Cars
Published in July 17, 2020 |
by Zachary Shahan
July 17, 2020 by Zachary Shahan
The Ford Mustang Mach-E will be delivered to customers starting this year. Many headlines will imply that its main competitor is the Tesla Model Y. However, I think its main competitor is the Ford Escape. So, I wanted to dive into the costs, specs, and features of different Ford models.
First, let’s look at the cargo space.
The Ford Escape offers:
- 34.4–37.5 cu. Ft. Of cargo space with rear seats up
- 60.8–65.4 cu. Ft. Of cargo space with rear seats down
- no frunk
The Ford Mustang Mach-E offers:
- 29 cu. Ft. Of cargo space behind rear seats
- 59.6 cu. Ft. Of cargo space at rear with rear seats down
- 4.8 cu. Ft. Of cargo space in frunk (front trunk)
Therefore, they offer essentially the same amount of cargo space.
How about the acceleration?
The 2020 Ford Escape SE 1.5T glides from 0 to 60 mph in 8.4 seconds. The Ford Escape SE with AWD arrives in 7.7 seconds, while the SE Sport Hybrid takes 8.7 seconds. And the Ford Escape Titanium 2.0T AWD 2020’s 0-60mph time is 6.9 seconds.
The Mustang Mach-E’s acceleration from 0 to 60 mph, by battery size and fit, is as follows:
- Standard Range Battery, RWD: 6 second low range (available on Select, Premium)
- Standard Range Battery, AWD: 5 second midrange (available on Select, Premium)
- Extended Range Battery, RWD – 6 second midrange (available on Premium, California Route 1)
- Extended Range Battery, AWD: 5 second midrange (available on Premium, GT)
In other words, every Mustang Mach-E is faster than every Escape.
Elegant dance features?
Infotainment Ford Mustang Mach-E.
Ford Escape infotainment.
There are so many different features and options to consider. You can review and see the ones that interest you and if either model (or both) have them through the Ford Mustang Mach-E spec and technology file (PDF) and the “Compare” tool for the Escape. Maybe I’ll make another piece just about these. At the moment, here are some features that I find attractive:
Ford Mustang Mach-E glass roof.
Panoramic fixed glass roof: On California Mustang Mach-E Premium, First Edition, and Route 1 trims. Not in any version of Escape.
Hands-free foot-operated liftgate: In all versions of Mustang Mach-E, except in the Select version. Only in the Escape SEL.
Ford Co-pilot360 Assist 2.0 (Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop & Go, lane centering and speed signal recognition. Evasive steering assistance. Voice-activated navigation).: On all Mustang Mach-E trims. Co-Pilot360 Assist is Optional on all versions of Escape except S, and Co-Pilot360 Assist + is not an option at all.
Total cost of ownership – some scenarios
Ford Escape
I ran a few scenarios to compare the 5-year potential cost of ownership of 4 Ford Mustang Mach-E trims and 4 Ford Escape trims. One assumes what I consider “moderate” mileage and moderate gas and electricity prices. One scenario assumes higher mileage and higher gasoline prices. The latter means less mileage but also a lower price for electricity. More discussion of the assumptions is below the results.
As always, I encourage you to copy my Google sheet and enter your best guess for the assumptions, whether the following scenarios fit your expectations or not.
15,000 miles a year, $ 2.50 gas, $ 0.13 electricity / charge
This is an attempt at a fairly typical lifestyle with no extreme changes in the next 5 years.
25,000 miles a year, $ 3.50 gas, $ 0.13 electricity / charge
Suppose you drive a lot, you live in California, where gas is more expensive (or you live elsewhere and gas prices just go up a lot again), and you have a modest price for electricity (a combination of lower cost night charge, some households). daytime charging and some charging at EV charging stations not very cheap). Here is a potential scenario for you.
10,000 miles a year, $ 2.00 for gas, $ 0.07 for electricity / charge
Suppose you don’t drive a ton and you have a rooftop solar photovoltaic system with electricity to spare. Suppose you have a large amount of free EV charging in your area. Let’s say you are really good at optimizing your load at low cost. This is a potential scenario for you. You could go much lower for a Really Low-cost charging option: I’ve spent $ 0 charging in 2 years of EV ownership in Florida (one year with the BMW i3 and one year with the Tesla Model 3). However, some commenters will probably treat my head like a bubble gum and chew on it if I use such a scenario here. Look at your own situation and consider what you would probably pay.
This scenario also assumes a lower gas price than previous scenarios, roughly the average gas price in Florida today, with no significant change in the next 5 years.
Assumptions
There are several assumptions that are included in all of these scenarios and can be adjusted as you see fit. Some are very personal matters (such as miles traveled per year), some are assumptions about how prices change over time (such as the resale values of these vehicles after 5 years), and some are mixed (such as the average price of gasoline for 5 years)) Make the adjustments that seem best to you.
Also, keep in mind that a great assumption is that the buyer can take advantage of the $ 7,500 federal tax credit currently available to Ford EV buyers. This tax credit cannot be broken into multiple years, so to get that total $ 7,500 discount (collected at tax, not at the time of purchase), the buyer must have at least that amount owed in taxes.
A final note: For these calculations, I assumed that a Ford Escape would retain 41% of its value after 5 years and a Ford Mustang Mach-E would retain 43% of its value. Personally, I think it is an unfair assumption in favor of Escape. I think the Mustang Mach-E will hold its value much better at that time. We will see, but it will take a little more than 5 years to discover it.
Ford Mustang Mach-E vs. Ford Escape – Conclusion
It is very difficult for me to see how someone would choose a Ford Escape over a Ford Mustang Mach-E when the Mach-E is implemented later this year. In terms of cargo space, they offer essentially the same amount. In terms of features, style, and performance, the Mustang Mach-E clearly has some upside in the Escape. In terms of cost, in many cases the “comparable” cut is cheaper, or at least would have a similar cost unless the buyer is unable to take advantage of a significant portion of the US federal tax credit for electric vehicles.
If a customer actually enters an Escape and a Mustang Mach-E in a dealership lot, conducts a test drive, and considers more than the price tag, the Mustang Mach-E is the clear winner, or, to account for The odd objections here or there, let’s say 9 out of 10 buyers would choose the Mustang Mach-E.
What would you choose?
Ford Mustang Mach-E interior.
Ford Escape interior.
See more articles on EV Total Cost of Ownership.
See more articles on the Ford Mustang Mach-E.
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About the Author
Zachary Shahan is trying to help society help each other one word at a time. He spends most of his time here at CleanTechnica as its director, chief editor, and CEO. Zach is recognized worldwide as an expert in electric vehicles, solar energy and energy storage. He has presented on clean technology at conferences in India, the United Arab Emirates, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the United States, Canada and Curaçao. Zach has long-term investments in Tesla [TSLA] – After years of covering solar energy and electric vehicles, you simply have great faith in this company and feel that it is a good clean technology company to invest in. But it does not (explicitly or implicitly) offer investment advice of any kind in Tesla or any other company.
