Ford will start unleashing the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E this coming December and the automaker has high hopes that the all-electric SUV will perform as intended. Essentially, the Mustang Mach-E is the company's first real electric vehicle and Ford is touting it as a game-changer in the making.
Ford CEO Jim Farley is convinced the upcoming EV will pull attention away from Tesla, which is acknowledged as the current market leader. Farley said the electric SUV has one big advantage going for it - the Mustang DNA that American drivers have a long-standing affection.
The company chief hinted that with the Mustang Mach-E, Ford is all set to wage a war with Tesla.
"For me, the Mach-E is the first true competitor with Tesla. It's got Detroit swagger. It's a Mustang. Tesla is not a Mustang," Farley told the Detroit Free Press.
The Mach-E is set to start production but Ford made clear that the effort is far from the typical large-scale assembly. The realistic target is to roll out around 50,000 units for the global market and the electrified Mustang will be made available via reservations.
Farley said the initial low volume manufacturing target is deliberate. Ford's plan is to build the SUV in relatively small numbers and subject them to rigid testing. If the standards set are met, which the company chief defined as the perfect stage, Ford will press the button for accelerated production.
The expectation is Ford will be swamped with orders as customers were deemed intrigued by the beloved label's transformation into a modern EV. As Farley indicated, the company will be ready to meet the demands beginning in 2022 when the Mustang Mach-E would have shifted to high-gear production mode.
The modernized Mustang will hit the road looking to give Tesla a good fight. In terms of performance comparison, the Mach-E AWD Extended Range will require significant tweaks to prevail over the Tesla Model Y Long Range AWD. The latter simply dominates in all aspects, according to Electrek.
However, would-be buyers might just be tempted by the savings to be realized when choosing the Mach-E. The advertised sticker price for Tesla's crossover says $49,900 or $200 pricier than what Ford is asking for the new Mustang. But Ford buyers have access to the full federal tax credit.
Such privilege will translate to savings of up to $7,500 and it will remain available for the next 18 to 24 months, which is no longer the case for Tesla buyers.
The same applies to the all-electric Ford F-150 that is expected to debut in 2022, which should mean that Ford indeed is in a strong position to rival Tesla's Model Y and the hotly-anticipated Cybertruck.
