Bidirectional Charging: How to Use Your Electric Car as a Home Battery
As we see more and more electric vehicles on the road, there’s a lesser-known but increasingly popular feature that EV buyers should consider: bidirectional charging. This capability allows an EV to act as a battery, powering your home, appliances, and more.
Currently, two-way charging is only available in a handful of cars, including the Ford F-150 Lightning and the Nissan Leaf. Its popularity is growing: In August, GM announced that the technology will be standard in all of its electric vehicles starting in the 2026 model year.
While Elon Musk has downplayed the technology as “clunky,” Tesla has confirmed that all of its models will support bidirectional charging functionality by 2025.
Here’s what you need to know about bidirectional charging, how it works, which cars have it and whether it’s the next step in energy storage.
For more, Check out the best electric cars on the road and find out where you can charge your electric car for free.
What is bidirectional charging?
Normally, charging an electric car is a one-way process: alternating current, taken from a wall socket, is sent from an electric car charger, wall socket or other power source to the car battery, where it is converted to direct current.
Bidirectional charging allows the vehicle to convert stored direct current into alternating current for various purposes.
How can I use bidirectional charging?
Depending on the setup, the energy stored in the battery can be used in different ways:
Vehicle to home: V2H, also known as vehicle to building (V2B),This feature allows your car to act as a backup generator during a power outage. A fully charged EV battery can last for approximately 60 kilowatt hours of electricity on average enough to power a home for two days.
With smart charging technology, you can also use V2H technology to reduce your energy bill by charging your electric car during off-peak hours and powering your home when prices are higher.
Vehicle to grid: A vehicle with V2G charging capability can send electricity back to the utility grid, just as homeowners with solar can do. Not only do you help stabilize the grid, but you also get paid for the energy you provide.
An EV owner with a V2G charger can save up to $150 per year on their electricity bills, according to data from the University of Rochester.
Vehicle to be loaded: V2L is the most basic type of bidirectional charging. Typically, an adapter is all you need to power your car for camping gear, power tools, home appliances or other standalone devices.
Vehicle to vehicle: Another form of V2L, V2V, allows EV owners to power an EV that is out of power. This is similar to giving a gasoline-powered car a “jumper battery.”
Vehicle to everything:V2X is a collective name for all bidirectional charging options.
Which electric vehicles offer bidirectional charging?
Only a limited number of EVs sold in the U.S. offer some form of bidirectional charging. These include:
- Ford F-150 Lightning (V2G)
- Genesis GV60 (V2L)
- Hyundai Ioniq 5 (V2L)
- Hyundai Ioniq 6 (V2L)
- Kia EV6 (V2L)
- Kia Niro (V2L)
- Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (V2L)
- Nissan Leaf (V2H, V2G)
- VW ID.4 (V2H)
- Polestar 3 (V2G)
- Tesla Cybertruck (V2L)
When will bidirectional charging become the standard?
While bidirectional functionality is certainly not universal, automakers are quickly adding it to their lineups to meet demand and potentially gain an edge over regulators.
BMW, Volvo And Porsche are reportedly testing all functionality. Tesla has said all of its models will support bidirectional by 2025.
General Motors will make V2H charging a standard feature this year, starting with the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV RST. The GM rollout continues with the 2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1, 2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV, 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV, 2024 Cadillac Lyriq and the 2025 Escalade IQ, Cadillac’s first full-size, all-electric SUV.
Ram is also launching its first vehicle with bidirectional charging this year with the Ram 1500 REV Electric truck is expected to be launched in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Standardizing bidirectional technology “will help accelerate GM’s vision of an all-electric future,” said Wade Sheffer, vice president of GM Energy. in a statement.
