THE NEXT NORMAL

ELECTRIC SUVS ARE PROLIFERATING APACE, AND WHICH ONE RULES THE ROOST COULD CHANGE BY THE DAY

-  MIGUEL CORTINA

Elon Musk’s approach to running a company is anything but conventional. But whatever you might think of him or his strategies, there’s little doubt of his indelible impact across multiple industries, including aerospace, personal technology, and, yes, automotive.

His vision is a central reason Tesla has come to dominate today’s EV market despite—or perhaps because of—its relative lack of history or legacy. Yet in just 18 years, the electric car manufacturer has gone from producing small-volume baubles like the original Roadster to pumping out hundreds of thousands of mainstream crossovers and sedans like the Model Y and Model 3. Of course, Tesla’s vehicles are only part of the story. The history books are likely to give Musk and his firm just as much credit for getting the general public geeked about EVs—and sending nearly every other company scrambling to build them as a result.

Tesla is certainly a large reason the Ford Mustang Mach-E exists. Originally conceived as a front-drive, Fusion-based electric crossover under former CEO Mark Fields, the Mach-E was reshaped when new CEO Jim Hackett underscored its importance by telling executives the “heart of the company’s on trial here.”

Jim Farley, who succeeded Hackett as CEO but was then Ford’s president of global markets, steered the project in the direction of the Mustang brand, which clicked with designers and engineers. The vehicle added rear-drive and targeted 300 miles of range, and although the final product isn’t a carbon copy of the Model Y, you can tell which vehicle was in Ford’s sights.