We recently completed a 12,600km trip from Perth across to Sydney in a standard range RWD Tesla Model Y, returning via coastal NSW, Victoria and South Australia.
Although we had the benefit of excellent advice from the EV pioneers of these routes and were not in a hurry, we started to wonder what these trips would look like for the increasing numbers of average families as EVs become a mainstream option.
How would it go, planning to travel at around the speed limit without the realistic option of hypermiling, perhaps with a couple of cranky kids in the back? Would a standard range EV be sufficient, and are the required charging networks in place? Can it be done with the same amount of planning as with an ICE vehicle?
The majority of EVs currently being sold in Australia have batteries around 60kWh capacity, are nearly all LFP chemistry and are treated as “standard range” for this article. This includes the RWD Tesla 3 and Y, the longer range BYD Atto and Dolphin and the longer range MG 4.
The excellent EV Database gives a predicted maximum range for these vehicles travelling at 110kph in ideal conditions without use of air conditioning of between 295km (BYD Atto) and 330km (MG4 LR), with Tesla model 3 an outlier at 385km.
So far, it looks very possible if charging stations are placed a maximum of 200km apart, as planned for the national network, and exactly what our average was for our trip.
The EV database ranges are also consistent with what we have consistently managed on our regular country trip with both a Tesla model 3 with the original smaller LFP battery and our current model Y.
Maximum predicted is around 390km (or 350 with a 10% buffer) travelling in good conditions with no hills at 100-105kph with some air conditioning. We managed 385km between Kalgoorlie and Balladonia in a heavily loaded model Y, but only by drafting and going at 80kph on the climb to the top of the Napier Range, arriving with 9% SOC.
Although it appears that all these vehicles have a good range buffer and should easily travel 200km between chargers, there are still some conditions that can make this marginal.
Unpredicted changes in wind direction and speed nearly caught us out twice, forcing us to slow to 80kph on the 267km leg between Whyalla and Port Lincoln then again on the 190 km leg between Eucla and Madura, when earlier favourable winds fooled us into not charging enough for contingency.
Hilly terrain also kills consumption, especially when the car is carrying a full load. Ours jumped 400% climbing up Wilmington Pass out of Port Augusta, at one point giving a theoretical maximum range of only 100km.
The increased consumption relating to road surface quality or rain have a less significant effect on range. Contrary to the science of LFP batteries, we believe we saw a significant increase in consumption at ambient temperatures around 3-10 degrees when the car’s predicted range was only 300km at a maximum of 85kph with no heating being used.
Cold also dramatically reduces charging rates – even the 150kW Kempower units at Albany struggled to reach 30kWh because I forgot to pre-heat the battery. This will prolong charging times for those EVs that can’t pre-heat batteries, another problem if your car is full of unhappy children wanting to get home.
So, an honest answer would be that 10-15% more range would have made planning a little easier for the longer legs, especially as we did not have the benefit of fast chargers for most of the trip.
The reality is that this network is expanding rapidly and that next year nearly all of the worrying points should be covered by fast chargers.
The main routes within each state should be as accessible to standard range EVs as they are to ICE vehicles, with minimal additional planning.
Queuing is likely to be the main problem especially at peak holiday times, just as there often is at the diesel pumps. There is also no remedy for those people who will always manage to run out of fuel, whatever its type.
It’s not quite there yet for easy EV travel off the main routes which still requires significant planning. Here’s hoping Tesla are planning a refreshed Model Y with those CATL LFMP batteries to boost range on the base model.
Chris is a retired medical specialist with a long term interest in renewable energy, but no particular knowledge or skills apart from curiosity. He and Juliet have lived in all electric houses powered by renewables for many years and purchased their first EV in 2021.
See also his story: Wind farms and solar towers as far as the eye can see: But where are the EV fast chargers?