Just back from a Sydney-Melbourne round-trip. While not “road trip” worthy in the drive-to-Alice or cross-the-Nullabor sense, it was the longest solo drive I have done since my 20s (hint: more than a decade ago 
).
I was a little apprehensive as to how I’d fare, since I planned to do Sydney to Melbourne in a day. But it turned out to be a very easy and pleasant drive. I’m sure the lack of vibration and engine heat and noise has a lot to do with reducing driver fatigue.
It was interesting that the Tesla Nav wanted me to stop at Exeter, Gundagai and Wangaratta for a total charge time of 59 minutes and trip time of 10 hr 7 min, while ABRP told me to stop at Yass, Holbrook and Euroa for a total charge time of 40 minutes and trip of 9 hr 42 min.
In the end I did neither. I don’t normally drive for much more than 2 hours at a time but I found it so easy I stopped only twice, at Yass for 50 minutes, for a sit-down lunch, and Wangaratta for 44 minutes, for a leg stretch and cool drink.
The Yass Supercharger is great and the largest I’ve been to. 12 stalls, arranged as a pair of 6-stalls back to back. Close to the main street with lots of shops and cafes. Not too big a detour off the highway. The Wangaratta SC is hard to find and not such a great location (rooftop of a car park, with no obvious way to get down. Turns out there is a lift in the middle of the roof).
I arrived in the Melbourne CBD a little after 7pm, total trip time 10 hr 43 min. Total charging cost was $66 - less than the cost of a taxi fare from Tullamarine to the City
I used TACC on the highway almost all the time - otherwise too easy to get a speeding ticket. I didn’t realise how many fixed speed cameras there are on the VIC side (none on NSW side). I had lots of phantom braking, about a dozen instances both ways, but most of them were more ‘gentle’ than my previous experiences. TACC often got freaked out by at-grade side roads (even when no cars waiting), large shadows, and when passing vehicles stopped in the breakdown lane. Still a fail.
The trip back was a bit more sedate, leaving Melbourne yesterday afternoon and staying overnight in Albury. I could have made it to Albury in one go but had a brief stop at BP Glenrowan for a ‘short break’. My Tesla Nav has been updated to include third party chargers, but it appears that BP Pulse (at least at Glenrowan) has not made the cut yet because it did not appear in the charger list. I had to manually navigate to it, which also meant there was no battery preconditioning.
Tesla Nav also only knew about the southbound BP Pulse, it didn’t know the northbound one existed. And blimey those liquid-cooled cables on the BP Pulse units are heavy and unwieldy.
I charged to 100% overnight in Albury at a hotel with a destination charger, so didn’t check out the V4 SC at Albury, nor connect up with @dronus who was also there today.
I stopped at Yass SC again on the way back, and had a ‘discussion’ with an RV driver who approached me went through all the Sky News / Murdoch Media talking points (coal powered, batteries degrade then become environmental poison, tyres wear out faster, what happens when the car breaks down, what about crossing the Nullabor etc). I cheerfully rebutted each one and said it’s simply a magnificent car to drive, it hasn’t broken down in 4 years, and the battery will probably outlast the rest of the car. He then gave up.
The downside of using Yass heading north is that to get back on the highway, you have to do an at-grade crossing. No ramps. And only a very short merge lane on the northbound carriageway. At least with a Tesla there is no concern with the ability to accelerate insanely and safely join the fast moving traffic. But still I hate those crossings.
Total charging cost on the return leg was $59 including the destination charging which was paid.
Total trip was 1775 km, 266 kWh used, 150 Wh/km.
).I was a little apprehensive as to how I’d fare, since I planned to do Sydney to Melbourne in a day. But it turned out to be a very easy and pleasant drive. I’m sure the lack of vibration and engine heat and noise has a lot to do with reducing driver fatigue.
It was interesting that the Tesla Nav wanted me to stop at Exeter, Gundagai and Wangaratta for a total charge time of 59 minutes and trip time of 10 hr 7 min, while ABRP told me to stop at Yass, Holbrook and Euroa for a total charge time of 40 minutes and trip of 9 hr 42 min.
In the end I did neither. I don’t normally drive for much more than 2 hours at a time but I found it so easy I stopped only twice, at Yass for 50 minutes, for a sit-down lunch, and Wangaratta for 44 minutes, for a leg stretch and cool drink.
The Yass Supercharger is great and the largest I’ve been to. 12 stalls, arranged as a pair of 6-stalls back to back. Close to the main street with lots of shops and cafes. Not too big a detour off the highway. The Wangaratta SC is hard to find and not such a great location (rooftop of a car park, with no obvious way to get down. Turns out there is a lift in the middle of the roof).
I arrived in the Melbourne CBD a little after 7pm, total trip time 10 hr 43 min. Total charging cost was $66 - less than the cost of a taxi fare from Tullamarine to the City
I used TACC on the highway almost all the time - otherwise too easy to get a speeding ticket. I didn’t realise how many fixed speed cameras there are on the VIC side (none on NSW side). I had lots of phantom braking, about a dozen instances both ways, but most of them were more ‘gentle’ than my previous experiences. TACC often got freaked out by at-grade side roads (even when no cars waiting), large shadows, and when passing vehicles stopped in the breakdown lane. Still a fail.
The trip back was a bit more sedate, leaving Melbourne yesterday afternoon and staying overnight in Albury. I could have made it to Albury in one go but had a brief stop at BP Glenrowan for a ‘short break’. My Tesla Nav has been updated to include third party chargers, but it appears that BP Pulse (at least at Glenrowan) has not made the cut yet because it did not appear in the charger list. I had to manually navigate to it, which also meant there was no battery preconditioning.
Tesla Nav also only knew about the southbound BP Pulse, it didn’t know the northbound one existed. And blimey those liquid-cooled cables on the BP Pulse units are heavy and unwieldy.
I charged to 100% overnight in Albury at a hotel with a destination charger, so didn’t check out the V4 SC at Albury, nor connect up with @dronus who was also there today
.I stopped at Yass SC again on the way back, and had a ‘discussion’ with an RV driver who approached me went through all the Sky News / Murdoch Media talking points (coal powered, batteries degrade then become environmental poison, tyres wear out faster, what happens when the car breaks down, what about crossing the Nullabor etc). I cheerfully rebutted each one and said it’s simply a magnificent car to drive, it hasn’t broken down in 4 years, and the battery will probably outlast the rest of the car. He then gave up.
The downside of using Yass heading north is that to get back on the highway, you have to do an at-grade crossing. No ramps. And only a very short merge lane on the northbound carriageway. At least with a Tesla there is no concern with the ability to accelerate insanely and safely join the fast moving traffic. But still I hate those crossings.
Total charging cost on the return leg was $59 including the destination charging which was paid.
Total trip was 1775 km, 266 kWh used, 150 Wh/km.
which sent me the way it did.
, not 2.
