Your Next Powerplant Is Parked in the Driveway

Every suburban American should consider owning two vehicles:

• A plug‑in hybrid (PHEV) truck
• A smaller battery‑electric (EV) car

Together they can:

1. Save you money on energy expenses
2. Keep the lights on during disasters
3. Cut dependence on foreign energy
4. Stabilize the grid (and help your neighbors)
5. Help the environment

Why Use Trucks to Solve Energy Problems?

We (Americans) are emotionally attached to our trucks—and we spend accordingly.

Ford’s truck division alone would rank inside the Fortune 100, and it's economic output is larger than some countries.

If we build the right truck, we can solve large energy challenges for "free".

Trucks and Identity

For many of us, trucks symbolize freedom and hard work; the marketing department already knows that.

You might work an office job, tow twice a year, yet still crave an F‑250.

At $70 k+, that desire is tough to justify: they’re expensive to buy, fuel, and maintain.

So what would it take to make a $70 k truck an easy choice? Just a handful of features.

A 21st‑Century American Dream

Assume a typical suburban household has:

• A single‑family home with rooftop solar
• One parent who drives sparingly
• 1 EV car for 90 % of daily trips ( Less than 50 miles )
• 1 PHEV truck mostly parked at home

The Perfect Truck Does Three Jobs

1. Truck stuff — Tow, haul, camp
2. Battery on wheels — ~90 kWh of stationary storage
3. Mobile genset — Generate electricity via IC engine

1. Truck Stuff

Use a series‑hybrid layout: the gasoline engine runs a generator; electric motors drive the wheels.

• No transmission, transfer case, or driveshafts—just E‑axles
• IC Engine tuned for one efficient RPM; simpler, cleaner design
• Regenerative braking handles mountain descents effortlessly
• “Unlimited” towing range— Just refuel the gas tank
• Camp mode HVAC: Allows for airconditioned camping; Saving money on hotels and making more memories with other humans

2. Powerwall on Wheels

A Tesla Powerwall costs about $1k per kWh and only helps during outages.1**

Your 90 kWh PHEV truck gives you the same capacity plus a vehicle. The truck is effectively $90k of "free Powerwalls".

What about wearing out the battery? Don't worry.

Doing some quick math, if you drive the truck 12k miles per year, AND use the truck for a powerwall application. Based on charge/discharge cycles, you will be right at the the reasonable limit for battery life. This is assuming NMC (Lithum Nickel Maganese) chemistry.

If the chemistry, is LFP(Lithium Iron Phosphate ala LiFeP04), then you don't need to worry about battery wear at all.

Still worried about battery wear? You will probably replace the truck before it's an issue. Statistically Americans buy new vehicles within every decade.

What if the truck is being driven and the power goes out, the EV car provides redundancy. Both cars gone? You won't care if the house is powered down.

If the grid fails, between solar and the on-board IC generator, you are covered for a long period of grid instability.

3. Genset on Wheels

Standby home generators with transfer switches run around $10 k and add another thing on your plate to worry about.

Instead of installing another machine for the house. Just use the genset feature of the truck.

The truck’s clean, quiet automotive engine already surpass noise and emissions standards when compared to standby generators.

It will also output more power than any reasonable genset that you would buy. Because the battery covers most loads, the engine runs only as needed—cutting noise, wear, and emissions.

Nice-to have features for the PHEV truck:

• Natural‑gas capability : Connect to a stationary 500 gallon tank for extended runtime
• Coolant quick‑connects for combined heat‑and‑power (CHP) in winter

The Bottom Line

Even before fuel savings, the PHEV truck consolidates $20K – $30K of home hardware you no longer buy or service. This consolidation of value "drops" the truck price to $40k-$50k. Aligning with the average new car purchase price of $48k.

Every "what-if" scenario is handled, and you have the big truck you've dreamed of.

All this makes the truck of your dreams just a little bit more rational. Yes, early PHEV truck versions will be expensive. Some of my assumptions are out of touch. But as volumes grow, costs fall—and the benefits remain.

The simplest path to household energy resilience is already sitting in America’s favorite form factor. The truck.

Footnotes

• PHEV truck: large plug-in electric pickup truck or 3‑row SUV (F-150,F‑250, Escalade, Ramcharger etc.)
• EV car: smaller electric car or crossover (Model Y, Model 3, Bolt, etc.)
• 1** Peak shaving value isn't considered for the Powerwall. In theory, as more energy storage is deployed to the grid, the finanical returns will trend towards zero.
• If you care about national security, PHEV trucks will make America's grid more robust during wartime. Massively distributed powerplant(s) makes it harder to destroy.
• Edison motors (opens in a new tab) is working on this concept but with the tractor-trailer platform. They also have a conversion kit (opens in a new tab) for regular trucks.
• Ram is coming out with their Ramcharger (opens in a new tab) truck. This truck seems to perfectly fit the bill.