How Ford’s Electric Mach E Could Succeed Where Rivals Have Failed

Ford’s long-awaited Mustang Mach E electric crossover is finally here, having debuted Sunday night in Los Angeles just days ahead of the 2019 L.A. Auto Show. The Mach E marks a new chapter in Ford’s history as it’s the first vehicle the brand has developed from the ground-up to be fully electric. 

The Mach E will have between 210 and 300 miles of all-electric range (depending on whether buyers choose rear-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive) — and between 255 and 459 horsepower (depending on which of the five trim levels buyers choose). Prices will start at $43,895 and go all the way up to $60,500 for the GT model (prices don’t include $1,100 destination or any state or federal tax incentives).

Due in late 2020 and early 2021, the Mach E is by no means the first mass-market EV in the U.S. EVs still make up less than two percent of the market in the U.S., so it’s not like this Ford is going to hit the reset button on all-electric popularity. 

But it could mark an inflection point in EV popularity that its predecessors (Chevy Bolt, Nissan Leaf, Hyundai Kona EV, Kia Soul EV, Honda Clarity EV, BMW i3, and Volkswagen e-Golf) never could reach. Here’s a look at why.

It’s not a compliance play. It’s something buyers want.

Here’s a fun fact: According to multiple Ford employees at the Mach E media briefing, Ford was originally planning a compliance-oriented EV (‘compliance’ in the sense that it would be oriented around meeting various governments’ emissions targets globally without a keen emphasis on, you know, actually being popular with consumers). 

Up until the summer of 2017, the unnamed model was to be a low hatchback-style CUV with a similar length to this Mach E. It had a wheelbase some 3.5 inches shorter than the Mach E and was to be focused much more around pure price (think 15-inch wheels and cheaper interior materials). Its design was nearly frozen at that point, and it bore little resemblance to what ultimately became this production model. 

Realizing that Ford needed to do something to stand out and match what consumers were looking for in a vehicle — not just an EV — the company made a quick but significant pivot in the middle of 2017 (it’s notable that this was also shortly after current CEO Jim Hackett took over and this is the first all-new vehicle developed under his tenure). That reset culminated in what we see today: a handsome crossover that Ford hopes has the utility, size, price, and efficiency that buyers are looking for — in a package that just happens to be all-electric.   

Buyers want crossovers.

Sales of sedans and hatchbacks in the U.S. have been withering for years; buyers today want vehicles across all size and price spectrums in the crossover shape. Regardless of their propulsion system. This has hurt earlier EVs like Nissan’s Leaf and Chevy’s Bolt, which are both smaller hatchbacks that don’t align with what your everyday buyer (read: non-early adopter) is looking for in a vehicle. 

Even sales of Tesla’s ultra-popular Model 3 sedan have been hampered by the fact that it’s not the crossover that many buyers are looking for, a key advantage for the upcoming Model Y.

Ford’s Mach E — while low-ish and sleek — still presents itself as a handsome crossover, making it instantly more palatable than the non-luxe EVs that have come before it. It doesn’t look like a science experiment or look weird or dorky. It gives EV buyers their green propulsion and cool-kid styling at the same time. 

It’s mainstream.

Forget the pricey EVs like Audi’s e-tron, Jaguar’s I-Pace, Porsche’s Taycan, or Tesla’s Model S and Model X. The Ford Mach E is for the people. It will start at just under $44,000 for a rear-wheel-drive base model with 230 miles of range, before any federal or state tax incentives. That means that said incentives could push the Mach E to $34,000 for the base model — well below the $37,000 average transaction price for new vehicles in the U.S. Yes, there are other EVs available in the same price range, but none have the qualities on this list. 

Massive charging network: Ford made headlines in October when it announced “North America’s Largest Electric Vehicle Charging Network.” While the headline sounds remarkably robust and expensive for Ford, the reality is Ford has merely stitched together existing networks and will make them available under a single Ford-branded setup. Still, anxiety over public charging infrastructure remains a key reason people aren’t making the jump to electric vehicles, as our recent study found out. By addressing this issue head-on, Ford hopes to make this EV-conversion easier to swallow for your average consumer, and they’ve conspicuously addressed it in a way that no other automaker — outside of Tesla — has done. 

Mustang name recognition. 

Ford’s Mustang name is practically its own brand. Whether you’re a gearhead or not, it’s likely you know the name ‘Mustang,’ and you probably know its association with Ford. So rather than launching a new nameplate and facing the marketing costs that come with informing consumers what that new model is, Ford can leverage one of the best-known monikers in the industry. GM didn’t have the same advantage with the Bolt, Nissan with the Leaf or Hyundai with its Kona. Don’t underestimate how important that can be to an automaker launching a new vehicle. 

Yet it’s also an all-new model.

Despite leveraging one of the oldest names in its lineup, Ford’s Mach E should also benefit in that it’s all-new. This sets it apart from previous ‘compliance’ EVs like Ford’s own now-discontinued Focus EV, the Honda Fit EV, Toyota’s RAV4 EV from a few generations ago, and Volvo’s upcoming XC40 Recharge. Mach E buyers will be able to easily telegraph to the world that they’re in a new, future-oriented vehicle rather than just a vehicle that’s had an electric powertrain shoehorned into a space originally designed for an engine. 

Dealers are on board.

Or at least Ford hopes they are. Some experts have said that it’s the dealers who are hurting the adoption of EVs in the U.S. because they see a significantly lower service opportunity in an EV. Electric vehicles, you’ll remember, require minimal maintenance when compared to a traditional gas-powered vehicle. And new-car margins are so thin today that most dealerships make a bulk of their money on the service side of things.

Ford is hoping to combat that with a network of 2,110 EV-certified dealers across the U.S. Each store has a dedicated EV expert on staff who is trained in electric vehicles and will be able to answer the types of questions that shoppers don’t typically ask with gas-powered cars. Only these EV-certified stores will be able to sell you a Mach E.