We know from data models and wind tunnel tests at the Thule Test Center that a rear-of-car cargo solution makes for better aerodynamics than having nothing on your vehicle at all.
It may seem strange at first – how can you possibly lower the air resistance by adding a large cargo box to the back of the car? But the results speak for themselves.
We drove a total of 5400 km in varying weather conditions with a fleet of Volkswagen ID4 – one of the most popular electric vehicles on the market. The results were interesting, to say the least.
The average consumption (kWh/100km) of a vehicle with the Thule Arcos hitch cargo carrier was 95 %. This means that when we drove the Volkswagen ID4 with Thule Arcos mounted, the range improved by 5%* compared to the cars with nothing on them at all. So based on the battery of size of the ID4 and the consumption measured during the tests, we could travel roughly 17 km further*. This data is also backed up by computer simulations that showed a similar result.
We were able to drive farther – and at the same time, we could bring more gear.
This is supported by an external test by Vi Bilägare, Sweden's largest car magazine. It was founded in 1930 and features travel reports and test drives of cars and car accessories. They tested a roof box and our Thule Onto rear cargo box with both electric and fuel-driven cars.
Vi Bilägare found that the towbar cargo carrier created less wind drag than a roof box, and consumed less fuel and electricity than a car with nothing on it at all.
“One way to get more packing space without increasing energy consumption is the latest trend of mounting a cargo box on the car's towbar,” they explain in their article, “We found that both the petrol car and the electric car had slightly lower consumption with the box fitted than when the car was running completely empty on the test route”.
Read the article from Vi Bilägare (in Swedish).
A rear cargo carrier lets you use your compact city car in a variety of ways. Load on your bikes and head out into the unknown one day, and pack your bags for a weekend trip the next. The choice is yours, we provide you with the solutions.