Electric cars are everywhere in London now, and they break down too: flat 12-volt batteries, software faults, punctures, accidents and, now and then, a battery that’s run out of miles. Whatever has happened, an electric or hybrid car needs to be carried, not towed, and that’s how we move every car.
Why EVs have to go on a flatbed
In an electric car, the motor is connected directly to the wheels. Turn the wheels and the motor turns too, working as a generator. Tow an EV with its driven wheels on the road and that current has nowhere safe to go, which can damage the motor, the inverter or the battery system. The same applies to most hybrids. So manufacturers almost all say the same thing: transport the car with all four wheels off the ground.
We load electric cars onto the bed and strap them down at each wheel. Many need to be put into a transport or tow mode first, which releases the parking brake and lets the wheels roll. If the car has no 12-volt power, that may not be possible, and we use skates under the wheels instead.
Run out of charge?
It happens to experienced drivers too, especially in cold weather, when range drops. We’ll take your car to:
- A rapid charger that works with your car, and isn’t out of order
- Your home charger, if you’d rather charge it overnight
- Your dealer or an EV specialist, if something else is wrong
Tell us roughly how far you were from your destination and whether the car showed any warnings before it stopped.
Flat 12-volt battery
If your electric car won’t switch on at all, or the screens stay dark and the doors won’t unlock, the problem is usually the small 12-volt battery rather than the main one. We can often boost it at the roadside with a professional booster pack, following the maker’s procedure. See jump starts.
Hybrids, plug-in hybrids and range extenders
These have a petrol or diesel engine as well as an electric motor, but the advice is the same: carry them, don’t tow them. We treat every hybrid as an electric car.
After an accident
Crash damage to an electric car’s battery pack isn’t always visible. If you see smoke, hear hissing or popping, or feel heat from under the car, get everyone well away and call 999. Otherwise, we recover it like any other damaged car. See accident recovery.