Ford Motor Company continues to travel new paths with the Mustang Mach-E. The latest route isn’t paved. When Ford used the Mustang brand with its first EV, some purists stirred, but high demand for the Mach-E quieted most of the rumblings. Despite a recall for an EV-typical battery-related fire concern, the Mustang Mach-E is successful. In Ford’s latest departure from the pony car tradition, the 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally Edition Ford is set up to drive dirt roads. Ford will start taking Mustang Mach-E orders in early 2024.
The Mach-E Rally is a variant of the performance-focused Mach-E GT. The dual electric motor setup with a 91 kWh usable-capacity lithium-ion battery rocks up to 480 horsepower and a maximum of 650 pound-feet of torque. Ford introduces its new RallySport Drive Mode to the user-selectable vehicle setup options to assist driving off pavement. The mode enables linear throttle response, more aggressive corner damping, and more significant yaw for sliding turns.
Ford’s 500-mile test rides
The Mach-E Rally isn’t just an additional naming scheme with a fancy paint job. The battery-powered Mustang proved its merit on a new rally-style course in Michigan designed to test the vehicle’s ability to withstand the durability challenges of long-distance rally-cross events.
The Mach-E Rally has numerous upgrades and features to sustain travel off the pavement. To allow room for unpaved road irregularities, the Mach-E Rally has specially tuned springs and MagneRide shocks to raise the suspension 20mm higher than the Mach-E GT. The Mach-E Rally has oversized 385mm front disc brake rotors with red Brembo calipers. The two motors each have protective shielding.
Rallycross racing is hard on the entire vehicle, but especially on wheels and tires. To withstand the relentless bashing, the Mustang Mach-E Rally rides on 19-inch rally-style alloy wheels with a durable glass white finish. Michelin R19 235/55 CrossClimate2 tires have higher sidewalls for impact rebound and better loose surface grip than GT tires.
Looking the part while traveling off the pavement
Judging by the Grabber Yellow paint with dual racing stripes Ford chose for the Mustang Mach-E Rally pre-launch announcement, it’s a fair guess that Ford doesn’t expect drivers to limit its dirt road driving to sedate exploration. Other color choices are Grabber Blue, Shadow Black, Eruption Green, Star White, and Glacier Gray.
The Mach-E Rally’s style accents include black upper and lower body moldings, front fascia and splitter, rally-style fog lights, and a black-painted steel roof. The black rear spoiler, which helps with downforce at speeds over 50-to-60 mph, will be hard to miss.
The Mach-E Rally has a recovery hook in the front behind a body-color cover. The fender arches and door cladding have a standard protective film to minimize paint chipping and buildup from mud and debris. Specially styled mud flaps will be available as a dealer-installed option.
Under the Mach-E Rally, drivers will find performance seats with white seatbacks and accents on the dashboard and steering wheel.
The Mustang Mach-E Rally has a range per charge of up to 250 miles. Ford says that when connected to a DC Fast Charger, the battery can charge from 10% to 80% in 36.5 minutes. Final pricing will be available closer to the Mach-E Rally’s launch in 2024, but Ford estimates the starting price will be about $65,000.
