Australian EV owners who want to tow something are currently left with little to no factory-backed genuine options that are readily available, and aren’t overly expensive.
This is where Brisbane-based company EV Towing Australia comes in with its locally-made tow bar and wiring kits for certain EVs, such as the Tesla Model Y and BYD Atto 3, that are aimed at making the ordering and installation process easier, as well as more affordable.
EV Towing Australia owner Nicholas Carney told CarExpert the idea for the business came about after purchasing his Tesla Model Y and being told the shipping for the towing kit alone would cost around $700. It also wouldn’t arrive until the first quarter of next year.
Given this it makes sense the first towing and wiring kit the company produced was for the Tesla Model Y, which has a braked towing capacity of 1600kg and a maximum tow ball load of 160kg.
This EV Towing Australia towing and wiring kit for the Model Y costs $1500, and is $470 cheaper than the genuine Tesla towing kit, which according to the website is still listed as ‘coming soon’.
EV Towing Australia also currently offers towing solutions for the BYD Atto 3, Polestar 2, Tesla Model 3, and BMW iX. More will be announced in the future.
Mr Carney said the company can produce a towing and wiring kit within a one month timeframe.
All the towing kits EV Towing Australia sells are made from Australian mild-steel and are fabricated and powder-coated in Brisbane. They are also all covered by a lifetime warranty.
The tow bars themselves are engineered to withstand around 20 tonnes, according to Mr Carney, although no EV owner would legally be able to do this.
The majority of the towing kits come with a plug-and-play wiring harness that feed from the tail lights and have their own electronic control unit (ECU).
Mr Carney noted the company has previously had some issues with the CANBUS electrical system on the iX which required specific coding.
All EV Towing Australia tow kits are designed to directly bolt on to the car with no cutting or welding required.
They can be shipped all over Australia and installed by fitting partners in every state.
Mr Carney said you can even get the towing and wiring kit sent to your house, as he wanted to give owners to chance to do it themselves if they wanted. He added the hardest part is removing the rear bumper and the plastic panels.
As previously reported, EV sales are skyrocketing as they nabbed a record-breaking 7.7 per cent market share in September, according to VFACTS data. They outsold both hybrid and plug-in hybrid cars combined.
The Tesla Model Y was the third top-selling vehicle for that month and the top-selling medium luxury SUV, and the Model 3 was the top-selling medium luxury car.
There’s also a ship carrying “well over” 4000 new Teslas that’s reportedly set to dock in New South Wales before Christmas, which would be the largest Tesla shipment ever to come to Australia.
