- Joined
- Nov 30, 2025
- Messages
- 5
- Location
- Denver, Colorado
- RV Year
- 2026
- RV Make
- Lightship
- RV Model
- AE.1 Atmos
- RV Length
- 27
- Chassis
- TrekDrive Propulsion
- TOW/TOAD
- Ford F350
The lab is the lab and the real world is the true test... so.. how efficient is the Lightship AE.1 in real world conditions?
We believe that our proprietary TrekDrive propulsion system and vehicle aerodynamics pair to produce the best performing trailer on the market.
But - the numbers should speak, so Ben (cofounder, chief product officer) and I ran two real world loops over the past week... below is the raw data. This data, along with qualitative observations, will allow us to keep improving performance and feel so that customer Lightships get better all the time.
We ran these two loops with electric trucks - and will do the same with diesel, gas, and hybrid trucks over the months to come.
In the meantime, see the TFL review for diesel towing data, at the bottom of the post.
Maps below, full real world video recaps to come.
Sat Dec 6, 2025: Ford F150 XLT Lightning Flash - Extended Range (2024 Model) + 2026 Lightship AE.1 Atmos
Route: Ben towed the below loop up to wine country, leaving from our office in South San Francisco. 196 miles. Combination of city, winding mountain roads, highways.
Weather: 50s and 60s. Overcast. Mild crosswinds.
Speed: stop and go thru SF; speeds of 25-50 mph on the coastal / mountainous section; 50-60 mph on the river road section (connecting to 101); 60-65 mph on the freeway back to SF with some traffic coming over the bay bridge.
Goal: Demonstrate the performance of the AE.1 in rolling and mountainous terrain, and show the potential of the Lightship to unlock a camping destination (Russian River) that would otherwise be unreachable for EV trucks without charging stops.
Benchmark: Lightning (extended range) ~90 miles towing with large travel trailers.
Departure: Ben left around with the Lightning at 100% SOC and the Trailer at 96% SOC.
Result: We returned to the office with 29% SOC on both the Truck and the Trailer. Running the math, the Truck consumed 93 kWh over the course of the route and the trailer consumed 47 kWh. This means the Truck saw efficiency of 2.11 mi/kWh average over the course of the route (vs ~0.69 mi/kWh towing other trailers).
Tues Dec 9, 2025: Rivian R1T Dual Motor Max Pack (2025 Model) + 2026 Lightship AE.1 Atmos
Route: I towed the loop out into the planes east of Denver. 266 miles. Outbound losing `1000 ft of elevation and gaining it back while climbing back into Denver.
Weather: 40s and 50s. Overcast. Significant swirling winds, with gusts up to 40 mph.
Speed: Highway speeds of 70-80 mph; backroads of 60-70 mph, and in and around the city of 30-50. Average 57 mph.
Goal: Demonstrate the performance of the AE.1 in adverse conditions - cold and windy - and run both the truck and the trailer to completely empty for a true range test.
Benchmark: Rivian R1T dual motor max pack ~140 miles towing with large travel trailers. In these kind of conditions and at 70+ mph driving speeds, perhaps closer to 100 miles of range.
Departure: We left at 9am with the truck at 100% and the trailer at 98%.
Result: We completed the loop without charging stop. It was super close returning to the factory and arrived with the truck at 3% and the trailer at 0%... we continued looping the factory lot until we hit zero on the Rivian at 270 miles all told, amounting to an efficiency of 2.03 mi/kWh (vs ~1.00 mi/kWh towing other trailers). This was a good result in these conditions, and support previous range testing we have done in warm and flat conditions where we have gone beyond 300 miles of range. On shorter routes with TrekDrive active the whole time, we would expect efficiencies approaching and even eclipsing 3 mi/kWh.
TFL review:
We believe that our proprietary TrekDrive propulsion system and vehicle aerodynamics pair to produce the best performing trailer on the market.
But - the numbers should speak, so Ben (cofounder, chief product officer) and I ran two real world loops over the past week... below is the raw data. This data, along with qualitative observations, will allow us to keep improving performance and feel so that customer Lightships get better all the time.
We ran these two loops with electric trucks - and will do the same with diesel, gas, and hybrid trucks over the months to come.
In the meantime, see the TFL review for diesel towing data, at the bottom of the post.
Maps below, full real world video recaps to come.
Sat Dec 6, 2025: Ford F150 XLT Lightning Flash - Extended Range (2024 Model) + 2026 Lightship AE.1 Atmos
Route: Ben towed the below loop up to wine country, leaving from our office in South San Francisco. 196 miles. Combination of city, winding mountain roads, highways.
Weather: 50s and 60s. Overcast. Mild crosswinds.
Speed: stop and go thru SF; speeds of 25-50 mph on the coastal / mountainous section; 50-60 mph on the river road section (connecting to 101); 60-65 mph on the freeway back to SF with some traffic coming over the bay bridge.
Goal: Demonstrate the performance of the AE.1 in rolling and mountainous terrain, and show the potential of the Lightship to unlock a camping destination (Russian River) that would otherwise be unreachable for EV trucks without charging stops.
Benchmark: Lightning (extended range) ~90 miles towing with large travel trailers.
Departure: Ben left around with the Lightning at 100% SOC and the Trailer at 96% SOC.
Result: We returned to the office with 29% SOC on both the Truck and the Trailer. Running the math, the Truck consumed 93 kWh over the course of the route and the trailer consumed 47 kWh. This means the Truck saw efficiency of 2.11 mi/kWh average over the course of the route (vs ~0.69 mi/kWh towing other trailers).
Tues Dec 9, 2025: Rivian R1T Dual Motor Max Pack (2025 Model) + 2026 Lightship AE.1 Atmos
Route: I towed the loop out into the planes east of Denver. 266 miles. Outbound losing `1000 ft of elevation and gaining it back while climbing back into Denver.
Weather: 40s and 50s. Overcast. Significant swirling winds, with gusts up to 40 mph.
Speed: Highway speeds of 70-80 mph; backroads of 60-70 mph, and in and around the city of 30-50. Average 57 mph.
Goal: Demonstrate the performance of the AE.1 in adverse conditions - cold and windy - and run both the truck and the trailer to completely empty for a true range test.
Benchmark: Rivian R1T dual motor max pack ~140 miles towing with large travel trailers. In these kind of conditions and at 70+ mph driving speeds, perhaps closer to 100 miles of range.
Departure: We left at 9am with the truck at 100% and the trailer at 98%.
Result: We completed the loop without charging stop. It was super close returning to the factory and arrived with the truck at 3% and the trailer at 0%... we continued looping the factory lot until we hit zero on the Rivian at 270 miles all told, amounting to an efficiency of 2.03 mi/kWh (vs ~1.00 mi/kWh towing other trailers). This was a good result in these conditions, and support previous range testing we have done in warm and flat conditions where we have gone beyond 300 miles of range. On shorter routes with TrekDrive active the whole time, we would expect efficiencies approaching and even eclipsing 3 mi/kWh.
TFL review:
