Ford Mustang Mach-E first drive: a complete electric CUV experience

We got the chance to test out the Ford Mustang Mach-E, and we’re bringing you our first-drive impressions of the electric vehicle.

In short, we think it delivers a complete electric CUV experience.

Last weekend, Ford loaned Electrek a pre-production Mustang Mach-E so we could get our first few driving hours inside the highly anticipated electric vehicle that is just now being delivered to dealerships in the US.

We are planning to do a full review of the Mach-E next month when we get the opportunity to spend more time in the vehicle, but for now, we wanted to bring you our first impression after spending the weekend with it.

You can watch the first drive video review below, and read some extra thoughts on my first experience with the vehicle further down:

Ford Mustang Mach-E exterior

I’m a big fan of the exterior design work on the Mach-E. Ford loaned us a Mach-E in “Rapid Red Metallic Tinted Clearcoat” and it stood out:

The lines on the hood are extremely pronounced, and that’s something that you can especially see looking out from the driver’s seat.

Along with the front end, it gives a very aggressive look to the Mach-E, and you can see the Mustang in it despite the fact that it comes in a compact SUV form factor.

Ford Mustang Mach-E interior

The skateboard battery platform and glass roof helps give the Mach-E a spacious interior.

Inside, we can see that Ford likely got some inspiration from Tesla and built the user experience around a large center display.

There’s also a very small instrument cluster in front of the driver’s seat.

Overall, I appreciate the interior of the Mach-E. Ford is going in the right direction by building the user experience around a display, which can receive software updates.

The display is responsive, and while the volume dial embedded on the display might seem gimmicky at first, people do enjoy a physical dial for volume control.

The dial also matches the transmission dial on the center console.

However, I think that there are a lot of improvements that could be implemented on the user interface side of things, especially making UI more intuitive. I’d find myself looking longer than I should for some fairly simple settings.

Here are a series of pictures of the different settings on the Mustang Mach-E center display:

As for the space inside the car, it’s certainly on the smaller side for an SUV, but I am 6 feet tall and could comfortably sit in both the front and back.

The trunk is also fairly spacious and I could easily fit four tires in the back.

Ford Mustang Mach-E driving experience

The seating position when driving does feel like a small SUV. You get a higher point of view, but the driving experience is still enjoyable, thanks to the low center of gravity that the large battery pack provides.

I could only put in a few hundred kilometers in my short time with the Mach-E, but I enjoyed the experience.

The ride is smooth, but the car can still enable some spirited driving in “unbridled” mode, thanks to the power dual motor powertrain.

One thing that really impressed me with the Mach-E is the one-pedal driving option. The animals that were driving the car before me deactivated it, and I couldn’t feel much regenerative braking.

After looking at the settings and reactivating the one-pedal driving, I was impressed.

The regen is strong and Ford’s braking system helps you easily come to a full stop for a true one-pedal driving experience.

While this can be achieved in other EVs, in my experience, you often have to apply the brakes for a smooth complete stop unless you want to do a California stop or crawl to the full stop.

Ford’s one-pedal driving is the smoothest I’ve tried yet.

In terms of efficiency, yes, it’s not Tesla efficient, but I was impressed by the accuracy of the displayed range and efficiency.

Over the just over 3,000 km that were put on this pre-production unit, it achieved an efficiency of 26 kWh per 100 km.

That’s 419 Wh per mile, but it was also using winter tires and in some pretty rough conditions at times.

My last trip was 27 km and mostly on unplowed roads at -10C and it still achieved 31 kWh per 100 km:

I think there’s room for improvements here, especially considering Ford keeps a massive 10 kWh buffer on the extended range battery pack (88 kWh useable of 98 kWh).

Here are some of the main specs of the different Mustang Mach-E trims:

Ford Mustang Mach-E first drive conclusion

Again, this is not a full review. We should have a full review next month after we get to spend more time with it. We are going to have to look at the entire ownership experience, from long-distance driving and charging to day-to-day usability.

There’s some question about the long-distance travel experience while relying on third-party charging networks that are going to need answers.

But for now, I am impressed by what is basically the first all-electric car that Ford has produced from the ground up.

You get a very good compact SUV that just happens to be electric and a Mustang.

I think there’s plenty of hope for Ford in this electric transition.