Ford's Mustang-inspired Electric SUV Aka The Mustang Mach-E (Mackey)
Ford has been saying its new electric crossover is 鈥淢ustang-inspired鈥?since last year鈥檚 Detroit Auto Show. And with the official name, they really, really went there. The battery-powered performance crossover will be called the Ford Mustang Mach-E, complete with the pony logo and everything. It鈥檚 not so much 鈥淢ustang-inspired鈥?as it is an official, legit member of the Mustang family. Just one with a tall ride height, four doors and no internal combustion engine. I鈥檇 make a 鈥渉orse of a different color鈥?joke here, but that鈥檚 too damn obvious and I haven鈥檛 had enough coffee yet anyway. This car represents Ford鈥檚 first truly modern attempt at an EV, and an EV crossover. Announced in Detroit last year, it was initally tipped to be called the Mach 1. But after 鈥渁 very strong reaction,鈥?as Ford CEO Jim Hackett put it, that historic name was scrapped in favor of something new. Indeed, plenty of Angry Internet People balked at giving an EV people-mover the same name as a Mustang performance option that spanned decades. But in calling it the Mustang Mach-E, and with the styling we鈥檝e seen in the spy photos, Ford is pretty unapologetically leaning into the pony car鈥檚 image as it dives into the electric world. The car will be revealed in full this Sunday at an event in Los Angeles right before that city鈥檚 auto show. Ford has been saying its new electric crossover is 鈥淢ustang-inspired鈥?since last year鈥檚 Detroit Auto Show. And with the official name, they really, really went there.
The list of EVs getting unveiled in Los Angeles this week is not as long as in previous years. But the importance of those vehicles is extraordinary. The week starts with the wraps coming off the Ford Mustang Mach-E. And it ends with the first look of the Tesla Cybertruck. It鈥檚 a big week for EVs. Here are a few of the highlights from the 2019 Los Angeles Auto Show. News about Mustang Mach-E specs and prices leaked out a few days ago, pre-empting some of the excitement about Ford鈥檚 legendary All-American sports car going electric. The extended range version will have 300 miles of estimated range. We took a ride in the Mustang Mach-E yesterday and will share our impressions and official photos Sunday at 6:30 pm, right after the live-show reveal. On Monday, we鈥檙e expecting to get our first look at the Lincoln Corsair Plug-in Hybrid. Lincoln says the new model reveals the brand鈥檚 鈥渃ommitment to electrification,鈥?which means hybrids and plug-in hybrids. The Corsair, formerly the MKC, is the smallest vehicle in Lincoln鈥檚 renewed lineup.
It debuts with the 2020 model year. Judging from Ford鈥檚 current plug-in hybrid system, the Corsair PHEV will likely provide about 25 miles of all-electric from a 9-kilowatt-hour battery pack. We鈥檒l know for sure in a couple of days. Carsten Breitfeld, who became Faraday Future鈥檚 CEO in September, will be speaking at the Automobility LA conference on Tuesday morning. Breitfeld was formerly Chairman and CEO of Byton - and before that led BMW鈥檚 i8 vehicle program. The Wall Street Journal鈥檚 Tim Higgins will ask Breitfeld about how the brand plans to reestablish trust after a few rocky years. Later this same morning in the same place, Karma Automotive will hold a press conference. We鈥檒l be there for the global introduction of both the Karma Revero GTS, a performance version of the 2020 Revero GT luxury electric vehicle, and the SC2, a new concept car. Karma is also going to show the next evolution of the SC1 Vision Concept unveiled earlier this year.
The company is expected to provide more insight into its business strategy. ToyotaTrump boycott movement. California announced yesterday that starting next year, state agencies only buy vehicles from manufacturers that recognize California鈥檚 ability to set its own air pollution standards, which under threat by the Trump administration. The state will exclude Toyota, as well as GM and Fiat-Chrysler. That鈥檚 the context in which Toyota will unveil a plug-in version of the RAV4, which will likely have an all-electric range of 25 miles. The RAV4 PHEV may come standard with all-wheel drive like the regular non-plug-in-hybrid model. An electric motor drives the rear wheels. The LA Auto Show media days wrap up on Thursday morning. But the EV world will then turn its attention that night to the unveiling of the Tesla CyberTruck pickup at the company鈥檚 Hawthorne design center. It was first supposed to be unveiled this summer, but it was pushed to the fourth quarter. Elon Musk has hinted that the CyberTruck will have exciting options, like 400 to 500 miles of range, a dual-motor all-wheel-drive powertrain, and 300,000 pounds of towing capacity. Stay tuned to Electrek for all these LA happenings and others we discover while in Los Angeles. What are you most excited about? What questions should we pose to auto execs? FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links.
The 1969-1970 Ford Mustang fastback is one of the better looking cars to ever leave a factory in Detroit, and I'm not just saying that because I've got one in the garage. Actually they didn't just leave factories in Detroit, because at the height of Mustang madness they left assembly plants in Dearborn, San Jose, New Jersey, Mexico City, and Venezuela. Regardless, the '69 Sportsroof as designed by the guys under Gale Haldeman is something special. 13,000 with 2 days to go, located in Erlanger, KY. The Pony Express is part barn find, part hot rod, part vintage drag car -- but if you ask me, this isn't the car to buy and doing a rotisserie restoration. Just clean up the interior, replace anything that has rusted through and drive it around as-is. Under the hood is a 351 cubic inch Cleveland V8 that would have been rated at 300 horsepower and 385 ft-lbs of torque with a 4bbl carburetor. This one has been massaged for more airflow and has one of the largest oil pans this side of a Mediterranean food truck and will make an insane racket with those un-muffled pipes exiting under the driver's backside.