Ford has introduced a new product that makes it easier to use your F-150 Hybrid or Lightning as a backup power source for your home. The company has partnered with Global Power Products to make the company's GenerLink transfer switch compatible with F-150 Lightning EVs and F-150 Hybrid trucks. Both have a feature called Pro Power Onboard that can deliver power through a 240-volt outlet in the bed.
You can plug appliances and laptops directly into the bed, or run extension cords into your home in a pinch. But the new system links that 240V outlet straight to a home's main electrical panel, much like any other generator. The system can be installed at a home's meter or next to it. It works with F-150 Lightnings that have the Pro Power Onboard system rated at 9.6 kilowatts, and with F-150 PowerBoost Hybrids with 7.2 kilowatts of Pro Power Onboard capability.
View Price on AmazonPosts on owners forums show that Ford F-150 Lightning owners have been rigging up these kinds of setups for years; the technology itself isn't new. But now there's a Ford-approved version, which centers around a 12-inch cord called the Ford Vehicle Connector. A company spokesperson said the company doesn't endorse aftermarket connectors, but that it has tested this one thoroughly. And Ford says plugging straight into a generator-style outlet can trip its trucks' built-in safety sensors.
The hardware itself will run you $1,100, with the cost for installation varying depending on where it's mounted, Ford says. Installing the setup at the meter—which not every utility allows—should cost $250-$450. Next-to-meter installs, Ford says, cost $1,000 to $1,500. That option in particular isn't exactly cheap, but if you live somewhere where power outages are common, it could be worth it. And the other way to use a Lightning as a backup battery bank—installing a system that automatically pumps power into your home through a Ford wall charger—can be far costlier.
Source: insideevs.com
