Ford is really going for it, huh? Between the $300,000 Ford Mustang GTD and, now, rally-inspired Mustang Mach-E Rally, I still don’t know what the company is trying to do, I just know I’m enjoying the hell out of it. I’m definitely a Safari-All-The-Things kind of person and safari-ing an electric crossover is stretching that ideology to its limit, but I’m here for it.
When Ford teased the Mach-E Rally it was a bit of a surprise given that I’m not sure anyone asked for it. Was there a huge groundswell for a lifted, maybe-slightly-faster Mach-E GT? Granted, Ford is one of the last three teams competing in the rally championship (along with Toyota and Hyundai) so the brand does represent this kind of off-road driving. But, um, the Mach-E?
I feel about this the way I felt when I recently found out that Tim Robbins was in the original Top Gun, but just barely in the movie, so he’s randomly high-fiving everyone on the carrier deck at the end when Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer almost kiss. It’s like… I enjoy all of those things and I guess I’m happy they’re together? Rally is awesome, my favorite car of all time is a rally-inspired Ford, and I like the Mach-E. Sure, so sure. Yes? I don’t know. Definitely maybe.
Let’s just take a look at this thing.
The base car is a Ford Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Edition, which means it gets the MagneRide adjustable dampers and a battery with 91 kWh of usable capacity connected to front- and rear-mounted motors that power all wheels. This version has been “tuned” according to Ford, so power should be at least 480 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque, which is the same amount of horsepower as the current stock version of the car but with slightly more torque.
Obviously, just calling a vehicle a “rally” edition of anything doesn’t make sense unless it can actually, you know, rally. In this case, the Mach-E gets a number of sensible upgrades (if you consider anything about this crossover sensible). The suspension has been modified to give the vehicle an extra 20 mm of ride height and the springs and dampers have been modified to perform better in rally-like settings. An additional upgrade is Ford’s first ever “RallySport Drive Mode” that, according to Ford: “allows for added yaw for bigger slides, a linear throttle response for better control, and more aggressive damping for better handling in loose corners.”
The worst part about driving in the dirt is the risk of rock chips and other scrapes the average car isn’t prepared for, so Ford added more underside protection for the motors, protective door cladding, very noticeable fender archers, and even a tow-strap in case you get in trouble.
I think the most interesting choice here (besides the choice to make it exist) is in the tire, which is a Michelin CrossClimate 2. I love this decision. The Subaru Forester Wilderness, which I suppose is the most similar car on sale, rides on big GEOLANDAR A/T tires and, while they’re great in dirt and mud, it’s not something I’d want to roll around on all the time. I’ve got CrossClimate 2s on my own Forester and they’re a great mix of on-road comfort with snowy performance.
Plus, the Mach-E Rally looks the business, with a Focus RS-inspired rear wing, new front splitter, rally-inspired fog lights, and a black steel roof. The best thing, though? Those wheels.
These remind me of the OZ WRC wheels that Colin McRae had on his Focus WRC rally car.
I’m just going to file this under WTF, which stands for: What The Ford. It’s when the company builds something I can’t quite explain and I’m not sure there’s a market for but, nevertheless, I enjoy. I’m still holding out for a Maverick RS, though.
The Mustang Mach-E Rally will go on sale in early 2024 for about $65,000 and I will be extremely happy if someone buys one and takes it to Pikes Peak to race. Do it. I will write about it.
…because who wouldn’t want a 4500-lb “rally car”? <rolleyes>
Ford has all the direction of a pre-school soccer team.
I’ve spent a great deal of time rallying an FJ Cruiser and it is beyond glorious. With the lower centre of gravity, there is definite potential here
The funniest thing about this is they put a sporty wing on it but they still had to hide it by painting it black because otherwise they’d lose the trompe l’oeil fastback roofline effect.
Pointless, simply pointless.
Previous Roush 98GT and 97 Cobra owner. These SUVs do absolutely nothing for me. I want a small rally car not a damn SUV.
No manual trans, no interest.
Formula is simple.
Low ride height, at least a 10lb/hp power to weight, manual transmission, and under 3500lbs. I want to be able to mod it and increase the power later. Absolutely full-time AWD with zero interest in Haldex/Part-time setups.
Campy did similar Mg rally wheels.
Those wheels are definitely the best part, followed by the rear spoiler. I have very similar wheels on my car to deal with the terrible paving of the streets in my city, and I love the way they look.
I like it. Ford is bringing the sense of fun lately.
But can we jump it? Also wanna see it on the O’Neil “Will it Rally” series.
Does Rally America or whatever it is called these days have an EV class? Seems like an EV would work well in a stage rally. It would be interesting to see how competitive this would be as an actual rally prepped car.
This! Ford Racing working with FIA to create a Mach E based spec rally series would be sick. Alternatively, Ford Racing could join Extreme E – https://www.extreme-e.com/. I’m not sure on the rules but maybe they could enter a Mach E badged entry?
Pretty cool.
Look, I bemoan the death of compact sporty cars as much as anyone on here, but the reality is CUVs have circled us back to what sedans and wagons used to be before they turned into touring cars.
Look at Volvos for instance, and what they have sold as a family car over the decades.
1960s through 1980s, RWD Volvos (140 & 240) had something like 8.7″ of wheel travel, and came with 60 and 70 profile tires, depending on the trim. Thats current large SUV/light truck territory. These cars were basically gravel road bosses straight from the factory- You can rail twisty back roads as fast as the engine can move you, flying over baby-head rocks and deep pot holes. Speed bump? Curb into a parking lot? Simply throttle down and smash it.
Then we get to the 850. Drastically different approach to vehicle dynamics- These family sedans and wagons boasted ride heights and wheel and tire packages not far off their BTCC brethren. Even today, an 850 corners FLAT. The ride isn’t terrible, but they crave smooth asphalt.
You want to know what I think killed the sedan and wagon? Magazine automotive journalists quoting skidpad measurements as if that had any bearing on real-world drivers. Over the years cars have become lower, faster and sharper to the point your average consumer has said ‘I’m out, my neighbourhood isn’t a racetrack’ and bought a taller car with real tires- A CUV.
Back in the day, 20mm extra ride height would have just been the base model.
Too bad CUVs ride on the same platforms as these sharper cars and are simply masquerading as vehicles with good rough road dynamics.
Not too bad, the platform doesn’t matter. The afore-mentioned 240 was unibody and could be made to handle like a race car- They did dominate Group A circuit racing for a few years. The point is, they come from the factory set up to handle shit roads. As did the 1960s Mustang…
CUVs definitely have more suspension travel and taller tire profiles than their platform mates. Even if they aren’t proper 4x4s, a CRV, Rogue or Escape will ride over rough gravel, curbs and potholes much better than a Civic, Sentra or Focus, while out-handling a true SUV on the pavement.
It’s a nice balance that fits the needs of pretty much every real-world driver, hence why they are so popular, and low sedans with 45 profile tires have fallen out of favour. (As fun as those are from an enthusiast perspective.)
I’m not convinced that’s true. Obviously many of them use more sidewall, but as an example I looked up the 2015 corolla and 2015 rav4 on rockauto and both of them have front struts with 6.5″ of travel. The rav4 strut is simply a different length.
B8 A4 and Q5 use the same part numbers for front suspension with a different length lower strut mount. The rears may be slightly longer travel because they are constrained by the mounting points and it doesn’t make any sense to make a longer shock (not strut) that doesn’t have a little bit more travel as well.
(I am 100% a CUV hater. I’m an absolute sucker for a unibody full indy suspension SUV but CUVs are just the worst of both worlds.)
Maybe you can tell me why most CUVs ride better on rough roads then.
There’s much more to suspension than total travel length-Manufacturers can dial in ride height anywhere within that range, effecting droop and available travel for compression. Then you’ve got spring free lengh and rate, damping ratios, alignment and body mounting points, all of which would be adjusted between vehicles of different mass and weight distribution for safety and balance, even if they share the same architecture and basic parts.
And that’s before we even get to wheel size and tire profile- which probably makes a bigger difference to ride than all of the above, and the Rav4 definitely has more sidewall. Maybe you could argue a Corolla with big tires would ride the same, but most people tend to drive their cars with more or less the tire profile they come with.
Idk man. My family’s old CRV handled the rough road to our cabin better than the Civic we had of the same era. Unless this was some sort of deep-state automotive conspiracy implanted in my brain, I think the vehicle with the bigger tires handled bumps better? Is this really controversial?
Not that the Civic couldn’t manage the road if you drove carefully, the CRV just made it comfy, and you could cruise through much faster. The Civic was a better car in some ways, but not all.
Did not disagree with you on the tires. Do think all CUVs should be replaced with lifted wagons.
More battery powered gimmick junk! Battery powered vehicles are simply a fad n will be gone to bankruptcy very soon! Every last company including Tesla will be gone because no one wants this junk!
Let us also celebrate the fact it isn’t white/grey/silver/black! Colors!
I have the OZ wheels on my Peugeot 306. Amazing wheels, absolutely love the look of them! And they are light too. Clearly the Mach-E ones are tributes, not the real thing, but they still look good. Having the OZ Racing text stamped on them really makes them look so much better though!