Travelling North and South

An (old) girl’s adventure in her new BYD Atto 3

 

This is a travel story about driving in Electric vehicles in general, and the Atto 3 in particular. When I bought my Atto 3 in September, I already had two friends who owned one each and were happy with their purchase so, although it was more than I normally spend on a car, I had some certainty about value.

BYD has certainly been selling well.

And, I’m happy with my car. I wanted an environmentally sound vehicle that also saved me money. I did my homework; hybrids are hard to get, long wait times and will be superceded anyway, and a plug in hybrid would be the minimum requirement for me. Thus, I talked myself in buying an #EV even though I’m not known as an ‘early adopter’ of new tech.

I called her “Evie” (which is also the name of a charging service I’m not happy with – more later). Evie (yep Stevie Wright, that Evie) heads out – cue Santana “smooth”. It’s a nice ride, fast acceleration – important when going from 0 to 100 on the M1 (F6) Heathcote to Wollongong. Good breaking – oops car in front, that was sudden, but Evie did it with ease.

I’m also devastated she now has a ‘ding’ – where a motorbike ran into her near Port Macquarie. (more later)

It’s a good idea to wait a week before heading out on a longer trip because there are so many new things to get used to, so many Apps to download and sign up to. I currently have 7 Apps; Plugshare (the most important for locating charging places on the open road), Chargefox, bp pluse, AmpCharge, Evie Charging, ChargePoint, EV Charging Point (another mapping service). I have used them all now except the last two. Sign up before you go on a trip, it saves a lot of time. You need to link a credit card to the charging Apps. Once done it’s usually simple but I did experience a couple of issues on the open road which I will tell you about.

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ABOVE: BYD Atto 3 and a happy owner’s trip north, charging at home

I bought a charging unit for my home (photo). The car comes with a plug in charger that you can plug into any power point. I used this in Yamba and on the Gold Coast while staying with friends. This is “slow” charging, very slow. A day and a night need to be set aside. Hence my home charger from OCULAR. I charge at a rate of 10% per hour while the sun is out because I have rooftop solar. I consider this to be a medium charge rate. I just received my first electricity bill since I commenced this practice and the bill hasn’t changed much. BYD recommend keeping the car between 40-80% charged. If you’re likely to travel on the spur of the moment the higher charge level is recommended. Off peak electricity can also be used because the OCULAR unit allows you to select your timing, for example, between 12 midnight and 5 am. A friend on the Sunshine Coast told me he charges between 12 – 5am at 8c/kWh with AGL.

Charging on the Open Road

aka How brave are you?

This is where the adventure begins, and I’ve added more subtitles to this part of the story – “Brave or foolhardy”, “The kindness of Strangers” and, “Hey, I belong to a new niche!”

  1. Travelling North

You really need to check Plugshare before setting off. How far can you drive before recharging? Where are the charging units located?

I recommend stopping every 2 hours or so. If you’ve been told your car has an “extended range” of 480kms take that figure with a grain of salt. Every hill you drive up reduces your range, every time you use the brake you extend the range. There are lots of hills on our highways and you rarely use the brake.

My first stop was West Gosford because I have a friend there and was staying overnight. The Ampol charger is located at the service station on the Central Coast Highway, all electric vehicles can charge here but there could be a queue because there’s only one charging unit. It’s a fast charger, up to 150kWh and you will need the AmpCharge App. (photo) There’s no point in installing anything other than a “FAST CHARGER” on highways. I’m told a lot of car parks have low power chargers, these will be of limited use.

Karuah (photo) was my next charge stop. The BP has 4 charge stations run by Chargefox, 3 are fast chargers. You will need the Chargefox App and, if you are an NRMA member, link in your NRMA number for a 20% discount.

Karuah is an example of cuteness in the country.  You turn off the highway to get here but it’s nice when it’s not raining or dark. I arrived with 61% charge remaining. I had to wait for a spot to free up because one charge station wasn’t working but I didn’t have to wait long for the Tesla to complete their charge. Then there were 2 BYD Attos (this row of Attos happened more than once on this trip). There’s no cover or cafe, though it’s next door to the Information Centre and craft shop. (photo) 61%-100% charge took 35 minutes and cost $13. I amused myself by taking photos and talking to the other Atto drivers. In the daytime this country location is a bit of relief from the highway.

My next stop was meant to be Thrumster and an NRMA charger. However, near Port Macquarie is a huge roundabout, first exit gets you to Thrumster. I missed this turnoff and kept driving round. A motorbike ran into the back of my car, overtaking on a roundabout (facepalm).

I finally got to the NRMA free charger (photo). I charged from 46% to 98% but there was only one out of two working and a couple in a Polestar hassled me to stop my charge early. I had had to wait for a Tesla to finish before I started!

Before Thrumster, Nabiac is part of the NRMA fast charge network. Taree has fast chargers that are part of the Evie network.

Anyway, I needed 100% to get to Yamba and was down to 9% and feeling nervous before I arrived there. I’d stop before Yamba if I was still travelling north and not visiting a friend.

Macksville has 2 chargers that are part of the Evie network, and there are bp pulse chargers at Nambucca Heads as well as Coffs Harbour on the Pacific Highway. All are easy to find using the Plugshare App.

Next stop for me was Palm Beach Gold Coast with my charge down to a comfortable 50%.

  1. Travelling South

For the return journey I topped up in Ballina (photo). This was a chosen stop at Ballina Central Shopping area. They are tucked at one side near Maccas but behind a fence, so don’t drive into Macca’s carpark. It’s a nice spot near trees but no cover, as usual. I wandered in to get a coffee while the car charged. These chargers are part of the Chargefox network, 2 are superfast chargers. There were 3 Atto 3 cars lined up like ducks in a row. (photo)

I needed a fast trip South unfortunately due to a death in the family and chose Macksville as my next spot. This is part of the Evie network and there are 2 charge stations. I call Macksville “kindness of strangers” because I arrived with only 12% charge remaining and I could NOT get the charger to work. Another Atto was there and the male driver tried to help me to get the charger to work to no avail. It was raining, had been raining a fair bit since Coffs Harbour, and of course there was NO cover. We were both damp. He was heading north and I was heading south. Because he wasn’t far south of another charging option he let me have his spot! Bless his generosity. He waited until I was successfully plugged in before leaving.

Using my GPS to check kilometres against stated car range I decided to make Karuah my next stop. I should have made it with about 90kms to spare. Hmm let me tell you about stated range versus actual! It doesn’t add up.

Karuah “Braveheart”!! (photo)

I arrived at the BP in Karuah with 3% left. Yep, 3%. I got there by coasting downhill, driving like a nanna, 278 kms in 2hr 46”. It was getting dark and was raining, remember that I said there was no cover. There was no cafe though the servo made a cup of tea. Dear reader, do stop at Taree for a top up. I now have a great dinner story but was it worth the heart in mouth anxiety? I’d say “no”. I finally got to Gosford at 8.30pm.

I frequently travel further south than Sydney. There is now, after extensive renovations, a new Ampol Roadhouse at Pheasants Nest on either side of the Hume Highway, and will you look at those mini solar covers! (photos)

I had a problem charging on the northbound side recently and needed to contact AmpCharge via their help number. It was answered straight away and they started the charge for me, remotely. Because I hadn’t been able to go through the App I couldn’t pay and they said “We let you down so here’s a free charge on us”. I’m going to have to delete the app and reinstall but this was good service.

Goulburn is another frequent stop for me. As you drive into the town there’s a Budget Servo (photo) that has charging stations on the closest side. They are Chargefox and will charge all models. In Goulburn at the Visitors Centre there are several Tesla chargers so I suggest Tesla drivers go there, it’s also a nicer location. I’m wondering if the local Council will take up the NSW Government’s offer to add more chargers so that electric vehicles other than Teslas can charge right in town.

Complaints (I have a few and will mention them!)

1.NO COVER (photos) a real issue in inclement weather

2.Maintenance – when charging stations aren’t working. How frequently is maintenance actually done?

(glitch at Ampol Pheasants Nest resolved via phonecall and free charge)

3.Note requirement for Apps and internet connection. It’s impossible to charge without this.

4.A dearth of Cafes, especially after 4pm. Some entrepreneurial type should get onto this! My daughter and I think a cute caravan would be just the ticket.

5.Which chargers are more reliable? I have my favourites and Evie is not one of them. Other drivers have indicated they feel the same way.

6.Some of the things that reduce range – Highway driving without braking. Using airconditioning to heat or cool. Driving uphill.

EV’s have greater range in town than on the highway   You use less power around town than on the open road so need to adjust for that.

Something nice

I really am part of a niche group – “hi stranger let me show you what else your BYD does and what the “real” range measure is”. This really happens.

I am now a part of an interesting new NICHE group – BYD owners club, plus SOME other electric vehicle drivers. We have a chat, exchange notes, sometimes help each other out. A friend on social media said this too, “One of THE best parts of owning an EV is all the lovely peeps you meet at chargers. The shared community. The *time*. Takes me back to when we could only afford driving holidays visiting relatives when I was a child & it was as much about the journey as the destination. LOVE it”.

It does sound as if the NSW Government is seeking to improve our experiences. More chargers and in interesting places so we can visit and charge up too.

Wineries, restaurants, zoos and museums targeted for 1,500 destination chargers

Premier Chris Minns will launch the program on Friday (3rd Nov) from the mid north coast beyond the limit of most electric cars’ battery range.

“Providing EV charging plugs at regional destinations across our state will helpmake ‘range anxiety’ a concern of the past and give more drivers to confidence to make EV purchases,” he said in a statement.

“More EVs on the roads is an important part of the decarbonisation of our transport system and essential to meeting our net zero by 2050 target.”

The program is part of the state’s strategy to have EVs make up more than half of all car sales by 2031.“Increasing the number of EV chargers across regional NSW is a win for the environment, a win for EV drivers, a win for tourists and a win for regional businesses,” Energy Minister Penny Sharpe said in a statement.

Regional businesses and councils, including those in Newcastle and Wollongong, can apply for help with up to four chargers from Friday 3rd November 2023.

This is a good charging station on Newcastle’s Foreshore. They use solar panels as the cover, same as those at Pheasant’s Nest Hume Highway.

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