What’s Up With That?
In the news . . .
From the Wall Street Journal (Dec 15 2025):
Ford Motor said Monday it expected to take about $19.5 billion in charges, mainly tied to its electric-vehicle business, a massive hit as the automaker retrenches in the face of sinking EV demand.
Ford, which has lost $13 billion on its EV business since 2023, said it would bolster its lineup of gas-powered vehicles while shifting to hybrid and so-called extended-range electric vehicles that include onboard gasoline engines.
I warned my readers 3 years ago.
Gas Mileage and Range
For campers who tow a travel trailer, gas mileage or range is of paramount importance. New cars, SUVs, and light trucks come with an EPA estimated city and highway estimated miles per gallon estimate. I found our last three Ford vehicles and our Hyundai Genesis to be fairly accurate.
Here’s a pretty good “rule of thumb” — when towing a full size trailer expect about a 50% decrease in MPG or mileage range versus non-towing. This is for any kind of power plant: gasoline, diesel, or electric vehicle. It takes energy to move a heavy and wind-resistant trailer. Electric power isn’t magic.
When we bought our 2020 Ford F-250, a heavy duty truck that does not come with an estimated MPG, I was expecting around 16-17 MPG when driving on freeways. That turned out to be accurate. With a 48 gallon gas tank we get:
Non-Towing Results
- 16.9 MPG freeway driving
- 822 mileage range freeway driving
Towing Results
- 8.81 MPG freeway driving*
- 422 mileage range freeway driving
* Our towing trips are primarily on freeways and secondary roads with few stoplights or stop signs. In addition our towing trips usually entail going up (and down) some long and tall hills.
Why We Bought an F-250 Crew Cab Long-bed Truck
The first consideration was we simply wanted more towing capacity than our 2013 Ford Expedition, and we wanted more towing capacity than the Ford F-150 light duty truck.
The second consideration was we want as much mileage range as possible, since we often are driving in sparsely populated rural areas. We also wanted a gasoline engine, not a diesel.
At the time the gas tanks on the comparable 3/4 Ton and 1 Ton Class truck were all around 35 gallon capacity. The lone exception was the Ford truck with a crew cab and a long-bed cargo box. To be honest, the crew cab and a long-bed were both not something I wanted it just made the truck longer than I really wanted.
But more important for us was the estimated towing mileage range — around 400 miles versus 300 miles for the other options. That extra range of 100 miles is huge for most of our trips!!
EV Mileage Range
Electric vehicles don’t have an EPA estimated MPG, since they don’t run on gasoline or diesel. Instead there is a mile range estimate. And unfortunately, most buyers they don’t give much thought to mileage range, because it is a metric they have never been concerned about, especially since there are plenty of fueling stations all across the country.
The lack of EV charging stations is problematic for those EV owners who wish to travel long distances. It has even coined a new term in our language — range anxiety.
And so we have 2025 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro base model mileage ranges of 240 miles (with standard battery) and 300-320 miles (with the extended battery).
Towing range is going to be 120 to 160 miles.
GM is advertising a 2026 Sierra EV with an extended battery range of 478 miles. Towing it is going to be around 239 miles.
Lastly, keep in mind that these estimated EV milage ranges are for light duty trucks. No one is building a 3/4 ton or 1 ton class EV truck, the class of which is popular for towing travel trailers.
The bottom line is these EV pick-up trucks can’t do truck stuff.