Tesla Owners Club Western Australia

19 January 202516 February 2025

WAEV Charging Network Status

Testing commenced 17th January 2025.

When providing updated charge station data please advise of the date tested and any other information such as: Display and/or PayWave working; if AC was used and working; DC working as expected; or any other tips that may be useful.

Thank you for your help in keeping this chart up to date.

Location	DC Working	DC	AC	Display	Pay Wave	Phone reception	Notes	Date Tested
Kununurra	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	X	✔︎		19/01/2025
Warmun	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	X	✔︎		19/01/2025
Halls Creek	🟥	X	✔︎	X	X	✔︎	Still broken after 25 weeks	19/01/2025
Mueller Ranges	🟩	✔︎				X	Charging interrupted at 80%	19/01/2025
Fitzroy Crossing	🟥	✔︎	X	X	X	✔︎	Took multiple attempts to get DC charging to work correctly	19/01/2025
Derby	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	X	X	✔︎	Charger damaged but works, RFID reader works	19/01/2025
Broome	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎		18/01/2025
LaGrange	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎			18/01/2025
Sandfire Roadhouse	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	X	✔︎		18/01/2025
Pardoo Roadhouse	🟥			X		X	Manager said the charger is broken. AC kept tripping off	29/01/2025
Port Hedland	🟥	X	X	X	X	✔︎	All blank, not able to charge	29/01/2025
Whim Creek	🟥	X	✔︎	✔︎	X	✔︎		29/01/2025
Karratha	🟩	✔︎						18/01/2025
Fortescue River	🟩	✔︎						17/01/2025
Nanuturra	🟩	✔︎						17/01/2025
Exmouth							Not recently tested
Minilya	🟨	✔︎	X					17/01/2025
Carnarvon	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎		17/01/2025
Denham							Not recently tested
Overlander Roadhouse	🟥		✔︎					17/01/2025
Billabong Homestead	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	X	✔︎		17/01/2025
Kalbarri							Not recently tested
Northampton	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎		17/01/2025
Geraldton	🟩	✔︎		✔︎	✔︎	✔︎		17/01/2025
Jurien Bay	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎		29/01/2025
Lancelin							Not recently tested
Kings Park
Bunbury	🟩	✔︎
Margaret River
Manjimup
Walpole	🟩	✔︎
Albany	🟩	✔︎
Jerramungup	🟩	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎	✔︎			24/01/2025
Ravensthorpe							Offline due to power restrictions	13/02/2025
Esperance
Norseman	🟩	✔︎		✔︎			RFID reader not working	20/01/2025
Mundrabilla	🟥						Trips off roadhouse power	24/01/2025
Madura Pass	🟥						Canola Oil generated – Awaiting repair	24/01/2025
Caiguna	🟩						Canola Oil generated	24/01/2025
Balladonia	🟩						Canola Oil generated	24/01/2025
Kalgoorlie
Coolgardie	🟩							25/01/2025
Southern Cross	🟩							25/01/2025
Merredin	🟩							25/01/2025
Northam	🟩
Brookton	🟩	✔︎		X				20/01/2025
Hyden	🟩	✔︎		X				20/01/2025
Kojonup	🟩	✔︎
Williams	🟩	✔︎

24 October 202424 October 2024

Starlink Mini for Travel review – by James Maitland

For those wondering about portable internet on the go, we’ve been using the Starlink Mini (about $780) while travelling we were going to purchase the original as it is much cheaper and can get faster speeds, but the mini does not need a separate router and does fine for us. It runs on low voltage (20-60V DC), making it versatile with different power options. The default 5525 barrel connector cable is 15m long and works well, but it’s not always easy to find compatible power sources.

Luckily, we found a workaround with a third-party USB-C cable from Amazon (around $30), which runs off any USB-C Power Delivery (PD) socket. This has worked flawlessly to power our Starlink Mini from our car’s socket with a PD adaptor, which also we use to charge our MacBook or ipad with no need for any inverter. The Starlink only needs about 25W-50W, so the 100W-rated USB-C cable is more than enough. The trade-off is that the USB-C cord is only 3 meters, compared to the original 15 meters, but it’s perfect for use in the car.

To make the setup even better, we purchased a Starlink-specific waterproof USB-C cable for outdoor use when camping. As I have access to a 3D printer, I used SDeath’s suction cup mount design from Thingiverse and paired it with suction cups from Amazon. This allows us to easily secure the Starlink Mini to our car’s glass roof, and it has enough airflow between the glass and starlink to stay cool thanks to the airconditioning in the car. On the road, we’ve been consistently getting around 100 Mbps, even at high speeds.

One issue we ran into was the Starlink shutting off when the car’s 12V system cycles during starts and stops. To fix this, we added an EcoFlow River 2 Pro. It’s a bit overkill with 800W, but it’s been perfect for running our Starlink and a travel fridge when off-grid and it was on a 30% off at the time so cheaper than the smaller bluetti we had our eye on. The power pack charges via the car and provides uninterrupted power for Starlink. You could use any power pack (much smaller and cheaper ones) with 60W USB-C PD output, but we liked this one for its versatility.

We’ve tested this setup on WA’s wide-open roads without any signal issues, and I’m keen to see how it performs on more challenging terrain like the Great Ocean Road and Tasmania.

Links to the products we have used:

22 August 202422 August 2024

Tesla O’Connor Official Opening

23 March 202428 March 2024

Diesel vs EV Across the Nullarbor, Which is Cheaper in Fuel?

The best comparison is to use two vehicles that are likely to drive across the Nullarbor on any given day. I know a few dozen Tesla Model Y SUVs have done it, including my own 4 times, and I also have no doubt a similar size 2022-24 Hyundai Tucson diesel SUV has more than once crossed the country.

The Journey
The section between the towns of Ceduna in the east and Norseman in the west is generally seen as the Nullarbor drive, a total distance of 1201kms, a sealed surface, 1 lane each way, mostly flat, virtually all 110kmh.

The cheapest fuel in the middle section of the Nullarbor is $2.52 per litre (March 2024).

Driving the Hyundai Tucson Diesel
The claimed fuel consumption for the 1.6 litre diesel is 6.3 litres per 100kms. Our Hyundai driver is very experienced at getting the best fuel consumption so I’ll round that down to 6 litres per 100kms, it also makes the arithmetic a bit easier. The Hyundai driver is also wise with his fuel purchases and will make use of the 800km range fuel tank by filling right up on the cheapest fuel in Ceduna at $1.96 a litre.
Despite the good range per tank the Hyundai driver still needs to stop for fuel once between Border Village and Caiguna Roadhouse, luckily there are 6 different fuel stops on that 350km section. According to this week’s diesel prices the cheapest is Eucla at $2.52 a litre, luckily the Hyundai driver doesn’t need to fill up, it’s only necessary to add 400kms of fuel or 24 litres, enough to scrape through to Norseman.
Ceduna 48 litres at $1.96 = $94.08
Eucla 24 litres at $2.52 = $60.48
Trip total for diesel $154.56.
Why not use the cost to refill at the end of the trip instead of the start? Norseman diesel has averaged $2.14 during 2024, that would cost more, the Hyundai driver is smarter than that.

The EV SUV Using March 2024 Charging Options
My Model Y has averaged 15.3kWh per 100kms over the past 43,000kms, so to make the arithmetic easier I’ll round that up to 16kWh per 100kms.
At 16kWh per 100kms the Model Y range is limited to 460kms, this requires a minimum two charging stops after the initial charging at Ceduna. To make the journey without any compromise I’ll go for a more expensive 3 charging stops at Nullarbor, Mundrabilla and Caiguna. Despite paying a flat all you can charge fee of $32, $30 and $50 respectively I’ll only be adding 65-70% to the battery at each stop.
Ceduna 48kWh x 60 cents per unit = $28.20
Nullarbor flat fee $32
Mundrabilla flat fee $30
Caiguna flat fee $50
Trip total for electricity $140.20.

The EV SUV Using July 2024 Charging Options
From July onwards DC charging options will improve rapidly on the western side of the Nullarbor with 4 Horizon sites powered with solar energy. Any improvement on the eastern side of the Nullarbor in Q3 2024 will depend on the NRMA following through on another media release claiming the Nullarbor and Border Village Roadhouse will be getting DC charging soon, if that happens all fast DC charging from Ceduna to Norseman will be 60 cents per unit making the arithmetic easy.
192kWh x 60 cents per unit = $115.20

Unfortunately for the diesel vehicle owner there’s very little hope for an improvement in fuel costs, 5 competing fuel suppliers at 11 fuel stops are burdened with transporting fuel over long distances adding to the expense. On the other hand EV charging has two aces up its sleeve, first and foremost electricity can be made on site at a reasonable cost with renewable energy, a good example is the Horizon DC chargers being installed in remote areas of Western Australia that are solar powered. Secondly EV charging in Australia is still in its infancy, competition is yet to arrive.

The Horizon Power WAEV Network charger at Norseman is 60c/kWh.

16 March 202416 March 2024

March Casual Meetup

Our next casual meetup (incorporating an in-person Ask Us Anything) is Wednesday 20 March 2024 at 6:30pm at:

Belmont Tavern – 174 Wright St, Cloverdale

https://www.belmonttavern.com.au/

Casual meetups are open to everyone including those who have never seen a Tesla before.

It’s an ideal opportunity to meet club members and to see the cars in the flesh which we are all passionate about.

It’s also a great way for new owners to learn more about their cars and to share in the vast pool of knowledge gained by other members.

We hope to see you there and look forward to chatting about all things Tesla.

29 February 202429 February 2024

Is a Tesla more efficient in Summer? Yes but it’s a two edged sword.

The climate in the southern half of Western Australia is near perfect for a Tesla, warm and dry most of the time and winters where the temperature only drops below 5C for a few hours on the occasionally early morning, if you enjoy getting good Wh/km efficiency WA is the place to achieve it.

On the downside is the long hot summer of constant intense sunlight and high temperatures, this doesn’t generally harm the Wh/km figures recorded during longer drives but does put a serious dent in efficiency for those driving short (less than 15km) trips after being parked in an exposed area for even a short period during the day. Every time you drive off in a car with a hot interior the aircon is working hard to reduce the temperature, depending on conditions that could take anything from 10 to 30kms.

Teslas have an excellent feature known as cabin overheat protection, even on a 30C day this will consume up to 4% of the battery over 9 hours, personally I’ll happily accept a 4% loss each day over Summer but anyone who is not is free to turn cabin overheat protection off. Of course if car park designers who have a fetish for destroying trees allocated funds for solar panel canopies car parks wouldn’t be so hot.

So are all these hot Summer days killing your range?
Not really, it’s consuming far more energy between each charge but as this is caused by short drives and long parking sessions it’s not relevant unless you’re buying expensive electricity. Range is only a factor on very long drives away from reliable fast charging. When you go on a long drive the heat will have little effect on your Wh/km efficiency (it helps if you pre-cool the interior while plugged into shore power before departure).

Hot tips for a cool interior
Try to park in the shade even if it’s a 200 metre walk to your destination.
Get interior shades up, especially over the black dashboard.
Pre-cool the interior using the phone app about 5 minutes before arriving at your car.
If only parking for 45 minutes or less put the car in “keep” mode, this leaves the air-conditioner on and does not use any more energy than letting the car heat up then cooling it down again.

22 December 20235 January 2024

Using the Delta chargers across the Nullarbor

The four Delta 22kW DC chargers located between Norseman and Ceduna were crowd funded by the Australian EV community in two stages, the first two in early 2022 and the recent two in December 2023. Although nowhere near as fast as the hard wired DC chargers at locations such as Norseman and Streaky Bay in SA the Delta DC chargers are a reliable solution until government funded fast DC is rolled out from late 2024 onwards.

Despite proving to be very reliable the Delta chargers require patience and methodical following of the instructions or users will find themselves wasting valuable time. I’ve used these four chargers a combined total of 18 times in less than 2 years, heed my advice to save yourself a lot of frustration.

1. Only plug in when the charger LED screens displays “connect to EV”, plug in firmly and don’t have a stretched cable.
2. Check charging has started, if the car displays “charging stopped” unplug, close the charging port and reconnect when the charger displays “connect to EV”.
3. Once charging has clearly started check back in after 5 minutes, if charging stops it’s highly likely to be in the first 5 minutes. I’ve never had a charging session stop after 5 minutes but that’s not to say it won’t happen, if you have phone coverage use the app to check every 30 minutes or so.
4. Don’t sit in the car with the aircon running while connected to 22kW or slower charging, it consumes valuable power that should be charging the cars battery, if you want aircon comfort sit in the Roadhouse Cafe.
5. Be thoughtful how you park, all 4 locations are in areas with other activities going on, look around and consider if you may be blocking access and potentially getting your car scratched by a room service trolley.
6. If you’re planning to stay overnight DO NOT leave your car plugged into the charger ready for the morning, there’s only one charging option at each location, leave the charger accessible for other EVs.

Balladonia
If you’re wise you would have charged to at least 98% at the Norseman 150kW DC charger (if driving east), every 6 minutes at Norseman saves you 30 minutes at Balladonia, and a few dollars.
To speed up the process at Balladonia get the passenger to jog in to the Roadhouse Cafe and ask for the EV charger key while the driver parks around the back. Once the key switches on the charger the start up process takes approximately 90 seconds, a good opportunity to get shade on the car.
At the end of the charging session and just before charging stops use your phone to take a photo of the kWh consumed on the Delta LCD screen, make sure the photo is readable for the Roadhouse staff. Don’t forget to return the key when paying for charging.

Madura Pass
Park in front of the rusty vintage car and request EV charging in the fuel shop, a staff member will wheel the charger in to position and instruct you where to park, if you’ve parked in front of the vintage car you’ll only need to reverse up a few metres. Payment is to the RFDS in the fuel shop. Opening hours are strictly 7.00am to 5.00pm AWCT.

Mundrabilla Roadhouse
The Delta charger is located inside the accommodation compound on the western side of the Roadhouse building, in the middle of the day parking is easy but before 8.00am and after 3.00pm you’re likely to have to deal with vehicles parked in front of the rooms, it’s wise to reverse park so you won’t get blocked in. This charger is switched on ready for immediate use.

Nullarbor Roadhouse
The Delta charger is at the rear of the laundry on the western side of the building, reverse parking with the black water tank on your passenger side will provide morning shade as well as not block the laundry ramp. This charger is currently kept switched on so connection to the car is almost immediate. At the time of writing a fixed payment is made at the cash register and your receipt must be clearly displayed on the car dashboard whilst charging.

I hope this information assists you to have smooth and happy travels whilst crossing the Nullarbor.

2 December 20232 December 2023

Perth to Shark Bay is now an EV Cruise.

Now that the WA EV Network DC charger at the Overlander Roadhouse is available to the public the biggest gap between DC charging on the Perth to Shark Bay drive is 228 kms, once the Billabong Homestead DC charger goes live that gap reduces to 182 kms. This makes the 848 km drive (to Monkey Mia) a comfortable one day drive during the daylight hours of winter, it also means a standard range model Y could drive that trip at the speed limit while keeping the battery level between 20% and 85%. Take note, there’s no harm to the battery by going below 20% the potential issue could be queuing at a regional DC charger with no sentry mode available.

Below is a suggested plan for those in a standard range vehicle, if you have a LR or Performance use the same plan but with a lower charge percentage when departing each charging stop. Plan for 9 hours of driving plus 90 minutes of charging spread over 3 or 4 charging sessions.

Jurien Bay, peak charge speed 115 Kw.
If your trip is on the weekend or holiday period depart early. Although this trip can be done in daylight hours a 6.00am departure will pay dividends at the first charging stop in Jurien Bay. Why? Because humans are ruled by their stomachs, it’s a sure bet that on a Saturday morning or School holidays the Jurien Bay chargers will have a queue while the passengers stretch out morning tea. Trust me, you really don’t want to get stuck behind a couple of short range legacy EVs trickle charging to 100%. Get going early and get ahead of the grazing sheep.

Geraldton and/or Northampton, peak charge rate 115 Kw.
The next charging stop is Geraldton so 80% is plenty to cover the 200 kms. Once you get close to Geraldton you have a decision to make, do you bypass Geraldton and push on another 52 kms to Northampton DC charger thus avoiding some of the Geraldton traffic or play it safe and “Always Be Charging”? This is up to you depending on how busy you think Northampton could be, keep in mind Geraldton has the capacity to charge 4 EVs at once, Northampton it’s only a 2 EV site.

The drive from Northampton to the Overlander Roadhouse is the biggest gap of 228 kms, even at 110 kmh in poor conditions a standard range could still drive this on 65% battery but the trick here is to keep charging until the charging rate drops below 45 Kw, this will generally be at approximately 85% on a standard range battery pack. Why is 45 Kw important? That’s the average charging rate you’ll get at the Overlander on the WA EV Network 50 Kw DC charger.

The drive between Overlander and Monkey Mia may only be 154 kms but has caught out many impatient EV drivers in the past, it’s a sure bet that sometime after lunch a strong westerly will blow significantly reducing range, don’t get caught short, add 154 kms of range plus a 20% buffer so your not hypermiling into Shark Bay after dark.

Foot note: Lancelin has both Tesla Superchargers and a WA EV Network charger, this is an optional stop on the way north on potentially busy days or if you’re not in a hurry and don’t mind the total 13km detour. Be aware that if you take this option and bypass Jurien Bay you’ll need to add enough charge to drive 303kms to Geraldton.

30 November 20232 July 2024

What’s with Ravensthorpe?

Since being installed on 9 October 2023, the WA EV Network 150kW Kempower Fast DC charger in Ravensthorpe has been waiting for the installation of a transformer by Western Power. Ravensthorpe is a vital link to Esperance and it’s unfortunate that it appears that it won’t be ready for the summer school holidays, which is peak season for EV owners wanting to holiday in the Esperance region. Let’s hope that Western Power finds the appropriate resources to promptly install the transformer so this vital link to Esperance can be completed before Christmas.

19 November 202319 November 2023

Model Y Tyres: be one step ahead to keep the costs down.

I’m hoping the instances I’ve seen in the past week with regards to uneven tyre wear on 2023 WA based Model Ys is just pure coincidence rather than being widespread across the Australian fleet, in saying that it’s best to be prepared by spotting any uneven wear early and booking the vehicle in for a check and alignment.

How can you spot an issue early?

If you look at the tyre surface from the front or the rear it can be very deceptive, tyre wear may look very even across the tread and wear on the outer edge is fairly easy to spot. On the other hand wear on the far inside edge is almost hidden until it’s too late, that’s why getting a tyre rotation or inspection done 10,000kms after delivery is well worth the effort. Taking the wheel/tyre off and rolling it slowly while carefully checking the surface will show up any early signs of uneven wear.

Check the inner edges when the tyres are off.

Why bother?

If a looming safety issue doesn’t sway you to be vigilant maybe some basic arithmetic will, a 19inch tyre on a Model Y that has even tyre wear throughout its life should survive for at least 50,000kms, if you don’t correct uneven wear early the tyre is likely unroadworthy at 30,000kms, that’s approximately $800 worth of tyre tread wasted. For those vigilantly counting every cheap kWh of electricity you charge your Tesla with you may be wasting more on tyres per km than you’re spending on electricity per km. If you have a Model Y with higher priced Pirellis it’s closer to $1100 wasted.

Fitting new tyres

Hopefully you get even tread wear and a high km lifespan out of original set of tyres but eventually they’ll need replacing. Unless you can find a compelling reason to change brands I’d recommend sticking with a similar Hankook 19, Michelin 20 or Pirelli 21 that Tesla factory fitted, often keeping it simple is the best method.
Without doubt most Model Ys in WA will be fitted with 19inch Hankook Ventus EvoS1 (255/45/19) I recently got a quote for these at $499 each, that’s reasonable but I highly suggest you make enough phone calls to get not only a competitive price but a tyre shop that will respect both you and your car.
Hankook have also recently introduced a similar tyre specifically for Electric Vehicles called the Ion AS, in the 255/45/19 size I received a quote for $539 each.

I’m sure you’re asking this question; “Is an EV specific tyre marketing BS?” The answer will be revealed soon as one of our members is currently putting the Hankook Ion tyres through a thorough long distance test across the top end of Australia.

In summary:
Keep a constant check on your tyres, it only takes two minutes while the car is on charge.
Correct the reason for uneven wear ASAP.
Phone around for competitive tyre prices in the weeks before you need new tyres not on the day you find your car unroadworthy.