Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium 2023 review

The Mustang name in Ford’s heritage is arguably as iconic as the Beetle name is to Volkswagen, or the Land Cruiser for Toyota.

Mustang, as most people know, refers to the name of free-roaming horses that were brought to American soil by the Spanish a very long time ago, and now in more modern times, Mustang also refers to one of Ford’s most quintessential sports cars.

The Ford Mustang sports coupe has been around since the mid-1960s and has survived through seven generations. But something odd happened in November 2019 that would see a new Mustang on the horizon.

And not only would this be a new Mustang, but it would also be, for the very first time, an SUV. And Ford calls it the Mustang Mach-E.

The Mach-E was released to a lot of the world at one of the most turbulent times in human history – the Covid-19 pandemic – and we Australians have been left out until, well, now.

The 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E is finally here, entering Australian showrooms in December 2023. And I’ve been fortunate enough to sample the range of new Mach-Es right here on Australian roads.

Pricing for the Mustang Mach-E range starts from $79,990 before on-road costs for the entry Select variant, but tops out at a most certainly not-insignificant $107,665 before on-road costs for the flagship all-wheel-drive GT.

But for this review, we’ve aimed straight at the middle of the pack, getting into the nitty gritty with the $91,665 Premium. But at over $101,000 driveaway, it’s also a pricey electric powerhouse.

This mid-tier Mach-E delivers the longest range of the lot – a claimed 600km (WLTP) – which is considerably more than that of the 470km Select and the 490km GT stablemates. It’s equipped with a larger 91kWh usable lithium-ion battery pack.

Pictured: the flagship GT grade

The Mustang Mach-E, being an electric SUV, has positioned itself at more of the pointy end of the mainstream electric car market, and frankly looks expensive when compared to the likes of the Tesla Model Y midsize SUV (from $65,400) and the Polestar 2 electric liftback (from $69,990).

But putting price aside, what’s the new Mustang Mach-E like to drive, and is it worth the extra outlay from the start? Well, it’s finally time to find out.

What are the Mustang Mach-E Premium’s features and options for the price?

As mentioned, Ford Australia will have three variants to choose from at launch, however we largely drove the mid-spec Premium model. It comes standard with the following features:

• Rear-mounted electric motor producing 216kW/430Nm
• 15.5-inch central touchscreen 
• 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster 
• Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto 
• Bang & Olufsen 10-speaker sound system
• 360-degree camera 
• Sensico artificial leather seats 
• Panoramic glass roof 
• 19-inch alloy wheels
• LED projector headlights  

The Mustang Mach-E certainly brings a lot to the table with specification, however I was left expecting a little bit more kit to match the electric SUV’s more premium price tag.  

How does the Mustang Mach-E Premium drive?

For the local launch of Ford’s first electric offering, some of the finest roads in southeast Queensland would become our playground for the day.

Saddled up in the Premium, I headed immediately for the hills, which turned out to be the natural playground for this electric SUV.

With over 200kW at my disposal and rear-wheel drive, the Mach-E Premium felt, almost instantly, like a real corner carver and that’s something that many won’t often say about higher-riding electric SUVs. And that’s also despite the Mach-E Premium weighing just north of 2000kg.

Strong first impressions come thick and fast, with the electric SUV offering decent steering, a surprising lack of body roll when cornering, and big fun to drive factor. I could immediately see where the Mustang performance heritage had trickled down to the Mach-E.

Then the heavens opened.

The roads turned wet and greasy and with every hairpin rising to the top of the marvellous Mount Tamborine, one of southeast Queensland’s best driving roads.

Here, the Mustang Mach-E Premium became a little unpredictable and snappy when cornering, even with almost no throttle applied at all through the twist and turns.

Thankfully, the well-tuned ESP system dialled the Mach-E back in, and with the rain beginning to ease, the electric Ford got its mojo back.

In terms of ride quality, the Mach-E seemed to me to be a little on the firm side, as the engineers’ intention was to set the vehicle up more for performance driving rather than day-to-day commuting. This might be good on a circuit, but for daily livability, the Mach-E may be a little too firm for some.

On typical Queensland main roads, where most Mach-Es will likely spend their days, the ride on these surfaces is arguably the car’s downside. The rear end in particular felt unsettled and somewhat unrefined. Some higher-speed bobbing and bouncing demonstrates a lack of polish seen in some of the Mach-E’s rivals.

Considering many Mustang Mach-Es will be driven in and around large metropolitan areas for most of their lives, the ride quality could have been tuned better and with greater sophistication.

But in terms of driving refinement, the Mach-E feels comfortable on near-perfect road surfaces like the best bits of highway, and its rear electric motor is quiet and surprisingly powerful.

Speaking of output, we were fortunate to sample the Mach-E’s chassis in a racetrack environment in flagship 358kW/860Nm dual-motor GT guise. And I must say, this is where the car really feels alive.

Grip levels were plentiful and the steering felt direct and well-weighted. I was shocked when I looked down to see how fast I was hurtling the Mustang Mach-E GT down the back straight.

In a high-speed track setting, you can drive the Mach-E almost entirely on the throttle, with or without the regenerative braking switched on.

And some brief time on the wet skid pad confirmed that the Mach-E will indeed drift, and quite easily, too. A party trick, perhaps, but it’s good fun.

While plenty of buyers will be lured by the brute force of the full fat Mach-E GT’s dual-motor setup and its claimed 3.7-second 0-100km/h performance, it’s not a necessary excess.

Despite the relatively modest 216kW/430Nm single-motor format, the Premium offers plenty of real-world thrust to satisfy day-to-day driving.

The big bonus about the Premium is that big number range. A claimed 600km (WLTP) is impressive and would certainly reduce anyone’s fears of range anxiety.

Most certainly, it’s a larger WLTP claim than Tesla’s Model Y (533km in Long Range trim), so that’s saying something. But unfortunately, it all comes down to that higher upfront cost.

The Select and GT range claims are 470km and 490km WLTP respectively.

To summarise the driving element of the electric Blue Oval warrior, fun factor and driving enjoyment helps push the Mach-E to lofty heights, but those chunks of goodness can’t quite rescue the vehicle from some disappointing ride quality moments.

What is the Mustang Mach-E Premium’s interior and tech like?

Inside the cabin of the EV-powered Mustang, first impressions are that it certainly does feel largely like its Premium name suggests on paper.

The Sensico artificial leather seats are comfortable and supportive, the trim and build quality feels well assembled and of good quality and there is a lot to love about the large 15.5-inch portrait touchscreen that wins points as undoubtedly the centrepiece of the cabin.

One of the things I really love about this interior is the way that the Bang & Olufsen sound bar is neatly integrated right across the line of the dashboard. It’s a relatively small touch but it reminds of the stylish sound bars you can get for your TV at home.

Generally, the interior is practical and nicely appointed. However, on the tech side of things, the 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster left me a little puzzled.

The reason for this is because although the instrument cluster displays crucial things like speed and battery state of charge, it otherwise lacks functionality and cannot be customised unlike some other clusters on the market.

The cluster in the Mustang Mach-E falls short by not providing an electric efficiency readout, which I think is important. And when you do find the efficiency stats buried in the menu, it’s unable to be accessed unless the vehicle is completely stationary.

That being said, I much prefer having an actual driver’s cluster over the setup found in the Tesla Model Y, which uses no cluster or driver screen at all and puts speed readout into the core central screen instead.

Speaking of menus, there are a lot of them with the new Mach-E’s 15.5-inch screen, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Almost all technologies are controlled through this screen which is fast, very responsive and crystal clear. It’s a real highlight of the interior.

Climate control functions are also integrated, but it all works very positively. I remain a fan of physical climate control buttons, however the Mach-E’s is certainly liveable and you would definitely get used to it with time.

Speaking now on driver comfort, the Mustang Mach-E has comfortable and supportive seats, and that theme continues even for the second row occupants. There is enough room for kids and teenagers back there, but it might be a little tight for a group of adults on longer trips.

With practicality in mind, the Mustang Mach-E scores both USB-A and USB-C ports, plenty of cupholders, wireless phone charging, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

At the very back of the Mach-E, a 402-litre boot capacity is more than spacious enough for a load of shopping or the kids’ school bags. The second row folds flat to give 1420 litres of storage space and there also an additional 134L of storage in the frunk.

I could definitely live with a car like the Mustang Mach-E, it ticks a lot of the boxes in terms of technology and practicality. It may not be perfect, but for the most part does a commendable job.

Is the Mustang Mach-E Premium a safe car?

The new Ford Mustang Mach-E has been awarded a five-star ANCAP safety rating, however the flagship GT remains unrated.

The Mach-E Select and Premium variants scored well across the board, achieving a 92 percent adult occupant protection score, a 88 percent child occupant protection score, 69 percent for vulnerable road user protection and 82 percent score for safety assist.

As standard, the Mustang Mach-E is fitted with the following safety features:

• Pre-collision assist with autonomous emergency braking 
• Lane keeping aid with departure warning
• Evasive steer assist 
• Blind spot monitoring 
• Adaptive cruise control
• Speed limit recognition
• Front and rear parking sensors
• 360-degree camera 
• Tyre pressure monitoring 

We didn’t get a lot of opportunity to test these safety features, however the adaptive cruise control did seem to be well tuned for Australian road conditions.

Stay tuned for more information surrounding safety in an upcoming Ford Mustang Mach-E Chasing Cars garage review.

What are the Mustang Mach-E Premium’s ownership costs?

Starting out with servicing, the Mustang Mach-E Premium will cost $765 over a period of five years. Service intervals are every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever occurs first.

Every Mach-E will come with Ford’s five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, with an eight year, 160,000km warranty applying to the Mustang Mach-E’s electric drivetrain components including its core battery pack.

In terms of driving efficiency, we saw indicated figures of roughly 16-20kWh/100km, but stay tuned for a future Chasing Cars electric vehicle range and charging test for more in depth analysis of the efficiency numbers.

The honest verdict on the Mustang Mach-E Premium

The new Ford Mustang Mach-E is finally here, and Ford should be commended for its very first electric vehicle on local shores.

In my opinion, the Mach-E certainly lives up to the heritage of its Mustang nameplate, offering a fun and enjoyable driving experience with dynamic prowess not necessarily seen in all electric SUVs, or most SUVs for that matter.

The vehicle handles with surprising levels of precision, is engaging to steer and has plenty of power on tap, even in the middle-tier Premium grade.

With a long claimed electric range of 600km (WLTP) and excellent infotainment software, the Mustang Mach-E squares up as an excellent choice for someone new to electric vehicles.

I can happily say that this most certainly does not feel like a first attempt, but rather the third or fourth electric car coming into the market for the Blue Oval.

But it’s not without some notable misfires.

For starters, the ride of the Mustang Mach-E is one of its shortcomings, which feels unsettled, on the firm side of things and not particularly sophisticated over most typical Aussie road surfaces. Some of the Mach-E’s closest rivals do a much better job in this area, in complete honesty.

And then there is pricing.

With the Premium starting at a significant $91,665 before on-road costs, an EV owner would save around $13,000 by going to the equivalent long-range Tesla Model Y.

The Mustang Mach-E Premium may have the upper hand with longer claimed electric range, but otherwise Ford may have a bit of a hard sell on its hands.

Yes, there’s the more affordable ($80K) Select, though you cop a hit here on peak range…

Pictured: the entry-level Select grade

Ford Australia has said that a majority of its pre-orders have been for the flagship GT variant, but that it expects a third split between the three variants once launched. It’s certainly hard to see the Blue Oval being able to keep up with the extremely popular mainstay that is the Tesla Model Y.

So with that in mind, Ford has most definitely done a good job with its first electric car launched in Australia. I’m a big fan of the large 15.5-inch centre screen, its driver’s car characteristics and its mighty long-range 91kWh battery.

But at the end of the day, the Mustang Mach-E has some very strong competition that can simply beat it on price, as well as overall ride and refinement.

Ford Australia has confirmed it won’t be bringing a more affordable Mach-E to Australia which, to me, seems like a misstep.

But I strongly recommend that the Australian public take a Ford Mustang Mach-E for a test drive. The first-ever Ford EV surprisingly puts more ‘Stang and sting into the Mustang name than some detractors might think.