electric vehicle and uses a supplementary battery to power the car’s electric motor.

It was used on a Renault Zoe, one of the most popular models on the European market, and with the trailer attached it was able to travel just over 500 kilometres on a single charge, considerably more than what can be achieved with the car’s battery alone.

As for the manoeuvrability of this trailer, its small size makes it very easy to handle, almost as much as when it is not being towed. When it comes to parking, the length of the car plus that of the trailer does not exceed that of a mid-size car, so finding a parking space anywhere is not difficult either.

That said, having to drive with a trailer requires a bit of practice, the only drawback I can find with this system for extending the range of electric cars. For now it is a prototype, and its introduction to the car market is unclear, although it was one of the proposals presented at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show. It is a good idea while there are not too many charging points and the infrastructure in this area is still being improved.