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Choosing our Kings camp fridge for the subtrunk
We bought a Kings camp fridge for about $208 from 4WDSupacentre.com.au. They seem to have a different sale on every 24 hours. The staff kindly brought a display model to the car so I could check the size. It just fits in the subtrunk. We opted for the 30L model. We already had the 50L version on previous trips, but it’s a bit too big to manage in the car. After trying the sub trunk and back seat, we eventually settled on the boot, since it’s easier to access, keeps the noise away from the passengers, and allows more packing space in boot, without worrying accessing the fridge in the sub trunk. We’ll probably move it to the subtrunk when we sleep in the car. The boot cover leaves ample opening in either side for ventilation, as long as we don’t block the side wells. And the 12V power supply is conveniently located in the boot.
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Installing the Teraglide Pro in our Model Y
We installed a Teraglide Pro in our Tesla Model Y Juniper. It provides a flat elevated floor that expands when you lower the rear seats, a retractable drawer and table. Gas struts make it simple to access the sub trunk. Brilliant design. Stay tuned to see the assembly process, and how well it does or doesn’t work with the Snuuzu mattress.
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$10 + car-wash mode = clean
$10 + car wash mode = clean 👏
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A new find: Ripe Cafe in Sassafras
In life you need goals. Today’s goal was to find a cafe we hadn’t yet tried 😉, in our home of the Dandenong Ranges. Ripe Cafe in Sassafras was a great find. Guacamole (avo toast) topped with thin sliced potato crisps, and zucchini slice. Lots of cyclists out today, including this giant Saint Bernard. The local park has interesting seating, or perhaps a one turn swing set 😳. I checked in on our parked car from the Tesla app, after some dodgy parking in front of us. We love driving through the fern trees and tall timbers of the Dandenong Ranges. Beautiful all year ‘round.
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Rubberised mats finally fit our Model Y
We finally fitted some rubberised mats in our Tesla Model Y Juniper. We waited a few weeks for Tessories Australia to have stock, but eventually just ordered through x-car.com.au. They were actually cheaper. The day after we ordered, Tessories emailed to say they have stock. The standard Tesla supplied carpet mats were actually pretty good, clean up okay and are comfortable. But we expect that the rubberised mats will be a bit more hard wearing, and easier to clean. We didn’t bother with a frunk liner, since it already has a hard lining (not carpeted), and a drain hole for washing it out.
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Charge Next Door: AirBnB for EV chargers
We chatted to one of the guys at @Charge Next Door about their app to connect EV drivers with people that have an EV charger. He described it as like AirBnB for EV chargers. Make some cash from your home charger. Great idea. At Melbourne International EV AutoShow. Future Drive AutoShows.
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Mobile EV Charging comes to your door at 60 kW
We chatted a bit with Daniel about their business Mobile EV Charging. At Melbourne International EV AutoShow. They come to you to charge up your EV at 60kW DC. It can be just enough to get you home, or a fully charged battery. Customers include those who found themselves stranded, but also “wealthy” customers who use them regularly rather than driving to an EV charger. I think it’s $240 for a call out.
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Space-saver spare wheels for EVs, $395 to $900
A couple of “space saver” spare wheel/tyre options at Melbourne International EV AutoShow. Pricing ranging from $395 to about $900. We haven’t had a flat tyre during 100,000km of EV driving. If we do, we can contact Tesla via the Service option in the Tesla app. Or we can try out the pump and tyre goo we have in the car. But we’re planning to soon drive to Uluru, where a flat tyre could take quite a while for Tesla or The NRMA to sort out. So, we’re considering taking a spare.
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EVs that aren't cars, at Melbourne EV AutoShow
Some of the many EVs, other than cars, at Melbourne International EV AutoShow.
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MG S5 and the EV crowd at Melbourne EV AutoShow
Such a huge range of EV cars (battery electric and hybrid) at Melbourne International EV AutoShow. We were impressed with the newish MG S5 EV, at about $40k. Interior seemed improved over the previous model MG4. More posts from the show on our Tesla Tripping blog.
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Travel-bed research at the Melbourne EV show
TOCA (Tesla Owners Club Australia) had a Tesla mattress on display in a Tesla Model Y Juniper (like ours). It looks fairly flat, but when we lay on it we realised that it was just hiding the dip at the base of the folded seat, by floating above it. It would be good to test it with a Teraglide flat base. But we think the Snuuzu is going to provide a noticeably more comfortable bed.
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Stretching to match The Electric Viking
Stretching my shirt to match The Electric Viking (Sam Evans) was a losing battle. Great to listen to a few panel discussions, led by Sam and others, on EVs and V2G. Hopeful, based on some hints, that car companies like Tesla will soon allow us to use the massive battery in the cars to help power the grid (and our homes) during peak demand times.
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Solar farm vs coal mine: a side-by-side
We took a slight detour off the Hume Highway at Glenrowan, to stop next to the huge solar farm at Winton. We have previously passed huge open cut coal mines, such as the one at Yallourn. Here are the differences we noticed: 1. The solar farm isn’t a big hole. It’s just a bunch of of posts that can be removed. 2. There’s no particles filling the air, causing respiratory issues. 3. At the coal mine, dozens of huge sprinklers kept pouring litres of water onto the coal face to suppress the dust. 4. There is no ongoing large machinery here, required to dig coal, and haul it. 5. Nothing gets burnt here. There’s no ongoing pollution or greenhouse effect. 6. The solar panels can work in harmony with agriculture. If you look closely at my photos, you can see sheep grazing in the grass around the panels. The panels provide shade that enhances vegetation growth. We didn’t see any sheep on the coal mine, or any living thing, actually 😞. Of course, there is an environmental impact of the solar…
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A wrong-way reverse in Holbrook
On our way home from Wagga Wagga: coffee stop in Holbrook. When we were leaving the motel, the car’s auto gear selector put the car in reverse. I opted to not plough through our hotel room, by selecting drive, forward. But, most of the time, it gets it right. Beautiful drive through rural NSW. Looking quite green at the moment. A slight pause for livestock clearing grass from the road edges. Back at the car with the coffee, we discovered, after nearly three years with a Tesla, that the car image on the screen updates to show the window positions. We sat there like a couple of nerds paying “window goes up, window goes down”.
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A lazy afternoon at Lake Albert, Wagga Wagga
Late lunch and lazy afternoon at Lake Albert, in Wagga Wagga. I’m starting to make use of the new front bumper camera to judge the distance to the gutter. Very handy. We clipped the portable tray onto the steering wheel for a lunch table, then as a laptop desk. We would have sat outside, but it was a bit cold. After a short stroll by the lake, we watched an episode of The Gold on Stan. on the Tesla’s screen, while watching the sunset through the windscreen and glass roof. And later, a very appropriate “road trip” themed game of Strands on the The New York Times games app.
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A late-afternoon sandwich in Euroa
2:20pm can be too late to find lunch in a regional town. A salad and cheese sandwich from Mawsons Bakery Cafe was a delicious and guilt free option. We ate by the river, down the road at the Euroa Rotary Park, serenaded by the magpies.
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Walking the Murrumbidgee levee in Wagga
Out for a walk along the levee bank along the Murrumbidgee River in Wagga Wagga. Beautiful day, warmer now with the sunshine. Lots of people camping by the river, I presume as their homes. Must be so cold at night.
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An 'ICE' car morning near Wagga
We had an “ICE” car this morning. Well, our EV was covered with ice. Cold morning near Wagga Wagga. We warmed up for dinner and breakfast at the on-site Rivergum Restaurant. We warmed up the car using the Tesla app. That melted the ice, and left it nice and toasty when we hopped in. And no fumes filling the motel.
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First time charging on the Wangaratta rooftop
Our first time charging at the rooftop in Wangaratta. We stopped here to grab some shopping. Up a few ramps, the T signs pointed the way. The signs to find the chargers were good, but the signs to exit the roof by foot were hard to find. We walked towards the lone Tardis looking box, which turned out to be a lift. Other signs said that it’s all paid parking now. So, we paid 60c through the Easypark app, for 30 minutes. It seemed odd for a short stop at a shopping centre.
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An egg-muffin disaster on the way to Wagga
Off to Wagga Wagga for a couple of days. First stop Over the Road Cafe, (which is over the road, and about two minutes from our house). Egg muffin is a great meal to hold in one hand while driving, until the egg yolk spurted down my T-shirt. Sigh. Next stop for a stretch and snack at Lake Nillahcootie. Which has become an unintentional frequent visit for us. The red leaves have all dropped from the trees, since we last photographed here a few weeks back.
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First wash for the new Tesla, at Magic Hands
Shiny again! First car wash for the new car. After 4000km in 4 weeks, it was looking a bit dirty. At Magic Hands Car Wash Ferntree Gully. While we waited, brunch at nearby lorna cafe.
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Emerald's Lost Woods Market draws a crowd
This is probably the busiest we’ve seen our town of Emerald, Victoria. The Lost Woods Market draws a huge crowd. It’s a beautiful stroll through the tall trees, past numerous stalls and food outlets, with Puffing Billy Railway choo-chooing past every now and then. It’s a magical place. We parked up the other end of town, starting off with brunch at Over the Road Cafe, then walked through the jammed main road to the markets. The generators of many stalls lined the back path, filling the air with slight fumes and noise. It’s a shame they don’t have grid power. We hoped to see some stalls powered by V2L EVs, as we’ve noticed at some other markets, but none here.
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Why grid electricity is so expensive tonight
Grid electricity is super expensive tonight. Why? Ironically, it’s because it’s mainly powered by gas and coal power stations. Gas and coal supplied electricity is very expensive compared to when supplied by renewables. The second factor is that it’s a cold night, so power demand is high for heating. Our entity retailer, Amber Electric, just passes on the wholesale price, which updates every 30 minutes. When renewable supply in the grid is high, we typically pay around 10c per kWh, sometimes less. When there is low renewable supply in the grid, we typically pay 60c per kWh. But tonight: over $10 per kWh! Fortunately, we have a house battery, often referred to as a “solar battery”. This allows us to “fill” up from free solar during the day, or cheap grid (high renewables) at other times. So, we charged up during the day, ready for tonight. We actually had more energy stored than we needed, so the system exported the excess to the grid. This helps the grid, and pays us a whopping $70…
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Hauling a 2.9 m carpet roll in the Model Y
Transporting a carpet roll, 2.9m long, made good use of the powered collapsible rear seats and powered front seat. A bit squeezey, but it fit. A rug company quoted us to overlock our carpet offcut to make it into a rug for our living room. Unfortunately, after having it for many weeks, they admitted defeat. The job was so bad that they didn’t charge us. But at least it fit in the car 😉.
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Sizing up the Model Y for a bed
Sizing up the rear tray of our Tesla Model Y Juniper, to see how practical it would be to install a bed, and sleep in it, for some of the stops on our next road trip. The folded down seats at the front are about 15cm higher off the ground than the tray at the rear. This makes it slope down, which makes a sleeper slide down during the night, and puts pressure on your hips. We know, because we had that very problem when we tried car camping in our Model 3, a couple of years ago. Terrible night’s sleep. My second attempt worked a bit better. It seems to me that all we need to do is raise the floor boards at the rear, as shown by the ad hoc blocks of wood I added. But, I think I’ll save myself the carpentry, and just buy a Teraglide platform, which is designed for this job. In case you’re wondering, part of the attraction of car camping in the Tesla is that it has “Camp Mode” to keep the cabin at a comfy temperature all night. Cheaper than a motel. Next, to find a comfy mattress, to fit…
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Charging a guest's BYD Atto 3 from our solar
Visitors stayed last night. We plugged their BYD Atto 3 into our Tesla wall charger. Charged up the car battery from 18% to 100%. Grid electricity was cheap at about 16c per kWh, because there’s over 60% renewable supply. Using Amber Electric. 82% x 60kWh x 11c = $5.41 If you’re interested in switching to Amber, you can use our referral link to get a discount: https://www.amber.com.au/referral/refer-a-friend-discount?couponcode=PGUXRHBG Refuelling a car at home is so cheap, even without solar. We used a dedicated wall charger. But we could have charged the car with just a standard power point and mobile connector. It’s just three times slower
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Preheating the Tesla on a 6 °C Emerald walk
A walk around Emerald. Temperature: 12°C, feels like 6°C. Thankful for puffer jackets and the ability to preheat the car and seats before we return. The new front bumper camera gives a great view while parking. But the Tesla Vision system seems to not yet integrate that camera, so the parking line in front of the car doesn’t appear, while the rear one does.
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Autumn backdrops with the new 'Ultra Red' Model Y
We captured a few Autumn backdrops during the three weeks and 3684km so far of owning our “Ultra Red” Tesla Model Y Juniper.
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Hedging weather: car gets a rinse and a sun-charge
Lazy couple of days at home (except for home office working). The mountain weather can’t decide if it will rain or shine, so I hedged my bets by putting the car outside for a rain rinse, and plugged in so it can refuel from the sun.
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Destination chargers at every room: Woomargama Hotel Motel
Past the halfway point of our trip home, we stayed last night at the Woomargama Hotel Motel, 15 minutes south of Holbrook. Great find. Good value room ($120 per night), hotel next door serves dinner. Added bonus: destination EV chargers out the front of each room. The room’s (de)odorisers were quite potent, so we tracked them down ina cupboard and moved them outside and opened up the windows while we had dinner.
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Hume Highway quirks of our Model Y Juniper
The things you discover while cruising along the endless Hume Highway: 1. Our new Model Y Juniper seems to have a bug, where turning off AutoPilot also turns off Auto Wipers, so they immediately start going. Might need to lodge a fault. 2. The navigation shows the weather at our “Final Destination”. Nice! 3. Logging trucks make me nervous, having seen the “Final Destination” movies.
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Home in Emerald, autumn in full swing
We arrived back home, in Emerald Victoria. Autumn is still in full swing. 🍂
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$6 avocados and lunch at Mint and Jam, Yea
Lunch stop at Mint and Jam in Yea, on the way home. Marmalades is closed until June 5, so we had to venture out 😉. A bag of avocados selling for $6 – good value.
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A fluid swap at Oliver's Real Food, Gundagai
Quick stop for a fluid change (hot chocolate in, wee out) at Oliver's Real Food Gundagai.
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Find-along-route coffee on a cold morning
We left our motel this cold morning in our preheated EV. No need to run an engine and fill the veranda with fumes. We hit “Home” as the destination in the navigation, then “Find along route”, coffee. It showed various options along our path. We tapped the “Brew Cart” pin, read the details, then added it as a stop. Neat! It turns out to be just a brew cart. Just coffee. As advertised, I guess. No food.
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Pies and EV chargers in the same car park
When the EV chargers are in the car park of the pie shop, then pies are definitely for lunch. Disappointing to see one of the other EVs occupying a charging park, but not plugged in.
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KFC in the frunk, on the Central Coast
A few random jaunts around the Central Coast to catch up with family. Ettalong Beach, Terrigal, Woy Woy waterfront. Bringing KFC to lunch in the frunk, to keep the smell out of the cabin.
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Thai Thyme and haircuts at Erina Fair
A couple of visits to Erina Fair, while we’ve been on the Central Coast the past few days. Back to our favourite Thai Thyme restaurant for some pineapple fried rice, and Harris Farm for groceries. Even time for a couple of haircuts.
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Pies at Heatherbrae's, and flooded Thornton
Quick lunch at Heatherbrae's Pies, on our way to drop Mum back at Cessnock. We swung out through Thornton. One of the many towns with full flood plains. The farmers must have been busy moving livestock and equipment to higher ground.
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Packing the subtrunk for the Central Coast
Time to pack some bodies into the subtrunk! There’s so much room in this thing. We prepared for our trip today to the NSW Central Coast, via Cessnock.
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Lunch at Kembali Cafe at Blueys Beach
We made the most of the slight break in the weather with a drive out to Blueys/Boomerang Beach, for lunch at Kembali Cafe. We phoned ahead to secure some food before the kitchen closed. Then some pics back at Seal Rocks.
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A Turkish find for lunch in Forster
We often fail to get around to lunch in a town before everything starts to close. We trekked out to Forster and after a few failed eateries, we happened across this Turkish restaurant which proved to be the find of the week. Lovely people and great food. We hung around the attached dessert shop afterwards and discovered all types of Turkish Delight that we didn’t know existed.
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A rainy 'sunny holiday' at Seal Rocks
May 19-22: We arrived at Reflections Seal Rocks. Francis joked at reception “We’re here for our sunny holiday” as the rain continued to belt down. It rained most of the time we were there. The room key mocked us with the label “Life is better outside”. But we made the most of it. We played a few rounds of “brain fart” which was frustrating and fun. I drove 3km down the road to Treachery Camp to pick up Amber. It takes a long time to drive along a road that bad. On the first night, we drove to the closest open dinner venue: The Palms Bistro, Smiths Lake. The satay veg curry was yum and great value. Another night, Fran cooked up a delicious mushroom meal for her mother in law! And sent her home with the leftovers 😉. We did a few days trips out, including a snippet of sun. Stay tuned for those.
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Direct-to-boot groceries in Raymond Terrace
Stocking up on some groceries in Raymond Terrace, before the final leg of our trip to Seal Rocks. We used the Woolworths app to order ahead for “direct to boot”.
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The scenic route through Wollombi to Cessnock
Taking the scenic route through Wollombi and Laguna, on our way to pick up Mum from Cessnock. Raining. Beautiful countryside. A few years ago, this whole valley suffered major flooding.
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Coffee Guru, opposite Mittagong's Evie chargers
On our way out of Bowral this morning, we grabbed a coffee at Coffee Guru Mittagong. Conveniently located across the road from Evie fast chargers, so we could all be charged up for our long drive to Cessnock and Seal Rocks.
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First wash at Briars Country Lodge near Bowral
After our journey from Wagga and Yass, last night we stayed near Bowral at Briars Country Lodge. Nice motel, set on beautiful grounds, complete with buffet breakfast. Our car got its first wash, from a hose next to the parking. Dinner at The Scottish Arms Hotel, Bowral. Driving on today to Cessnock and Seal Rocks.
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A cafe opposite the Yass Superchargers
Stop for a late lunch, in Yass, at Kaffeine 2582. We picked this place, because it’s opposite the Tesla Superchargers. I wonder if the cafe realises how many EV drivers now eat at their cafe 🤔.
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Average-speed monitoring on the Hume Highway
Cruising along the Hume Highway, between Gundagai and Yass. The highway average speed monitoring system is now enforced for all vehicles. Fortunately, our Tesla monitors our average speed setting these sections, showing it on screen, so we can ensure that we comply. And, of course, in Autopilot, the car just drives itself for most of the drive. Driver fatigue is greatly reduced.
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Barefoot at Rules Club, leaving Wagga
On the way out of Wagga Wagga this morning, we stopped at Rules Club. Looks like a nice place – we’ll try out a meal there next time. Tom waited outside, in his bare feet, like a vagrant, while Fran went in to get a coffee. Our Model Y seating is much more comfortably higher than in our old Model 3. This has greatly reduced pain in arthritic hips, on this journey. The road grime is starting to collect on the previously shiny paint. After polishing off a travel cookie, we unplugged and headed off again. Earlier this morning we were on babysitting duty, with grandson Enzo. Lots of fun. He overpowered Tom into taking him for a walk towards the park. At the end, we drew straws as to who would carry whom back up the hill. Tom lost. We passed an intriguing street sign with added distances to Victoria and Queensland.
Formerly: Tesla Tripping
Come along on our EV road trips around Australia and Europe, and follow as we progressively electrify our home in Emerald, Victoria.
Join us on the road. We set off in late 2022 and drove eastern Australia in our Tesla Model 3 — Sydney, Dubbo, Armidale, Brisbane, Cape Tribulation, then down through Queensland and back. We've since upgraded to a Model Y.
We've kept exploring — Uluru, the Snowy Mountains and Gippsland, and a longer run through Europe in 2024. There's plenty more on the map, so come along for the next leg.
At home in Emerald, in Victoria's Dandenong Ranges, we're progressively electrifying everything: rooftop solar, a home battery, a hot water heat pump, air conditioned heating and cooling, and EV charging straight from the sun. We're going fully electric, off the gas.
Got questions, or insights of your own? We'd love to hear them — please drop a comment on any post.