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NRMA fast charging network
- Thread starter baillies
- Start date
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- Australia New Zealand
Chuq
Active Member
Mildura officially open! (but not according to their map)
Grenadine
Member
We had a trip up to Taree and back this weekend, but not in our Model 3, since it will be delivered a week too late for that 
but for fun we did the slight detour off the highway to check out the Nabiac NRMA charger should we need to use it in the future. It was very easy to find, no-one was using it, the light on the left was blinking which I initially thought meant there was a fault but just means it is ready to use
I think this charger is better placed than the Heatherbrae SC. Two cafes a short walk away, whereas from Heatherbrae SC it is 10-15 minute walk to the highway eateries and only after taking your life into your own hands crossing a 4 lane national highway with no traffic lights nearby. No-one was at the SC on the way up or on return.
but for fun we did the slight detour off the highway to check out the Nabiac NRMA charger should we need to use it in the future. It was very easy to find, no-one was using it, the light on the left was blinking which I initially thought meant there was a fault but just means it is ready to use I think this charger is better placed than the Heatherbrae SC. Two cafes a short walk away, whereas from Heatherbrae SC it is 10-15 minute walk to the highway eateries and only after taking your life into your own hands crossing a 4 lane national highway with no traffic lights nearby. No-one was at the SC on the way up or on return.
And dont rely on it. It has failed a couple of times in its short life and there is nothing else anywhere near it. The closest chargers to Nabiac are
Port MacQuarie(fast) - 100km
Forster (Slow) - 26km
Heatherbrae (Fast) - 120km
Well, yes, “relying” on any single charger is risky. There were three checkins on Plugshare of this charger over the weekend, someone in their i-Pace on the way up on Saturday and way down on Sunday, only about 10 mins after we swung by for a look. There seemed to be an issue back on 28 Nov but fixed by 4 Dec, and further back issues on 1 Oct and 8 Sep. Plugshare rating 9.6.
Yep, I wanted to use it in this period but luckily I ran into another M3 driver and he let me know it was out of order so I worked around it.
I sent a msg on Plugshare to NRMA to ask when they expected it to be fixed and they replied a few days later it was fixed. They did not say if/what they did to fix it.
I always work on having a good plan B on my road trips.
Indeed, we will discover this very soon when we start doing Model 3 road trips
We’ve almost never needed a Plan B with our LEAF because we have barely ever driven it outside of the Sydney metro area! Almost always back home before it needs a charge.The LR AWD theoretically has almost enough range to drive all the way from Sydney to Taree and back without charging, but with A/C and the hills that’s fairly fanciful thinking. Our plan in the future is (a) stay at a motel with a destination charger (there’s 1 in Taree) and/or (b) top-up at Nabiac if needed or do a more substantial charge on the way back at Heatherbrae. One would hope that the entire Heatherbrae SC never goes offline!
There are also other options (some coming). I have been Sydney - Port Macqaurie twice with SR+.
- Tesla Tugerrah - not used it
- NRMA Wallsend - used it 3 or 4 times - 2 charge points - little mall and shops within 2 - 5 minutes walk
- Karuah - is getting a Chargpoint [I think] station soonish
- Taree - is getting an Evie [I think] at some point in the future
- Port Macquarie - Tesla and NRMA in production, with either Chargepoint or Evie also coming in the future
rohan_aus
Member
Karuah is Chargefox ultra-rapid (350kw), and is extremely close to being finished, I expect only days/weeks away. Port also has a 350kw Chargefox planned, but no construction spotted yet.
This is Karuah as of 2 weeks ago with all signage, paint, etc, so imminently opening:
rohan_aus
Member
Candleflame
Active Member
These chargers look like rebranded yurkia chargers which I think first popped up in QLD for their electric highway. They have a switch when you start charging to switch between the lower limit (80% in QLD) and 100%.
Every charger seems to have some sort of internal timer where it stops charging and once it does so you are unable to start charging again until you have less than the lower limit charge.
In Tully it seems to switch off after 1 hour of charging. Hence I interupt the charge at 70% and then restart the charger.
Tbh I never charged to 100% on them, but in Townsville i charged to 96% before.
I've used the Tuggerah SC several times. A bit tricky to find as you've got to go around the back of the shops and then up onto the roof.
Port Macquarie NRMA and Tesla SC are both operational. The NRMA charger is right at the outer edge of the new Soverign place shopping centre carpark.
I asked Chargefox what the status of this station is, given that in December it looked like construction was complete but since then, nothing. Pleasingly, they were very forthcoming.
They said Karuah was ready the weekend prior to Christmas and they had everyone coordinated to be on site on Sunday 22nd for the opening. But then the power company canceled at 11pm Saturday due to the bushfire emergency.
They said the lead times in rebooking the power company meant opening has been pushed back to March. I assume grid restoration work takes priority over this. Chargefox should have the exact opening date soon.
The bushfires have also impacted planned timelines for some of their other sites.
Candleflame
Active Member
i personally think coverage is more important but the unfortunate reality is that as electric cars will become more common (even in Australia without incentives) more chargers are needed and Albury is perfect for those driving around Melbourne/ACT/Sydney.
