FORD MUSTANG MACH-E

SACRILEGE, SAVIOUR OR SOMETHING ELSE ENTIRELY?

- TONY O'KANE

Messing with tradition is a dangerous exercise. What's more, launching a product that's the first of its kind is also fraught with danger - and Ford has elected to roll both of those risky ventures into one car. Brave.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E is the Blue Oval's first serious foray into the world of all-electric motoring. Now, three years (yes, really) after launching in its home market, it is finally on sale in Australia.

Rusted-on Mustang aficionados will likely despise it purely because it applies the hallowed Mustang name to a high-riding, five-door crossover (and the absence of combustion power obviously raises their hackles too). But let's try and look beyond the marketing - is the Mustang Mach-E a good performance EV or not?

Starting from $79,990 for the RWD Select and topping out at $107,665 for the dual-motor AWD GT performance hero, the Mach-E is positioned above similarly-shaped offerings such as the Polestar 2, Tesla Model Y and Kia EV6.

Countering the high cost of entry is a fat standard equipment list. The Mach-E Select comes with features like a massive glass panoramic sunroof, a glitzy 15.5-inch portrait display, a 10-speaker B&O sound system, a 10.2-inch digital instrument pack (in an ultra-slim panoramic aspect ratio), adaptive cruise control, power-adjustable front seats, remote connectivity features, pleather upholstery, a wireless phone charging pad, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, and an electric tailgate.

Powered by a 72kWh lithiumiron-phosphate (LFP) battery, the 198kW/430Nm RWD Select offers a driving range of 470km.

Moving further into the range, the mid-tier Mach-E Premium adds excellent projector LED headlamps, red contrast stitching for the upholstery, a black headliner, metal pedals, ambient interior lighting and red brake calipers.