Ford Mustang Mach-E SUV - Reliability & safety
Electric cars have fewer moving parts so there's less to go wrong and the Mustang Mach-E is loaded with safety features
When it comes to the Mustang Mach-E's reliability, there's a lot we won't know until customers have been racking up the miles.
Ford Mustang Mach-E reliability
Ford has a clear advantage over Tesla in mass producing cars, so quality issues like mis-matched panel gaps are unlikely to be an issue, but its electric motor and battery technology is less well proven. We wouldn't be surprised if most Mach-E teething problems are issues with its electronics.
As a brand, Ford came 28th out of 32 manufacturers in our 2023 Driver Power survey, with an unimpressive, but middling 21% of owners reporting a fault in the first year, with practicality, and safety features coming in for criticism. Owners also said they'd prefer faster acceleration and larger boots – areas the Mach-E should score highly on.
Safety
The Mach-E was awarded the full five stars by Euro NCAP in October 2021. It received impressive scores in the four main categories, including 92% for adult occupant protection and 86% for child occupant protection.
The car also scored well for its safety assistance systems, which isn't that surprising given the Mach-E has all of Ford's latest safety features. These include autonomous emergency braking and evasive steering assist, which can help the driver avoid an obstacle. Lane keeping and departure aids are also fitted, and as past of its connected features the Ford also has the ability to alert the owner if it's stolen, provide tracking and even be immobilised remotely.
What the Mustang Mach-E doesn't yet have, is anything comparable to Tesla's Autopilot system, which allows semi-autonomous driving on well marked roads, so long as the driver is alert and keeps hold of the steering wheel.
Ford’s recently-introduced BlueCruise system brings the Mustang Mach-E in line with rivals such as the Tesla Model Y in offering hands-free semi-autonomous driving on more than 95 per cent of the UK’s motorway network. While it still requires the driver to pay attention – Ford calls it ‘hands off, eyes on’ – it should help to take the strain out of stressful motorway driving.
