Ford is reinventing itself for the European market. While we wait for a wave of new electric Ford models, we are adding the brand’s only EV to the endurance test fleet.
No big V8
A Ford Mustang in the endurance test garage would have filled some editors with joy just a few years ago. But now that it’s here, it doesn’t feel quite as promised. Because the Mustang Mach E has little to do with the low muscle car with a pleasantly rumbling V8. The use or misuse of that holy name has raised quite a few eyebrows. That sometimes distracted from the fact that the car is quite good. It drives like a Ford with its sporty character and is quite spacious inside. Although not an undefeated fighter, he managed to win several comparison tests, including against a Skoda Enyaq and a VolvoXC40.
In the European Ford line-up, the Mustang Mach E is also a remarkable one, which bears little resemblance to common models such as the Puma, the Kuga and, until recently, the Mondeo and the Fiesta. But Ford has more planned. A major electric offensive is coming, including a new electric Ford Explorer. In our opinion, spending a little longer with the Mach E is a good way to warm up for what’s to come. The car will stay with us for six months, after which it will make way for a brand new electric Ford.
More engines, same power
The Mustang Mach E is available in a number of variations: with a large or small battery pack and with rear-wheel or four-wheel drive. There is something striking going on here. You usually get more power with four-wheel drive on an EV, because it has an extra motor. But with the Ford it depends on which battery pack you choose. The basic version with rear-wheel drive and the small package of 75 kWh has 269 hp. But the four-wheel drive version with this battery also has 269 hp! Very special, because it has an extra engine. This probably has to do with the amount of power that the batteries can supply. Take the Extended Range with a 98 kWh and rear-wheel drive, you get 292 hp with that single engine.
If you get four-wheel drive here, you do get more power, namely 354 hp. The GT version has the same battery and 4WD, but with a hefty 487 hp. That’s quite overkill for us, so we opted for the RWD with 98 kWh and 292 hp. It costs just under €60,000 and is good for a WLTP range of 610 kilometers! Now we won’t be able to do that in practice, but with this basis you have some margin. With the temperatures in early fall we always get above 500.
Few options
The Extended Range is always a Premium version, so few extras are required. The Ford has everything you could want as standard, from heated seats and a new multimedia system to 19-inch wheels and many ADAS systems including autopilot and adaptive lighting. Apart from the cool color for €1,400, the only option available is a Technology Pack +, which gives us a B&O audio system with ten speakers and a multi-adjustable driver’s seat with memory function. The Mach E is pleasantly spacious inside, but the 483-liter trunk is a bit disappointing given the large size of the car. Fortunately, we also have a decent frunk that can fit some other stuff in addition to the charging cable.
We will of course take a close look in the coming months to see what the winter temperatures will do to the car’s range and whether it will achieve the promised fast charging capacity of 150 kW. In any case, it will be interesting to see whether the new generation of Ford EVs will go much further than this electric Mustang in six months’ time or whether the Mach E was already way ahead of its time.
Confrontations
Apart from that, we are going to confront the owner of a classic Mustang with this new electric version. Will those old-school enthusiasts like this new generation Mustang? The Ford can also take part in a comparison test against another guest in the endurance test garage: our Volvo C40. Interesting, because as mentioned, the Mach E previously won against an XC40, but the Volvos have had an important update this summer: they got rear-wheel drive and have also become a lot more efficient. This has significantly increased the range. Can the Swede now compete against the American battery violence? We will see.