Driving 24 hours straight on a d22

[Lallosaurus]

Hey guys driving straight from Sydney to Richmond QLD (about 2300 kms/24 hrs). Driving with 2 mates in my 06 D22 75L tank.

Wondering if anyone has drove so long or should i be worried about anything going wrong?

Also has anyone drove out that way from sydney and can tell me any places with 24 hour food/fuel? Taking spare jerry cans just incae.

 

[ljacko78]

Used to drive from Clocurry to Brisbane in one go 1750km quite a bit . Apart from not driving while tired, mt ute never had a problem. What out for roos and roadside grass gets mowed often and new shoots are more tender. Cattle can also be on roadside and had to see even with spotties. Roos don't turn on the spot easy so they usually jump forward, twist and turn in air, then jump back out the road. If u r going to hit a too, try to avoid swerving. Better to have a buyer car than swerve off the road and roll the ute and get yourself hurt.

Take good breaks. Take a spare jerry can for the night shift as petrol stations out west aren't typically open after 10pm or before 7am. Don't drive tired. Be good to your mum.

 

[Old.Tony]

I've done 4:30am to 10:30pm as a longest stint, 1600km (towing the van too). It was punctuated by stops for food, fuel, one stop to empty the caravan's toilet cassette in a dump point in Crystal Brook SA and then continue on into Victoria.

The breaks make it more bearable but you really need to stretch every couple of hours. Use the opportunity to swap drivers, maybe?

If you're using the New England Highway you'll find 24 hr stations, otherwise look at using the Pacific Highway.

 

[d22dave]

Did biloela Qld to ballarat Vic in 26 hours straight with the missus when we were young and stupid, stopped for meal breaks and a 30 minute nap, but remembering how tired we were and how hard it was maintaining concentration I would never think of do it again. If your good at sleeping In the car i suppose that's a plus, as long as you know your car and it doesn't use excessive oil or water there's no problem with it going non stop for the trip

 

[mitch92]

Should be no problems mate, go for it!

 

[mitch92]

If you were to do it in a dmax then you might have issues though.

 

[Kingy89]

I have done a Lot of long distance travel in previous job. If you go up through Goondiwindi there is a 24 hr servo with Maccas etc which is a good repite to recover it might take you a little longer but fatigue will really hit you hard man.

There is nothing open in St george until 8 am and even then servo are not gauteed to be open then.

So i wuld suggest strong on a couple of Jerry cans to see you through a couple hunderd Kms at least.

As for you ute it s a Navara if it is well serviced and you have good tires you will be fine. Plenty of roady tunes you will be all sweet

 

[miner-matt]

Hey guys driving straight from Sydney to Richmond QLD (about 2300 kms/24 hrs). Driving with 2 mates in my 06 D22 75L tank.

Wondering if anyone has drove so long or should i be worried about anything going wrong?

Also has anyone drove out that way from sydney and can tell me any places with 24 hour food/fuel? Taking spare jerry cans just incae.

2300 kms in 24 hrs?? your dreaming with the amount of bloody roadworks around the joint!!! They are shitting me to tears..... But does need to be done

 

[bazt]

We used to drive from Bowen Qld to Melbourne and then return in the 70s. Took 25 to 29 hrs depending on the kids. Had 2 drivers and could catch a nap in the back of the station wagon. Did the trip 12 times. Took a couple of days to get over it though.

 

[NavFitzy]

Did Ayres rock to Frankston in 23hours with three fuel stops. The hardest part is night driving its so much harder on the eyes. The Ute did it with ease. I reckon after all the driving On the trip previous it needed it. It hasn't driven better than it was after it! Just make sure your front wheels are aligned and balanced cause I ruined 2 mtzs due to that!

 

[Tappet]

It's possible but your going to feel like shit when you get there. You'll need a full days rest to get over it. Well I would anyway. If you did the same trip in a Range Rover, Audi Q7 or something like that, it may be a little more low impact.

Watch out for the Roos, Pigs and Cattle.

Good luck and have a safe trip.

Edit- I think the days of covering vast distances in a short amount of time are over. You would think that now days with better vehicles and roads it should be faster but with more traffic, more heavily patrolled roads and what seems to be more road works and wildlife, records runs are history. When I was young bloke- and that was long time ago, did some ridiculous point to point times but wouldn't even contemplate the thought of bettering them now.

 

[180degrees]

should be right, I saw this show on SBS where these guys had this GQ patrol in siberia and couldn't turn it off for 3 days or the diesel would freeze in the lines or something, it was that cold the cows had to have like wool jumpers over their udders so they didn't freeze off, gave new meaning to freezing your tits off haha.

the trol had a TD42 ofc though....

 

[terryc]

As said, if vehicle well serviced, shouldn't be a problem, unless it is a driver problem.
There is a tip somewhere to let the engine run a bit when you pull into a stop to cool stuff down.

I would be inclined to take more than one jerry can of diesel. some of the fuel prices in less well travelled can be a bit shocking. If you find such a place, you can always drop a jerry or two into the tank to lessen the hi on the wallet. then refill at the cheaper places.

Do not have a deadline. Just take it as it comes.

Can I politely suggest that it require a unanimous vote that you continue on. The last thing you want is someone trying to be heroic.

With three drivers, I'd be more inclinded to swap over every hour. All get out and walk around for 5 mins (leave engine ticking). Take regular meals, but make them light.

Get a couple of thermos and fill with hot water, or tea or coffee. Good road house will provide a refill service. Allows you to take a break when you need it. Pack some sandwiches for the same reason.

Skip the lollies. sure they pick you up, but you seem to crash harder when they wear off. YMMV, but I doubt it.

Take swags or something and bed down somewhere in the wee small hours. Do not go on until you crash, because that is what is liable to happen. The job of passengers is to ensure the driver is alert and awake. It isn't to go to sleep.

Also helps with spotting animals on the road. Never swerve, just hit them. Also, ones just off the road will tend to run across just in front of you. If you do not have a bull bar, then drop to speed 20kms+ when animals are around.

Been decades since we did anything like that, but even then, we still went to interesting places for a look see as a break.


As for road works, the RTA/?? of each state will have a web page that you can look up.

Does that explore OZ(?) site list services at each town?

Edit, google maps says it is only 2,090 Kms.