Tag: EV vs Petrol/Diesel

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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.

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Is it Cheaper to Drive an EV Across the Nullarbor? Yes, but there’s a catch.

There has been a fair bit of discussion lately about the cost of recharging an Electric Vehicle compared to the cost of refueling a petrol/diesel vehicle on road trips. There is nothing like taking a set of near matching petrol and electric BMWs with a combined drive away price of $600,000 to prove that the petrol version is $14 cheaper to drive from Melbourne to Sydney. To be fair the energy consumption figures, energy prices and math couldn’t be faulted, I also commend those running the trial for getting out from behind the desk and conducting a physical test.

Nullarbor Roadhouse Fuel bowsers.

On the other hand the Climate Council put out a report claiming that road trip bills in Australia could be reduced by a 1/4 to a 1/5 driving an EV instead of a petrol car, now if “COULD” was in block letters with a disclaimer saying *EV must be driven within 300kms of home solar I could accept that, but no they double down by claiming Melbourne motorists looking to explore the Nullarbor Plain could save $594 by driving a battery-electric vehicle on holidays rather than an average petrol car. How accurate is that?

Despite the average DC charging cost between Melbourne and Perth being a very reasonable 65 cents per unit and fuel prices being high between (and including) the Nullarbor Roadhouse and Norseman (905kms), an electric car will be approximately 10% to 20% cheaper to fuel over the whole 3420km trip, that’s a $60 to $120 saving depending on the vehicles involved, the capacity of the petrol tank and how savvy the petrol car driver is. I think it’s best the Climate Council EV experts get out from behind their desk and go for a long drive to see how the real world lives.

WA EV Network & RAA of SA chargers currently cost 60c per unit.

So why is there a catch?
I have said this a number of times previously: Under most scenarios the fastest and cheapest way to get across the Nullarbor is to fly on a commercial jet, the whole event from home to hotel on the other side of the country is less than 6 hours, even in a petrol car a fast trip takes 2 full days. If you’re concerned about petrol or electricity costs you should also consider money spent on other items during your journey, such as food and drink and opportunistic purchases.

Always remember driving across the Nullarbor is an adventure not a money saving venture.