For those interested in such things, later today Ford will officially unveil their first big entry into the electric car market, the Mustang Mach E.

While today is the day the car will be officially unveiled, a few days back someone at Ford accidentally uploaded the full car specs/prices to their website. The information was quickly taken off, but not before several car websites saved the information. Over at jalopnik.com, Bradley Brownwell offered pretty much all the screenshots to the since deleted (though I suspect by tonight will be up again) site:

2021 Ford Mustang Mach E: Here’s the Car, Price, and 0-60 Times Before You’re Supposed To See It

What does the car look like? Here you go…

And here we have the interior…

As you may know, if you’re been reading my ramblings for a while, I’m not only a BIG proponent of electric vehicles, I have a Tesla Model 3 and absolutely love the damn thing to death. I’ve been driving since roughly 1981-2 or so and in that time I’ve driven good, bad, and terrible cars, all gas powered, but the Tesla has really captured my imagination.

I quite certain I will never buy another gas powered car and, further, I’m also quite certain the era of the ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles is at its end… even if it may take a few years before the EVs supplant them.

That’s how much I love my Tesla. That’s how much I feel the car is several steps above any ICE vehicle.

Having said that, I’m a strong proponent of other car manufacturers getting into the EV game. It’s ultimately better for the environment and these cars have so many advantages over ICE cars its not even funny (I’ll leave you to look into that, if you care to!). The only disadvantages I would site with EV cars vs. ICE is a) range on a “full” charge vs ICE vehicles and b) the charging is slower.

However, both disadvantages are rapidly being eliminated. Tesla’s Superchargers manage to recharge my Model 3 in roughly 30 minutes. After driving 2 1/2 hours or so, though, that’s hardly terrible. One can use the time for a bathroom break and/or to get some snacks/food. Further, this is using the 2nd Generation Supercharger. The 3rd Generation supposedly will charge up even quicker. The range, too, is becoming less a factor. My Model 3 on a 100% charge can do 310 miles or so. The new Model S can do 377. The New Model X can go 325.

But returning to the Mustang and as I said above, I’m a BIG proponent of the other car makers making their EVs. Competition is a good thing for consumers and I absolutely want to see Tesla pushed to make even better EVs, just as I want to see the other car makers do the same.

The big question, now that the specs for the Mustang Mach E have been leaked, is how does it compare to the Teslas? Specifically, how does it compare to the upcoming Model Y, which Ford clearly is targeting with this vehicle (I’ll get to that in a second).

Glad you asked!

Over at electrek.com, Fred Lambert offers the following…

Tesla Model Y vs. Ford Mach E Specs Comparison

For those who don’t care to read all the nitty-gritty, the bottom line is this: The Ford Mach E specs are quite comparable to the upcoming Tesla Y, though one should be just a little weary about the ultimate Model Y specs. Until that vehicle is actually released, there may be some changes, perhaps in price and/or range.

Still, if we compare one to the other, then they are remarkably similar vehicles.

In fact, I would go so far as to say… Ford is essentially copying the Model Y, aren’t they? I mean, the specs are so damn similar. And as for the look of each vehicle… I mean, come on! The Mustang Mach E looks like a Tesla Model Y twin, only with certain Mustang “looks” added on.

I’m not the only one to see that. Over at autoevolution.com, Andrei Nedelea notes the same…

Photo Comparison: Ford Mustang Mach E Looks Eerily Similar To Tesla Model Y

At the risk of giving away everything from the article, I’ll post the three photo comparisons they offer there, just to give you an idea of how similar these vehicles look…

You have the Mustang on top and the Tesla Model Y, in blue, on the bottom. Very similar lines, no?

Next up, a rear-view of both vehicles…

Once again, very similar lines, no? Look especially at the shapes of the windows and the lines on the side. I mean… it’s almost identical, isn’t it?

Here’s a third one, the interior of each car:

Again, incredibly similar interiors, no? Use of pad-like screens to show everything but note too the Tesla offers controls on the steering wheel as does the Mustang.

One thing not listed, which I also think is interesting, is that the Mustang has a glass roof…

For those who don’t know, the Teslas all have similar glass roofs…

So, yeah, to be quite clear, the Ford Mach E looks like a carbon copy of the Tesla Model Y, both in terms of stats and looks.

I don’t mind, honestly, that they so boldly have decided to match/rip-off the Tesla Y. In the case of the emerging market for EVs, perhaps this is a ultimately a wise move and from there Ford can figure things out for themselves, hopefully improving their vehicle and making progress in creating new features unique to their cars versus those in the Tesla.

Having said that, at this point what makes the Mustang more desirable than a Model Y are the tax rebates you can get from the car. This is not an insignificant amount, some $7000 plus you get off the car. Tesla has reached their limits for this rebate while Ford is just starting.

Having said that, there are also some big things you should also consider if you are debating getting a Model Y vs. a Ford Mustang Mach E.

First and foremost: The Supercharger network Tesla offers is a tremendous advantage, especially if you intend to make long distance trips. When I bought my Model 3, I frankly didn’t even consider this but now that I have the car and I have made long term trips, I realize how incredibly lucky I was to stumble into this.

The fact of the matter is that Tesla has thought through the EV market quite well -it is their only product- and they realized they not only needed to provide EVs with long range but also that they needed to provide Superchargers along the way for their vehicles to get charged up quickly and trips resumed as fast as possible.

Not that I have an intention of doing so, but at this point in time I can travel to almost all parts of the country using the Supercharger networks along the way. The Tesla navigation system in your car will also help you tremendously in this respect. You put in your long range destination and it will tell you where to go charge your car along the way and how long you need to charge it for! It will tell you the range/charge left and makes the whole trip that much easier.

For the Mustang Mach E and all other electric vehicles, you have apps available to tell you where chargers you can use are (NOTE: No vehicle other than a Tesla can use the Tesla Supercharger) but, at this point in time, their reliability isn’t 100% and the rate of charge varies. In other words, you can find a charger near you, get there, and find it isn’t working. Or perhaps there is a line of people waiting to get charged (with the Tesla Supercharges, your on-board navigator will tell you how many chargers are taken/available and will direct you to another if the primary one is offline!).

So there’s that. The other big thing Tesla has that others don’t: The Autopilot function. I know its a controversial thing and many view it very suspiciously and, yes, it isn’t full self-driving (FSD), but for my money it is a tremendous help in long range/highway driving and seems to get better with each software update…

Which brings us to advantage #3 Tesla has: The over the air updates of software. I don’t know if the Mustang Mach E will offer software updates like Tesla does but at this point the Tesla updates are regular things and, with each update, your Tesla will become a better and better car.

The latest update, for example, just came over and with it and while using the regenerative braking with full stop, I’ve found I barely ever use my brakes anymore. The car will slow then come to a complete stop on its own, using the regenerative braking to add a little charge to the battery, and you barely use the brake pads anymore, which obviously increases their life tremendously.

Other than the price (and $7000 rebate) what other advantage(s) does the Mustang Mach E have over Tesla?

Well, that’s easy: Ford is a very big, established brand and they have dealerships and repairs countrywide. If your Mustang Mach E needs some service/parts, I suspect it will be far easier and quicker to get them versus the Tesla. Also, it may be easier to go to a Ford dealership and get a test drive versus a Tesla, assuming you live in a smaller city which has no Tesla dealership. Where I live, I have both a nearby “dealership” where they show off the vehicles and allow you a test drive. Further, I live some half hour away from a big distribution/service center so I can drop off my car if/when I need to.

In the end, I truly hope the Mustang does well. I hope the Teslas continue to do well. And I hope more and more people realize that those ICE vehicles have quite literally become vestiges of the past.

UPDATE:

Found this picture online of the Mustang Mach E’s “Frunk”. For those who don’t know what the heck a frunk is, its a front trunk. Since EVs don’t have engines like the ICE vehicles, they have room to have trunks in both the front and back.

Anyway, here’s the Mustang’s frunk…

And here you have the Tesla’s frunk…

More similarities, no?