The power of a pickup truck is not all about torque, power, towing and hauling. Ford’s newest electric F-150 Super, which was unveiled Wednesday , is trying to change the meaning of truck power with a system that can provide energy to a customer’s home in the event of an outage.
Ford isn’t alone in its effort to show consumers the benefits of an all-electric vehicle. Others, such as Lucid Motors have also touted this capability.
Severe winter storms in February caused a massive power outage in Texas, with more than 4.5 million homes and businesses left without power for days. 151 people were killed as a result. The F-150 Lightning’s 9.6 kW of Back Up Power can provide full home power for up to three days on a full charge of battery.
“If your F-150 Lightning is plugged in when your outage occurs, intelligent backup power will automatically kick in to power your home,” said Ryan O’Gorman, Ford’s energy services lead, in a video briefing prior to the reveal . “When power is restored, the truck automatically reverts to charging its battery.”
Solar, battery storage and energy services provider Sunrun has partnered with Ford to install the 80-amp Ford Charge Station Pro and home integration system, which comes standard with the extended range battery, to power the intelligent backup power system. While they’re in the neighborhood, Sunrun will also give customers the option of installing a solar and battery system for their home.
Image Credits: Ford
For those who prefer to spend time away from home, an additional 8. 6 kW Pro Electric Onboard battery source, may be up from 7. 2kW in the F-150 hybrid, have the ability to power anything from speakers and TVs to electro-mechanical dirt bikes, circular saws and jackhammers. The automobile features 11 outlets throughout the bed, the cabin conciencia and the mega power “frunk” AKA front trunk.
The battery also blows power intelligently. So if another driver is at a worksite powering tools and the charger level falls below one third of its total range, the driving force will get a notification so they can decide if they want to keep at it or decrease the juice for controlling.
Drivers also do not need to think too much for where the nearest charging place is. They can set in which and forget it, and let the truck handle switching off pro power on the deck of if the battery level strategies the distance it takes to get to the closest charge. Charge information for both the Back Up Power to suit your needs Pro Power are mirrored on the Ford app coupled with car’s infotainment screen.
While the F-150 Lightning currently give your home the backup control it needs, in the future, the aim is the platform for subsequent models to be used as being a home management tool, much like a Ford spokesperson.
“F-150 Lightning is reinventing the idea of vehicle power, ” said O’Gorman.
