Ford’s new EV crossover may be great, but the Mustang branding can be difficult to swallow.
Ford’s new hybrid electric vehicle is not popular with people wearing the Mustang badge. This is an informal survey, but it’s clear that there are more complaints than praises for Ford’s new electric crossover. We spoke with colleagues and Mustang enthusiasts. Some hate it. Jimmy Dinsmore , an automotive writer and passionate Mustang fan was so upset that he started a petition to change the name of the crossover. So far, over 900 people have signed up.
Dinsmore stated that “What makes many of our uneasy is abandoning company’s heritage and history,” Motor1.com reported. “Putting Mustang on a four-door, all-wheel-drive crossover is offensive to Mustang clubs and Mustang enthusiasts who have supported this product for over five decades.” Ford should listen to us and not tarnish Mustang heritage in this manner.
Dinsmore isn’t just a Mustang guy who has an opinion. He is a syndicated writer, and co-author of Mustang By Design. This book details the Mustang’s history back to the 1960s. He is an expert on Mustang history and has a long Facebook conversation about the Mustang moniker being used in an EV crossover. He also points out that electric power is not the issue here, but the crossover body which goes against the core concept of what a Mustang is.
Dinsmore stated that electrification is not an issue with the Mustang Mach-E. It’s not putting the name on something. The Mustang Mach-E was designed by Gale Halderman as a 2-door, low-slung, short-deck muscle car. Not the generic crossover found in today’s market.
He is certainly right. Ford’s legendary pony car has been powered by a variety of engines, but the fundamental formula of a 2-+2-two-door, rear-wheel drive coupe with rear-wheel drive was unchanged throughout its 55-year history. Although the Mach-E is as close to that formula as you can get, proponents of the new Mustang branding claim that it is evolution in action and reflects changing markets.
Will Dinsmore’s petition result in Ford reversing the course of the Mustang Mach-E It’s unlikely, as Dinsmore stated to Motor1.com. He also reminded us of Ford’s 1980s controversy when it was planning to relaunch Mustang as an aero-shaped front wheel-drive vehicle with MazdaDNA. It took a huge write-in campaign by Mustang enthusiasts and owners to get Ford’s attention .
Ford Probe was the final name for the new car, and engineers immediately began work on an emergency update to the Fox Body Mustang. The Mustang was almost ten years old by that time. This is also why the Fox platform was used to support the SN95, New Edge and other cars throughout 2004, since Ford didn’t intend to keep the rear-wheel drive Mustang around for that long.
Ford has, in fact, listened to Mustang owners in the past. Will Ford listen to its Mustang enthusiasts now? You can sign Dinsmore’s petition if you wish to throw your hat in the ring.