Commentary

Test Drive: Mustang Mach-E Offers Fun-To-Drive Practicality

Ford Mustang Mach-E GT with bronze appearance package. Photo Credit: Tanya Gazdik/MediaPost


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Ford Motor Co. is adding some new horses to its electric SUV stable.

I recently had the opportunity to test drive the Mustang Mach-E GT and Rally editions. The Mach-E — which starts at $39,995 for a standard range battery with rear-wheel drive or $43,995 for a standard range battery with all-wheel drive — already checked many boxes for prospective SUV and EV buyers, but the new options add even more. 

Available on the Mustang Mach-E GT — which starts at $53,995 and offers an extended range battery and all-wheel drive — the bronze appearance package features 20-inch Sinister Bronze painted aluminum wheels, Mustang “Mach-E 4X” door badges and rear GT Badge outlined in Sinister Bronze and a bold bronze mesh front grille shield. 

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The bronze appearance package is really head-turning and distinctive and is available on Shadow Black, Star White Metallic Tri-Coast and new Eruption Green body colors. 

Combining both new performance and appearance options, the Mustang Mach-E Rally, starting at $59,995, is the first-ever rally-inspired EV from Ford. Rally is raised 1” higher than GT, tuned for both on road and off-road, with rally-inspired appearance wheels, tires, spoilers and stripe package. It delivers great performance while driving confidently and comfortably both on and off road.

Even if you never go off-road, the increase in durability is actually perfect in an urban environment, offering some protective elements to the vehicle’s body along with a cool aerodynamic spoiler on the back. 

“A major part of my role is understanding what our customers really want and need,” says Donna Dickson chief engineer of the Mustang Mach-E. “My team and I spend a lot of time thinking about what will excite our customers so we can build EVs that they’ll truly love. For 2024, we’re taking everything our customers love about Mustang Mach-E and incorporating that feedback into the vehicle.”

The result is more performance and additional electric vehicle range, with improved fast-charging speeds.

The 2024 Mustang Mach-E GT with the Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Upgrade truly is the quickest Mustang Mach-E to date. It achieves 60 mph in 3.3 seconds and cracks the quarter mile in 11.8 seconds at 114 mph. The Performance Upgrade comes standard on the new Mustang Mach-E Rally and is an available upgrade for the Mustang Mach-E GT.

The newest version of Ford’s hands-free semi-autonomous BlueCruise system is also available on all trim levels. I had the chance to test out what the engineers refer to as version 1.3 and it definitely feels more responsive. Unique to Ford’s system is the ability to sense when the vehicle in the lane next to you is hugging the lane, with the response to shift the Mach-E a bit over to the other side of its lane. It does what drivers do normally, which gives you an even more secure feeling when using it.

For the last 60 years, Mustang has been a symbol of freedom, passion, and self-expression of drivers globally, says James Duskiewicz, Mustang Mach-E assistant marketing manager.

"Now to many Mustang means power and agility, as well as style and attainability, which is exactly what Mustang Mach-E brings to the EV market,”  Duskiewicz told the media at a recent event. 

Since launch in 2020, Mustang Mach-E has brought new customers to both the Mustang brand and the Ford showroom with 50% of buyers being new to Ford, he says. 

“And we're also extraordinarily proud that Mustang Mach is the second bestselling EV SUV for two consecutive years and we're looking to keep that momentum alive,” Duskiewicz says. 

With the new options available, especially the Rally version, it shouldn’t be tough.

Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally edition.  Photo credit: Tanya Gazdik/MediaPost

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