Other versions of the Ford Mach-E still running under camo?
The Ford Mach-E is out in the open now, but only one edition was shown; and there will clearly be a whole range, from the base rear drive economy model (to get that 300 mile range) to the high-performance AWD version (to get those “target 3 seconds” 0-60 times).
Perhaps other editions of the Mach-E are still being tested under camouflage; reader Mike Driehorst spotted this one last night near Detroit.
We added arrows and legends, so don’t blame Mike.
Like past Mach-E prototypes, it has a fake tailpipe, and what appear to be old-style Ford grille slats underneath the front camouflage—but the vehicle is far too close to other sightings of the Mach-E for us to still be fooled. That’s one reason why the camo goes under the rear bumper, to hide the electric bits.
Ford isn’t actually going to make these for quite a while, and Chevrolet is also lining up a battery-electric performance crossover; the latter probably won’t be marketed with such flair, though. The “Mustang inspired” (at least in the tail-lights) Mach-E made a splash partly because of the link to the muscle car. Chevrolet has Camaros, Corvettes, and a panoply of past performance cars; will they try to link to those, or let reporters compare their new crossover to the Volt?
The first high-performance crossover, made by Jaguar, sold out practically as soon as it hit the market, so it’s a segment inviting more competition. Tesla has its Model Y coming up, and a long list of other automakers are coming soon afterwards. Today there’s one electric crossover; in two years, the Mach-E will be just one in a flooded field.
Clark Westfield grew up fixing up and driving past-their-prime American cars, including various GM and Mopar V8s. He has ghostwritten auto news for the last few years, and lives in Farmingdale, New York.