Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally wants to take electric motoring off-road

Ford has revealed the Mustang Mach-E Rally, a racy and more rugged version of its electric mid-sized SUV.

It is unclear if the special model will make it to Australian shores, with the Mustang Mach-E still to arrive at local dealerships.

“We’re looking forward to Mach-E joining the Ford Australia line-up later this year, however, there’s no news to share on the Rally right now,” said a Ford Australia spokesperson.

A prototype of the model was shown at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, and Ford chose to save the grand reveal for the Munich motor show.

The aggressive-looking front fascia features bespoke rally-esque elements including a faux grille housing, built-in fog lights, a built-in recovery point and hook, and a protective front splitter.

Ford has applied protective film on the door panels and fender arches, and will offer the option of dealer-installed mud flaps for customers planning to put the model through its paces.

At the rear, a high-sitting rear spoiler completes the racy silhouette, with Ford saying it pulled inspiration from the now-discontinued Focus RS.

The Mach-E Rally has been treated to raised and retuned suspension providing an extra 20mm of ground clearance over the Mach-E GT, with specially tuned springs and MagneRide shock absorbers.

It also gains 385mm front brake rotors with red calipers, although they are barely visible behind distinctive 19-inch Oxford White alloy wheels.

They’re shod in Michelin CrossClimate2 tyres to help increase the model’s off-roading capabilities.

The Rally is equipped with a bespoke RallySport drive mode to allow for “added yaw, a linear throttle response, and more aggressive damping for better handling in loose corners.”

Powering the Mach-E Rally is a tuned version of the Mustang Mach-E GT’s dual-motor electric powertrain, with Ford noting outputs of “at least” 358kW of power and up to 860Nm of torque – though these figures are the same as in the GT.

It uses a 91kWh lithium-ion battery, though Ford hasn’t provided a range figure. The GT has a WLTP electric range claim of 490km.

Inside there are race-inspired performance seats with an embossed Mach-E Rally logo, also featuring white contrast stitching and lining. There are also gloss white accents on the dashboard and steering wheel.

Two black racing stripes remind us that the Rally SUV is still a Mustang, with customers able to choose from Grabber Blue, Shadow Black, Eruption Green, Star White, Glacier Gray, and the display model’s Grabber Yellow.

Ford has put the Mach-E Rally through its paces at a new course at its Michigan testing grounds designed by rallycross veterans, with it coming through over 800km of ‘abuse’ by engineers and technicians unscathed.

The company will begin taking orders in early 2024 and start customer deliveries straight after in the US, Europe, and the UK, with prices starting at US$65,000 (AU$102,000).

“Mustang Mach-E Rally puts Ford’s decades of passion for rally championships around the world right in the hands of our customers…It takes Mustang where it hasn’t been before – to gravel and dirt roads,” said Ford CEO Jim Farley.

The Mustang Mach-E, in Select, Premium and GT guise, is due in Australia in the fourth quarter of 2023.

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