Ford has made a mess of the Mustang Mach-E for one too many reasons. First things first, the Blue Oval tested the waters by teasing the all-electric crossover as the Mach 1. The Mustang-loving public didn’t agree with that, and thus, the Ford Motor Company settled for Mach-E instead.
There’s also the matter of Mustang or lack thereof. The Mach-E doesn’t have a thing in common with the S550 except for the pony badging and Mustang-esque styling. The interior, however, is a rip-off that few can digest because of the similarities with the Model Y and Model Y.
Last, but certainly not least, the pricing has forced the Ford Motor Company to drop the Ford badging for the Mustang pony. The entry-level Select trim starts at something like $43,895 before options, featuring rear-wheel drive and 230 miles of range compared to the $48k and 300 miles for the Tesla Model Y. Adding insult to injury, the performance isn’t up to snuff either.
EV Bite thought about the implications of the Mach-E has for the Ford Motor Company, especially the U.S. dealership network. A legacy automaker with little experience in selling electric vehicles is prone to many hiccups, and dealership employees have greatly validated this concern.
Calling dealerships within a 200-mile radius has resulted in “absolutely nothing but misinformation. You can’t charge a Mustang Mach-E at home, they can use Tesla Superchargers, it doesn’t have enough range, a plug-in hybrid is better,” and so forth. “According to one dealership, a Tesla is better than the Mach-E.” Make no mistake about it, Ford has to sort this out quickly.
Spreading misinformation is bad enough, but the lackluster training of dealership employees is inexcusable. Are you even trying to sell the Mach-E or what? These hiccups should also concern the higher-ups who believe that Mustang owners with interest for EVs would choose the Mach-E as their first electric vehicle instead of a Tesla, be it the Model Y or the larger Model X.
On that note, what’s the most BS thing you’ve heard from your local dealership while asking for a car or during servicing?
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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