Ford Fathom EV ute can power your home without a separate inverter

Key takeaways

• Fathom’s inverter is built into the vehicle, supplying more than 10kW to a home
• Ford expects the new home charger to cost about 50% less than before
• Fathom starts from US$28,350 and is due in 2027, with Australia unconfirmed

Ford has detailed how its upcoming Fathom electric ute can power a home without a separate wall-mounted inverter, supplying more than 10kW of AC power. The system was announced on 27 October, and the Fathom starts at US$28,350 when it goes on sale in the US in 2027. Ford has not confirmed the Fathom for Australia.

Ford says the Fathom is the first EV from a US automaker priced below US$30,000 that can do this without extra inverter hardware.

How Ford Fathom bidirectional charging works

A car battery stores DC power, while homes run on AC, so sending power from a vehicle to a house needs an inverter to convert it. Owners of Ford’s F-150 Lightning needed a separate Home Integration System, which Jalopnik reports costs about US$4,000 before installation.

On the Fathom, Ford has built the inverter into the vehicle’s E-box, one of its five main modules. Fewer parts mean lower costs, and Ford says the savings extend to the home equipment. Owners will have two ways to use the system:

• Home Power Management: charge the ute when electricity rates are low, then use the stored power at home when rates are higher. This needs a Home Power Station, which Ford expects to cost about 50% less than its first-generation bidirectional charger.
• Home Backup Power: keep the home running during an outage. This needs the Home Power Station plus a Home Backup Panel, and Ford says the backup hardware should cost at least 60% less than its first-generation equipment.

Ford has not published prices for either piece of hardware. Savings from sending power back to the grid also depend on local utility rules, and Ford says it is working with US utilities to simplify the connection process.