Ford is Building More Electric Mustangs Than Gas-powered Models
The new Ford Mustang Mach-E electric crossover is rubbing a number of Mustang enthusiasts the wrong way because of its name. Here’s another thing they probably won’t like: production of the former is now surpassing that of gas-powered models.
Since the start of 2021, Ford has built 27,816 Mustang Mach-Es at its Cuautitlán, Mexico assembly plant, a bit more than the 26,089 copies of the Mustang that came out of Flat Rock, Michigan. Surprised?
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The main explanation is the global chip shortage. Ford is purposely protecting its four key launches—Bronco, Bronco Sport, Mustang Mach-E and F-150—as it distributes its limited supply of semiconductor modules. In fact, not a single gas-powered Mustang rolled off the line in Michigan last month, according to production data released by the automaker. That might be even more shocking.
Of course, production and sales are two very different things. The Mustang sold 29,170 units in the U.S. during the first five months of 2021 versus just 10,510 for its battery-equipped counterpart.
In Canada, we only have the numbers for the first quarter, but the gap is pretty tight: 734 Mustangs and 665 Mustang Mach-Es.
“Mach-E has been much stronger than we expected, so we’ve totally run out of stock,” CEO Jim Farley said at the introduction of the electric F-150 Lightning on May 19. “Mach-E is going global as we speak, but in the U.S. the wait for a Mach-E is months.”
In Norway, where it went on sale late last year, the electric crossover was actually the No.1 best-selling vehicle in May.
