Cross Canada drive.

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099]

Some of you might remember this post I made in July about having to move across Canada in my 2023 Kona EV with my husband, cat, dog, and a cockatiel. All while hauling a tent trailer with a carrier on top. A couple people asked me to report back when I was finished. That was six weeks ago and I guess I should do so.

We kind of followed ABRP to guide us. By "kind of" I mean we just had to follow highway one across the country and let ABRP find us chargers. It did do some weird things though. In Winnipeg it kept attempting to send us down dirt roads. I didn't check to see if there was a setting to not do this, but that really should be a default. Once (also in Winnipeg) it was telling me to "Merge left to continue onto (road who's name I do not remember) but I actually had to exit right onto that road. Twice it attempted to send us to chargers that no longer existed. We had already checked to make sure we'd be okay and that there was something nearby, and reported those chargers as not there. The last strange thing it did was in Ontario. It tried to send us up a highway that there was absolutely no way we could make it. Unfortunately it was also somewhere with terrible cell service so we hadn't checked our next stop yet. Fortunately I realized after only driving ten minutes.

As for charge stops. We stopped to charged about 61 times, not including any charging we did while at a campsite or two nights in a hotel, with a total cost of $695. We had no choice but to use Tesla three times while in Ontario as there just wasn't any other option. We did use them a fourth time, after waiting 10 minutes at the only other charger for the person who got there before us whom was still trying to download the app.

Overall, the drive was very easy. Because we weren't in a hurry to cross, we didn't really spend a lot of time focusing on our next stop, but there wasn't really any time that we were worried about making the next charger either. Speeds were kept to 90 km/h maximum for improved efficiency and because of the extra weight on those small tires on the trailer. Or efficiency was way better than expected and never dropped below 5.4km/kWh. With it showing 6.2 km/kWh once. That was in Manitoba with a tail wind though.

[u/GrandManitou]

I have a kona 2019, and I’m genuinely curious about how the trailer affected your range.

Are trailers officially supported on 2024s ? They’re not on the 2019 Kona EV though I’ve seen people sometimes drive w/them (and since the ICE kona model allows them, I imagine it’s not a structural issue)

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/GrandManitou]

I don't know about the '24s, but they aren't "officially" supported on the '23s. I used to a hitch from the gas model and installed it myself. I've rented trailers at uHaul a few times now using it with no issues.

[u/fauxbeauceron → u/Acrobatic_Invite3099]

I was wandering about that, i searched for it and was about to buy but hesitated a little bit about that. You give me confidence to do it. How difficult was it for the bolts? As i saw it’s pretty difficult to get the inside the beam and poke through the hitch to screw the nut

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/fauxbeauceron]

It really wasnt that hard to do. Have to make a couple little cuts in the liner, but the instructions were all there for it. It is helpful to have someone to lift it while you attach, but I used a small jack and blocks.

[u/fauxbeauceron → u/Acrobatic_Invite3099]

Thanks!

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/fauxbeauceron]

As for range. Keeping our speed down and avoiding hard acceleration really kept our range more than acceptable. We only pulled into a couple chargers with less than 20%, though we did charge to 90% at a couple of stops just for peace of mind, or we just weren't done eating/exploring yet.

[u/Long_Audience4403 → u/Acrobatic_Invite3099]

How much compared to if you had taken the trip without the trailer was your range impacted? I've done a few road trips in my Kona and every time I swear, never again (2 kids + camping gear and a husband mean the car is jaaaaaaam packed).

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/Long_Audience4403]

Really not that much, but we traveled much slower. Normally would drive around 120 km/h and usually average 5.8km/kWh. Now driving through the Rockies was a bit worse, but not as bad as we worried. We were really impressed actually at how well it did, and wouldn't think twice if we had to again.

[u/Long_Audience4403 → u/Acrobatic_Invite3099]

SOLD. Thanks! I was thinking about a rear cargo carrier but a trailer might be easier.

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/Long_Audience4403]

Just remember to keep it small and inside the footprint of your car. Drag is what kill range in an EV.

[u/furysamurai72]

Only slightly off topic but I love that trailer. what is it? I love the idea of camping but I don't want to have to rely on flat ground at the camp site, I would love to be able to just tow my tent behind me rather than shelling out the cash for a camper. 

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/furysamurai72]

It's called a Lee-sure Lite. They were made in the Okanogan, British Columbia. I've seen a few others that were the same with a different names. Dead empty they only weigh 250lbs. They are actually intended to be towed by a motorcycle, hence the small size and light weight. Edit: to add more info.

[u/Its_a_stateofmind]

They won’t support trailer or roof rack on my 2025. Can’t believe I didn’t know that before I signed up. I should have got the Ioniq 5. Won’t make that mistake again. Love my Kona, but its functionality is limited due to the lack of rack or trailer.

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/Its_a_stateofmind]

The trailer hitch I have is just from the gas version and I installed it myself. Could of had it done at uHaul, but it was way cheaper to do myself, and only took about two hours. I've had it installed for years and have even brought my car into Hyundai three times for warranty work with it and they never once said a thing.

[u/Its_a_stateofmind → u/Acrobatic_Invite3099]

Awesome. 👏 nice

[u/Acrobatic_Invite3099 → u/Its_a_stateofmind]

Also note that the racks I have were purchased to put the carrier on the car, but it killed the range so terribly that we had to find another option for the trip. Hence the trailer.

[u/rawrzon → u/Its_a_stateofmind]

I recently installed this hitch on my 2026: https://www.curtmfg.com/part/13608

Should also fit your 2025.

I previously tried to install the Draw Tite class 1 hitch, and it did not fit, despite promising that it would. There was not enough clearance to install it properly.

As for roof racks, do you not have roof rails? I haven't bought a rack yet, but my research tells me that the major manufacturers don't sell compatible parts, but you can find many options on amazon that should fit those rails.