– By Victoria Nelson –
SG Fleet recently published a series of posts on LinkedIn sharing a drive from Sydney to Adelaide in an electric vehicle. Stephen Finch, Client Services Manager, NSW Government at SG Fleet was heading to South Australia for the National Public Sector Fleet Managers Managers Conference.
While most people would agree the EVs on sale today in Australia are not ready for long distance trips across our vast land, the SG Fleet posts proved that it’s possible with some planning.
The trip took four days and Finch made six stops to charge the battery. It took four days because in some locations there wasn’t a fast charger available so he recharged overnight using a normal powerpoint.
According to Google Maps, using a petrol or diesel vehicles (ICE) the trip only takes two days. Driving time would be the same as an EV. It’s the requirement to stop and charge that adds the extra days.
The charging stops were at Mittagong, Jugiong, Narrandera, Hay (overnight), Robinvale (overnight) and Renmark (overnight). And finally in Adelaide with no range anxiety on the last stretch.
Here’s the journey as recorded on LinkedIn.
Day 1 (Sat): Set off from Sydney in the pouring rain. A long interstate road trip ahead to see what the Nissan Leaf can do. Charge stops in Mittagong, Jugiong and Narrandera before reaching Hay at 7:45pm. A calming country drive, but keeping an eye on battery and range and doing constant mental calculations! Learnings: Driving in heavy rain reduces range due to rolling resistance and use of wipers and lights. Rolling hills reduce range even with some battery regeneration on the way down. Adding pressure to the tyres and driving conservatively on cruise control helps increase range.
Day 2 (Sun): Stephen Finch continued his interstate trip from Hay to next stop at Robinvale on the Murray River. Opting for the overnight slow charge rather than a fast charge and completed at 11:30am. Found out that lowering speed to 70km/h reduces wind resistance and helps range. Very hot but need to be careful with air conditioning! Another night of overnight charging. Where to next?
Day 3: Set off from Robinvale through rolling plains and hills. Breakfast in Mildura. Well in range for Nissan Leaf but there will be a fast charger here in the next two weeks, which will be a bonus for the future. The second half of the drive was through very dry, dusty farmland. Renmark was easily reached, with range to spare. Plugged in for a slow overnight charge to be ready for an early start.
Day 4: Left Renmark at 7am, rolling hills and plains. The strategy was to drive at a speed that didn’t reduce the range differential (EV range – GPS range). Constant mental calculations provided entertainment during the drive. There appears to be a “sweet spot” between 70-90km/hr, depending on conditions, where the range differential stays the same. Charged at Murray Bridge for 3 ½ half hours on the free, council-provided charger to give a range of 178 km and get a 100 km buffer before Adelaide. After 3 ½ days of driving conservatively, it felt great to drive at the speed limit of 110 km/h through the Adelaide Hills and then reach the blessed City of Adelaide provided fast charger.
