Thinking about a Sydney to Cairns road trip — should I take my BYD Sealion 7 or rent a petrol car?

The fast charger situation in Cairns is one of the worst of all major cities. Just have a look on Plug share to get an idea. A handful of fast chargers for a city and surrounds of 200,000 people.

Rent a hybrid GWM and take that. We go up to Agnes Waters regularly in our SL6 and and the only major charging station between Brisbane and Bundaberg is just outside of Gympie (purpose built new large Ampol servo for both electric and petrol cars).

It is absolutely doable in a SL7. It's realistic range would be around 400km which is ~ 4h of driving and people usually stop every 2h for a toilet break and a snack. Just a little bit of planning to get these stops aligned with charging. No need to wait for it to charge to %100 just do top ups. Plugshare app can show you if the charger on route is broken or not and some networks report if chargers are in use or not and people there report speeds of charging and what sort of facilities are nearby, just filter chargers 30kW and faster to exclude slow chargers. The charging network is pretty good and the car can automatically plan the route for you. The only problem is it will plan Tesla stops but not all of them are open to non Tesla's, so check it in a Plugshare map app or in the Tesla app. You can also exclude the tesla network in the car navigation system. Then I recommend installing and registering in all the major apps Evie, chargefox, BP plus. If you plan to stay overnight somewhere pick accommodations with EV chargers quite a lot of them have that option and there is a filter at booking com and I think at Airbnb. You will need your own Type 2 cable for hotel charging most of the time. It may sound complicated, but actually not that difficult. However, If you plan on just getting from A to B as fast as possible I recommend to rent a hybrid.

We drove from Melbourne to Nyngan and back in about 48 hours in March this year after having our 2024 Atto 3 for 2 days and learned a lot. PlugShare app is a must, but with good planning I think it is doable, I just have no idea about charging options in North Queensland but you can put the drive into PlugShare right now & get a realistic understanding of whether it is possible or not. We actually cancelled a rental land cruiser 24 hrs beforehand & saved ourselves a decent amount. 2000 klm of public charging cost us about $180 so factor in charging costs too.

Don’t listen to this nonsense … hire a petrol car. EVs are not for distance driving in Australia unless you want to ruin the drive.

Lol.. I suggest you come out from whichever rock you've been living under.. and checkout this YT channel.. https://youtube.com/@evadventuresdownunder?si=-hmOLxImUmV7tM-k

If anything, this is the time to back yourself OP. I believe in you, you've got this.

I drove a tesla from Sydney to Bowen last year. Back then, the only tricky spot was between Rockhampton and Bowen, but now there is a 6 stall supercharger in Mackay. I think Townsville also has a supercharger now too, so the trip will be easy. I found in QLD most Tesla chargers are open to other cars and are the backbone of the drive up to Cairns, so sign up to them pre-trip.

Lol

Use the A Better Route Planner App to plot a route and check to see your recharge opportunities along the way. Plugshare is also mandatory for EVs I also asked ChatGPT on your behalf and received a detailed answer including route directions and chargers along the way. TL;DR version: “With even a modest EV range buffer and good infrastructure, the journey is completely achievable—and this SUV offers the battery capacity and charging capability to confidently make the trip.”

Who are these heathens that stop every two hours for toilet and snacks you speak of?!

Thanks for the heads-up! I had no idea the charging situation in Cairns was that limited — that’s super helpful to know. i guess i might need to rent a car.

Thanks for sharing that! Super helpful info！

Your a good man Welding-Guy. I'll bet you're " that guy" in your workplace.

Thanks so much for the detailed breakdown, My biggest concern was exactly what you mentioned — whether the charging stops line up well with natural breaks (toilet, snacks etc.). Sounds like with a bit of planning, it’s not too bad.

that gonna make the trip so terrible.

I am already thinking to rent a hybird car for the trip.

Have a look at A Better Route Planner. It will suggest distances and stops for EVs.

Thanks for sharing your experience! I’ll definitely spend more time playing with PlugShare this week. That said, I’m still a bit concerned about charging in QLD. I’ve seen a few people mention long queues or too few chargers up there, which makes me wonder if I should rent a hybrid just in case anything unexpected happens. Still deciding! Appreciate the real-world numbers on charging costs as well — $180 for 2,000km sounds very reasonable. Cheers!

Thanks mate

Thanks for sharing this info, it is so helpful!

I’ve downloaded PlugShare and will definitely check out A Better Route Planner as well. Still slightly nervous about potential bottlenecks in QLD, but hearing all this makes me feel a lot more prepared! BTW, tahnks for asking ChatGPT on my behalf, i will check it as well, lol.

Not sure if I can post links here, but this is a write up of the trip: https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/roadtrip-sydney-nsw-to-bowen-qld.328500/

That's an easy trip in an EV , get on ABRP and plan a route, easy.

i am the only one here

Well then it's you!

I mean your in Aus and I’m in the UK so my idea of a road trip is probably like a commute to you but I recently covered 550 miles in a day (on two separate occasions) and had absolutely no trouble whatsoever with charging. It took over 9hrs of driving with 2 charging stops totalling 55min in a Kia Niro EV all using Tesla superchargers. I also covered 440 miles in a day on Saturday going to watch my team play football in Wales, this was done with a 11 minute stop at a Tesla supercharger and another on the way home of 35 minutes while we had food at a services.

You are right. I got this, I am doing it. Postive vibes Thursday we are ready to receive :D

Definitely rent a car. You haven't even considered things like maintenance and tyre wear. Not to mention stone chips etc etc

Sorry why can’t SL7 charge in all Tesla chargers?

It's Australia's main highway not crossing the Simpson Desert. With a bit of planning and frequent stops, you will be fine.

I agree, I did the trip last year in my diesel, wouldn’t try it in an EV. Aim for 1000km a day and you’re there in no time.

Not all are open to non-Tesla. Only joint gov funded ones are.

Thanks!

Thank you for your sharing, after doing some research, i decide to take my SL7

Thank you for your advices, appreciate!

Thank you for sharing!

I've decided to try my SL7 after doing some research\~

Update us on how it goes, I’m considering buying the SL7, so would be very interested in your experience.

I will\~

did you die?

Why？

because you never updated on how the road trip went :D

Haha good point! I’m actually up in Queensland now. Once I wrap up the trip and get back, I’ll share a full update — stay tuned!

i just noticed the range on the sealion 7 isnt that great vs the seal - i had a look at both cars the other day and the sealion 7's interior (especially rear seat leg room is a fair bit better) but i guess you pay for it with worse aerodynamics.

The Seal’s got the sleeker lines, but the Sealion 7 makes up for it with the extra space — rear legroom’s been a winner on this trip for sure. Range is a trade-off, but for me the comfort’s been worth it so far.

I’ve done Newcastle to Bundaberg about 12 months ago in Atto 3 long range. Stopped at Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour, Ballina, Brisbane, got to Bundaberg. Biggest issue was broken chargers (not reported) waiting for someone else to finish. Also went west to Winton. Big issue with mobile phone reception to start and end sessions. I would recommend getting RFID cards for Chargefox (that was the main brand in QLD) or make sure your mobile really does work everywhere. We ended up having to have one of us drive to the charger while the other used the hotel wifi and guessing when to start the charge session (it worked BTW).

How did it go?