Ford Bringing Out New Mustang Mach-E Rally Edition Next Year And True Off-Roader Could Follow

Republished By Plato

Followers: 0

Ford dropped a surprise announcement at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on Friday as it raced a “first-ever” Mustang Mach-E Rally edition at the annual event.

Mustang Mach-E Rally beauty shot REL — Ford told TheDetroitBureau.com exclusively it plans to build a rally edition of the Mustang Mach-E next year.

While the model that ran up the Goodwood Hill Climb is a prototype, the Rally edition will go into production next year, Darren Palmer, the head of Ford’s EV program, said in an exclusive interview following the debut.

And it hints at what could be still more rugged SUVs to come. While Palmer pointedly declined to confirm any future product programs, he said the Mach-E Rally model will help Ford test the limits of EV technology, including the very real possibility of adding a true off-roader.

An autocross fanatic

The Mach-E Rally project “came about through some enthusiasts on our team … (and) an autocross fanatic,” Palmer said while huddling in a prototype Ford Explorer EV to get out of a heavy rainstorm. They created a model “that fit Ford’s background and heritage,” and led to an 16-month effort that led to the prototype shown at Goodwood.

“This could be freedom to go more places,” said Palmer, noting the EV team had neither official authorization, nor funding, for the project when it was conceived.

The Mustang Mach-E Rally won’t challenge the automaker’s Bronco line-up. It’s not a full off-roader, Palmer cautioned, but “a high-speed off-roader” meant for classic rally-style driving. “It feels like a rally car.”

A learning platform

2023 Mustang Mach-E nose runs Goodwood FOS — Ford showed off the Mustang Mach-E Rally edition prototype at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

“We’re still learning what we can do,” he added, but initial testing has shown the electric motors already used by the Mach-E, with modifications to the EV’s software control technology, provide a significant level of control when taken out on gravel, dirt and the other road conditions rally cars are expected to encounter.

Looking further ahead, Palmer described the project as a “learning platform of what off-road can be when you go all-electric” that will help Ford see how much further it can go.

The automaker already has a handful of Mach-E variants, including a base coupe-crossover and the much more potent GT model. Equipped with the Performance package that includes an electronically controlled MagneRide suspension, some drivers have begun racing the EV.

A few details, a few hints

Palmer would discuss only a few details about the Mach-E Rally model, noting that the aerodynamic body will be tweaked for modest off-road applications, with the variant also set to get the necessary underbody protection. He also acknowledged that it will ride slightly higher than the base Mach-E, “and even higher” than the GT. Asked whether the Rally edition might also share the GT Performance model’s MagneRide suspension, he coyly suggested it was something “you might speculate.”

2023 Mustang Mach-E rear runs Goodwood — Officials said it’s a “learning platform of what off-road can be when you go all-electric” that will help Ford see how much further it can go.

Ford is also working up what is expected to be a high-performance version of its other retail battery-electric vehicle, the F-150 Lightning. It earlier this month dropped hints that this upcoming version will be known as the Flash.

But getting into the off-road segment is something many have expected Ford to eventually follow up with, whether with a variant of the Mach-E or, perhaps, an all-electric version of some other model, such as the rugged Bronco.

The competition is coming

What’s becoming increasingly clear is that off-road enthusiasts seem to like the idea of going electric. Jeep has scored twin successes with its 4xe packages. The plug-in hybrid version of the Jeep Wrangler 4xe is the best-selling PHEV in the U.S., with the Grand Cherokee 4xe also proving highly popular.

And Jeep will bring out the fully electric Avenger model in 2024.

Other off-road brands are moving in a similar direction. GMC is already selling the Hummer EV. And Land Rover is mid-development with its first EV. Even the off-road startup Ineos, which showed off both its Grenadier SUV and Quartermaster pickup at Goodwood, is set to go electric. CEO Lynn Calder told TheDetroitBureau.com that the company plans to have its first battery off-roader in production by 2026, and it may offer EV versions of other products to follow.