Colourful convoy of more than 200 Shitbox Rally cars wind through the outback bound for Hobart

Shitbox Rally is a challenge to drive cars worth no more than $1500 about 3500 kilometres across Australia, all in the name of charity.

The colourful convoy left Rockhampton on Saturday bound for Tambo, before heading off for Eulo on Sunday.

Day three will see the convoy make its way from Eulo to Cobar via Hungerford, Louth and Kerrigundi.

The 497-kilometre trip takes in only 59km of sealed road compared to 438km of dirt and sometimes rough terrain.

They will stop at the Royal Mail Hotel at Hungerford and Shindy's Inn at Louth on the way, taking in the unmatched scenery of the Queensland and NSW Outback.

Box Rallies founder and CEO James Freeman started the events 13 years ago, and in that time, he and his team have successfully run 29 rallies across Australia.

"The rally so far has been really good, but very, very hot," he said.

"The teams have done incredibly well, and their fundraising has been amazing.

"We stay away from the usual sealed roads. We love the backcountry and the red dirt."

So far, the rally teams have raised just over $1.9 million; their original fundraising target was $2 million, which they are on track to achieve.

"The rally ends up being the reward for those fundraising efforts," Mr Freeman said.

"The teams work hard fundraising, and they deserve a fantastic rally.

"Everyone has a smile on their face. There's lots of laughter. The days are long and hot, but they're fun, and the teams work with each other if there are breakdowns or flat tyres.

"It's a group of givers who do so much for others."

Michael Foley and Jason Roche from 'Team Paddys' are well-travelled, originally hailing from Ireland.

The pair of welders have raised more than $8000.

"I heard about the Shitbox Rally about four years ago when I saw it advertised, and I have applied for a spot on the rallies ever since," Jason said.

"The best part has probably been meeting people you wouldn't normally meet who share similar interests.

"We are all here for a good cause."

While the 40-degree plus temperatures have been challenging, their 2001 model Toyota Camry has survived the trip so far, albeit with some attention required.

"It's going pretty good; it's just very thirsty on oil," Jason said.

Nicky Wickham and Neil Starrett from Team Rusty Wrecks have taken part in Shitbox Rallies for several years.

Neil's first rally was in 2014, and Nicky's in 2015, and apart from COVID-19 years, they have done them every year since.

They described the rallies as "a bit addictive".

"We found out about the Shitbox Rallies when we were on the NSW South Coast, and someone was selling raffle tickets on the side of the road," Nicky said.

"We had a long chat, and we decided it would be a good thing to do.

"I guess we all have cancer stories; my husband and father had passed away from cancer, so it seemed like a good thing to do to raise money for cancer research."

This year the pair have raised just under $11000 this rally, and over the years, they have raised between $120,000 and $130,000.

They also said meeting new people at the rally was a highlight.

"We've got a really good buddy group; you meet people you otherwise wouldn't meet, and they often become friends for life," Neil said.

"We have done team and support roles, and you meet different people working on both sides."

Box Rallies (Shitbox Rally and Mystery Box Rally) fund critical cancer research nationally, with all the money raised going directly to Cancer Council.

Box Rallies organisers work with the National Health and Medical Research Council to allocate the funding.

"We have raised $36 million in 13 years," Mr Freeman said.

"We are running four rallies yearly, including our Mystery Box Rally.

"So we are raising $8 million to $8.5 million a year; the amount we are jumping year-on-year now is huge."

The trip takes in 3500km from Rockhampton to Hobart via Tambo, Eulo, Cobar, Tooleybuc, Geelong, Devonport and Strahan.

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