You should never treat your e-car like this

Modern electric cars can convince with many technical features. Brake energy recovery is handy and works remarkably effectively, as one YouTuber proved. However, imitation is extremely dangerous.

It is one of the greatest fears of many people before switching to electric cars: What do you do when the battery charge is low and there is currently no (quick) charging station nearby? Although it can also happen with gasoline or diesel engines, the fear of range still means that ever larger batteries are installed in order to maximize the range – with the exception of BMW.

Tesla: Tow and charge in one, please

If, however, you get into embarrassment despite automatic route planning and the growing number of charging stations, braking energy recovery may show what it can do. This is demonstrated by YouTuber “Cyber ​​Hooligan”. Pulled by a car with a combustion engine, his Model 3 with activated recuperation creates an amazing recovery: The Tesla generates towed over around 10 km enough charging power to be able to continue driving over 64 km:

The video clearly shows what is possible thanks to braking energy recovery. However, it is not advisable to try it yourself. The strain on the towing car is enormous, as it has to work against the braking Tesla. This is also clear in the video.

The systems on board a Tesla or other electric car, including the electric motors, are also there not designed to permanently charge the battery in this way. This was shown several times, for example, on a steep descent in Norway, on which several Ford Mustang Mach-E were completely overloaded downhill.

ADAC: Never tow e-cars on your own

Also in the video you are out and about in the mountains and can leave part of the work to gravity. But if the worst comes to the worst, it is the safer option call professional towing service.

In the future, e-cars will also increasingly support bidirectional charging, such as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 currently, for example. Of the ADAC generally advises against Towing electric cars by hand. The high induction voltages when towing can damage the electronics in the Stromer (source: ADAC).