Very positive long-term Mach-E ownership review by Edmunds

[dtbaker61]

18k miles

I wouldn't call this 'long term ownership'... we have several members that have clocked over 80k... would have been nice to see them interviewed and how the battery health held up, etc.

I'm surprised by all the talk about tires.... big, heavy, powerful cars always eat tires if you drive hard. If you go for high efficiency hard rubber for durability you sacrifice performance grip.

My stock (Michelin on the Select) tires barely lasted 19k miles.
I replaced with Conti DWS 06, and have been very pleased with what I think is a little better grip wet and dry AND better life (maybe) as they might make it to 20k-25k before hitting minimum wear bars.

It terms of being 'pleased'.... I'd give a qualified thumbs-up on almost everything having to do with the vehicle and driving experience. I bought a '21, expecting a few things to turn up: front half-shafts and HVBJB have been replaced, so that's fine except I was disappointed with the slow response on HVBJB in making it a 'real' recall.

my only real disappointment is the poor software management. The lack of version control, lack of informative release notes, bugs and regressions introduced in OTAs, lack of 'service pack' updates to catch up to stable builds is inexcusable. I don't worry about it anymore though since I turned off auto-update months ago once basic functionality (without BlueCruise) was predictable and acceptable.

For the future, I hope @Ford Motor Company considers bringing a simpler, less expensive, models and trim levels out that have LESS electronics and 'comfort' features.... lighter, smaller, and higher performance models would be nice.

I'd be thrilled with a small 'Ranger' size truck, NOT a 'king cab' too long to park in my garage, small Nav/instrument display, roll up windows, mechanical door handles, and just a backup camera... as long as its AWD, 250+ mile range and has maybe 8" clearance.

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[Fremont Kid]

you can just open the door to turn on auxiliary power. Aux power remains on for a little bit and then remains on longer as long as someone is seated in the car. Car fully engages when you put your foot on the brake (prior to shifting into gear). Once you’re in park and get out the car will turn to auxiliary power and then turn off shortly afterward.

that’s how it works in the Rivian at a high level and it’s pretty great. Basically just uses pretty simple logic of what you would want and when. No need for a start button

I like that also. Thanks.

 

[superdave80]

Weird extreme door handle hate

We would actually love to have a door handle, as that takes just one pull to open, vs. the one to four pushes of the button to open the Mach-E door... and then you STILL have to pull the door open anyways. It's a dumb idea that needs to be thrown in the trash.

 

[superdave80]

Basically just uses pretty simple logic of what you would want and when.

The problem with these automatic "we know what you want done and when" ideas is that they don't always forsee every scenario.

For example, if I'm sitting in my car waiting for someone (which I frequently do with my kids) and I don't want all of the systems on so I don't waste power, how would I turn off the vehicle?

I prefer control over systems vs. the whims of some design engineer sitting in an office trying to figure out what I want. They seldom get it right.

 

[TheSteelRider]

That's one thing I agree on in this video. I don't hate the way it feels, just the inconsistent manner in which it works.

Sometimes it opens right away, other times it takes 2-3 presses to open. In those 2-3 times it takes to open, the car can auto-lock itself and then the pressing with the keyfob nearby doesn't unlock, forcing you to take the keyfob out of your pocket and manually unlock it.

Yep, fair point!

 

[MachEasy]

I'm very impressed with the Mach E and have owned for 6 months. I upgraded my tires and wheels and think the car is very solid to the road, handles very well and, of course, is very quick. It's incredibly fun to drive. It's a good size and does a lot of things well. I drove a Tesla model 3 the other day (Mach E getting the recall done and software update) and couldn't get out of it fast enough. By comparison the 3 felt like a low to the ground go cart and I found the controls very unintuitive.

I agree the doors "handles" are weird but Teslas are worse. I think Rivians are the best that I've tried so far. I find the software works fairly well but don't disagree it can be a bit better and I hope Ford continues to improve. Blue cruise is solid for what it is and overall, I think it's a very good value for what you get. I plan to add a Rivian R2 to replace my Jeep at some point, but I plan to drive this car for quite a few years as long as it holds up. It's the most enjoyable and fun to drive car that I've ever had..but then again I haven't owned as many cars as some you have.

 

[DustyShades]

The problem with these automatic "we know what you want done and when" ideas is that they don't always forsee every scenario.

For example, if I'm sitting in my car waiting for someone (which I frequently do with my kids) and I don't want all of the systems on so I don't waste power, how would I turn off the vehicle?

I prefer control over systems vs. the whims of some design engineer sitting in an office trying to figure out what I want. They seldom get it right.

i mean the nice thing about an EV is that it just powers what needs to be powered. It’s not like idling a gas car where the engine is burning fuel that’s going to waste.

what systems are you wanting to turn off while you’re sitting there? You know if you’re just sitting that that essentially no nothing is being used from a power perspective, right? Especially if you turn off the climate. Like I don’t know how long you’re sitting there waiting for your kids, but even an hour is not going to make a meaningful difference in this scenario.

 

[thekat03]

The problem with these automatic "we know what you want done and when" ideas is that they don't always forsee every scenario.

For example, if I'm sitting in my car waiting for someone (which I frequently do with my kids) and I don't want all of the systems on so I don't waste power, how would I turn off the vehicle?

I prefer control over systems vs. the whims of some design engineer sitting in an office trying to figure out what I want. They seldom get it right.

Yes! The flip side is my husband often hops in and out of his car, a Volvo C40, when we are hooking up a trailer and loading it for a trip. We don't necessarily want the car turning on and off every time he sits down in the car, and would rathe have the ability to just leave it off sometimes, and just leave it on at other times.

 

[superdave80]

You know if you’re just sitting that that essentially no nothing is being used from a power perspective, right?

You know that is incorrect, right? There are many modules on when the vehicle is on, and they are all using power to be on. So much so that Ford didn't want to just have the car turn on to charge the 12V battery to perform updates because of the drain on the HVB. Using power just because someone thinks it's cool to not have an on/off button is silly.

And when I'm sitting there waiting if it's dark, the headlights will stay on (since they are in auto). So I would have to turn them off. And then turn them on again when I go to drive. How is that better than just hitting the off button?

We could go through all the scenarios that will not be caught by even the best thought out logic of the design engineer. Just put an on/off button, and you don't have to worry about it.

 

[DustyShades]

You know that is incorrect, right? There are many modules on when the vehicle is on, and they are all using power to be on. So much so that Ford didn't want to just have the car turn on to charge the 12V battery to perform updates because of the drain on the HVB. Using power just because someone thinks it's cool to not have an on/off button is silly.

And when I'm sitting there waiting if it's dark, the headlights will stay on (since they are in auto). So I would have to turn them off. And then turn them on again when I go to drive. How is that better than just hitting the off button?

We could go through all the scenarios that will not be caught by even the best thought out logic of the design engineer. Just put an on/off button, and you don't have to worry about it.

No - sorry… it is correct. How much energy do you think you’re using by sitting there? Let’s even say that you use a whole kWh waiting to pick up your kids (which would be a ton, and not even realistic). You’ve burned a whole 10 cents - the horror!!!!

 

[DustyShades]

Yes! The flip side is my husband often hops in and out of his car, a Volvo C40, when we are hooking up a trailer and loading it for a trip. We don't necessarily want the car turning on and off every time he sits down in the car, and would rathe have the ability to just leave it off sometimes, and just leave it on at other times.

Idk this sounds like it’s poorly implemented in the Volvo to be honest. I can get in and out of the Rivian to put something in the frunk for instance. There’s no difference than if I was just sitting there in the drivers seat going in and out of park. Sounds like the Volvo does a full immediate sleep / power off. The Rivian seems to do more of a gradual phase down based on timing

 

[Snakebitten]

Since Fords have Forscan and FDRS support and plenty of techy owners that dabble in both, how would someone go about the countless number of times you are requested to

Turn vehicle off
Turn vehicle auxiliary power on

If you didn't have the traditional Start button 1 push no-break pedal
And
1 more button push then open the door

Just curious what the same sequence would be if the Mach-E was setup like a Tesla or Rivian.

 

[superdave80]

Let’s even say that you use a whole kWh waiting to pick up your kids (which would be a ton, and not even realistic). You’ve burned a whole 10 cents - the horror!!!!

Let's say you have to push a button to turn on your vehicle - the horror!!!!

 

[stealthytolkien]

The long term review title is misleading though. As if 18k miles must have felt like 180k!

18k is literally 1.5 year ownership.

 

[DustyShades]

Let's say you have to push a button to turn on your vehicle - the horror!!!!

Okay, but in one scenario we’re talking about refining the customer experience and in another we’re talking about catering to boomers that can’t comprehend they’re still not burning gas by leaving their car “on”.

(On is in quotation marks here because your car is always on and using power to some degree which is another reason this argument is kind of dumb.)

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