The car that powers your fridge

Japan's earthquake disaster has inspired Toyota to offer its Prius hybrid with a power outlet that can run household electrical appliances for two days.

Japanese car maker Toyota is set to offer an optional AC power-point in its Prius hybrid car that will allow owners to run their electrical goods from the car's battery pack.

Industry journal Automotive News reports the idea was spawned following the devastating earthquake that struck the country on March 11.

Victims were apparently using Toyota's hybrid-powered Estima (Tarago) van – the only Toyota model which already has an AC plug-hole – to power household appliances in the aftermath of the disaster.

Following a demonstration showing a Prius hatchback powering household electrical items such as a refrigerator, hotpot, fan and desk lamp, Toyota – which ironically is jokingly referred to as the "whitegoods" car maker within the industry, said it would offer a power-point as an option on Prius models from 2012.

The modified Toyota Prius was fitted with an onboard inverter to change the current of the batteries (DC) to that used for appliances (AC).

While there are accessories that can be powered by your car such using a similar inverter (such as low wattage portable fridges and DVD units that plug into the cigarette lighter), the Toyota-developed system has a maximum output of 1500 watts which allows it to power larger appliances like fridges and microwaves.

The whitegoods are powered by the car's battery pack, with the petrol engine cranking over automatically to recharge the battery when the power level starts to dip. Toyota claims a full tank of fuel will power appliances at maximum output for about two days.

The technology will initially only be available in Japan because of different voltage requirements and regulations, but bloggers around the globe are already singing the praises of the idea.

"That would be a huge selling point down here on the Gulf Coast, where it can take days for power to be restored after a hurricane," cwallace wrote on The Truth About Cars blog.

"I went for 15 days without juice after Hurricane Ike, and it took 15 more to finally get the smell of gasoline out of my nose after searching for it, hauling it, and pouring it into a generator for two weeks straight."