Road Trip Series, Part 3: Driving an EV from Sydney to Brisbane

Welcome to Drive-Electric's road trip series. We look at the three most popular road trips in Australia and recommend the journey, the vehicles and how you should prepare for each trip. Today it's Sydney to Brisbane, the longest and most scenic leg of the three.

Sydney to Brisbane is the longest and, honestly, the most scenic drive in this series. The Pacific Highway hugs the coast for most of its length, which means beautiful detours are always tempting, but it also means hillier, windier roads than the flat inland runs we've covered so far. Here's how to actually plan it, charging stops included.

Key Facts

• Distance: approximately 920km via the Pacific Highway (M1)

• Total drive time: around 10 to 11 hours without stops

• Recommended trip length: two days, one overnight stop

• Charging stops needed: three to four, depending on your car

• Terrain: coastal and hillier than the other two routes, particularly around the Coffs Harbour area, which genuinely affects range more than flat highway driving does

• Do this: overnight in Port Macquarie, roughly the halfway point, it's specifically set up for EV travellers with destination chargers at accommodation as well as ultra-rapid public charging.

• Don't do this: underestimate the range impact of the hillier northern NSW sections. Budget a bit more buffer than you would on the flatter Hume or Western Highway routes.

A quick disclaimer before we get into it: charging networks change. Everything below reflects what's operating as of the time of publication, but always cross-check live availability in the Chargefox, Evie or NRMA app before you leave.

The Route, Day by Day

Day One: Sydney to Port Macquarie (around 400km)

Leave Sydney and head to Newcastle, about 165km in, a sensible first top-up even if you don't strictly need it yet. Continue north through Karuah and Taree, both well served with Chargefox and Tesla Supercharger options, before arriving in Port Macquarie for the night.

This town has genuinely leaned into EV tourism, ultra-rapid Chargefox charging plus a good spread of accommodation offering destination chargers, so you can plug in overnight and wake up to a full battery without needing to find a public charger first thing.

Day Two: Port Macquarie to Brisbane (around 524km)

This is the longer day and the hillier one. From Port Macquarie, continue to Macksville and Coffs Harbour, the terrain gets noticeably more undulating through here, which is worth factoring into your charging plan.

Coffs Harbour has excellent NRMA and Evie fast charging, plus the Big Banana if you need an actual reason to stop.

From there it's on to Ballina or Byron Bay, both well covered, before a final run through the Gold Coast and into Brisbane.

Stop	Approx. Distance from Sydney	Networks Available
Newcastle	~165km	Chargefox, Tesla Supercharger
Karuah / Taree	~250km	Chargefox, Evie, NRMA, Tesla Supercharger
Port Macquarie (overnight)	~400km	Chargefox (350kW), Tesla Supercharger, destination chargers
Macksville	~460km	Evie (350kW)
Coffs Harbour	~515km	Chargefox (350kW), NRMA, Evie
Ballina / Byron Bay	~700km	Chargefox (350kW), NRMA
Gold Coast	~810km	Multiple
Brisbane	~924km	Multiple

Tesla vs Everyone Else on This Route

Tesla coverage along the Pacific Highway is solid, with Supercharger sites at Heatherbrae, Raymond Terrace, Taree, Kew, Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour and Knockrow (near Ballina), giving Tesla drivers a genuinely comfortable run the entire way.

Non-Tesla drivers are well looked after too, arguably better than on some other interstate routes, given how much investment Chargefox, Evie and NRMA have collectively put into this specific coastal corridor.

Chargefox runs 350kW ultra-rapid sites at Karuah, Port Macquarie and Coffs Harbour specifically. Evie matches that at Macksville.

The one genuine difference from the flatter southern routes: the hillier terrain around Coffs Harbour means real-world range drops a bit more than the spec sheet suggests, so non-Tesla drivers with smaller batteries may want an extra buffer stop through that stretch specifically.

Should You Do This Trip: The Verdict

Do this if: you want the most scenic of the three routes, and you're happy to treat the charging stops as genuine sightseeing breaks rather than just a technical necessity, Port Macquarie and Coffs Harbour are both worth the time regardless of your battery level.

Don't do this if: you're planning to push straight through in a single day. At 920km and with hillier terrain than the other two routes, this is the one trip in the series where a two-day break genuinely matters, not just for comfort, but for range confidence too.

EV road trip Sydney to Brisbane: FAQs

Can you drive an EV road trip from Sydney to Brisbane? Yes, though it's the longest of our three routes at around 920km. The Pacific Highway has solid charging coverage the whole way, with most drivers splitting it over two days.

Where's the best overnight stop between Sydney and Brisbane in an EV? Port Macquarie, roughly 400km from Sydney and close to the halfway point, is the recommended stop. It has ultra-rapid public charging plus accommodation with destination chargers built in.

Does the terrain affect EV range on this route more than other interstate trips? Yes. The coastal Pacific Highway is hillier and windier than the flat Hume or Western Highway routes, particularly around Coffs Harbour, which genuinely reduces real-world range more than the spec sheet figure suggests.

How many charging stops do you need between Sydney and Brisbane? Most EVs need three to four stops across the two-day trip, typically at Newcastle or Taree, Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour, and Ballina or the Gold Coast.