Tesla Expands Vehicle-to-Load Capability to Model Y Premium

Tesla has expanded its vehicle-to-load (V2L) capability to the Model Y Premium, enabling owners to draw power from the car's battery. This feature allows owners to pull 2.4 kW out of the car's battery at 120 volts and 20 amps, making it possible to power household appliances. ## What You Need to Make It Work To access this feature, owners need to purchase an $80 adapter that clips onto the end of the Gen 3 Mobile Connector, the charging cable that comes with new Model Ys. The adapter is not an outlet built into the car, but rather a fitting that converts the charging cable into a household outlet rated for 20 amps. ## Industry Comparison Tesla's 2.4 kW V2L capability is lower than what other manufacturers offer. Hyundai has been shipping V2L on the Ioniq 5 since 2021 at 3.6 kW, with an interior outlet and a charge-port adapter in the box. Kia also offers V2L on the EV6 and EV9, while Ford's F-150 Lightning starts at 2.4 kW and goes up to 9.6 kW on extended-range trucks. Chevy's Silverado EV offers up to 10.2 kW. ## Home Backup Still Not Available Despite the expansion of V2L capability to the Model Y Premium, Tesla has not yet enabled home backup for the vehicle. The company's Powershare page still states that "Powershare is not available for Model S, Model 3, Model X, and Model Y." This means that the Model Y Premium cannot be used as a power source for the home during an outage, unlike the Cybertruck, which can push 11.5 kW into a house for three days or more. ## Electrek's Take While the expansion of V2L capability to the Model Y Premium is a step in the right direction, Tesla still lags behind the industry in terms of bidirectional charging. The company's decision to charge extra for the adapter and to limit the V2L capability to the Premium trim has been criticized by some as being inconsistent with its own business model, which includes selling home batteries and grid services.