More News to Thrill 'Stang Diehards: Baby Mustang Mach-E Might Ride on VW Platform

By Jay Ramey - Dec 27, 2019

2022 Ford Puma electric rendering

AUTOWEEK/FORD

Ford is looking closely at Wolfsburg's MEB architecture for smaller EV, report says.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E is headed into production in the second half of 2020, but the model isn't the only Mustang-badged electric crossover that we're likely to see come out of Dearborn in the near future. Auto Express reports that Ford is also planning a smaller electric crossover under the Mustang brand that will use Volkswagen's MEB platform.

Earlier this year, the two automakers signed an agreement to cooperate on truck and commercial van development, as well as EVs. The move, announced in January 2019, will see Dearborn develop new pickup trucks based on the global Ranger model that could be shared among the two brands, while Wolfsburg will develop a small city van that Ford could sell in Europe. At the time the companies were also rumored to be discussing developing EV platforms, which Ford was expected to use for smaller EVs in the early 2020s. Specifically, Volkswagen's MEB platform was viewed as something that could perhaps be shared, given the flexibility of the platform—which will underpin a whole range of small VWs in the near future, starting with the ID.4 in the U.S. in spring 2020.

Auto Express now reports that VW and Ford executives met in November to discuss adapting the MEB platform, which underpins the small ID.3 hatchback in Europe, to a small Ford EV with a crossover body style. Such a model would be positioned below the Mustang Mach-E, targeting hatchback and subcompact crossover buyers who could be interested in an electric model. Auto Express notes that one area of discussion concerned the greenhouse of the ID.3, which features a cab-forward layout that would need to be altered to support a sleeker, long-hooded Mustang-themed EV. Such a model could be proportioned closely to the current-generation Ford Puma that is currently on sale in Europe, as seen in our rendering,

Murat Gueler, Ford of Europe's design boss, told Auto Express that a smaller EV model's profile would differ from the Mach-E, but that it would feature a crossover body style.

2021 Volkswagen ID.3 hatch

The ID.3 offers three battery sizes in Europe.

If based closely on the ID.3, the baby Mustang Mach-E could feature three battery sizes and offer a choice of all-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive. Given what we know about the ID.3 so far, this means the Ford EV could serve up batteries good for 205 miles, 261 miles and 342 miles in long-range form, based on the WLTP cycle.

"It’s key that we have enough flexibility, and it’s important to have enough differentiation and the kind of performance you expect from a Ford," Ted Cannis, global director of electrification at Ford told Auto Express. "A lot of that was done in the early part of the negotiations with VW. The parameters that we’ve seen, we can make a great Ford."

This latest bit of news shows that Ford is serious about turning Mustang into a brand and that it is serious about electric cars, after sitting on the sidelines for most of the decade.

SOURCE: Autoweek

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More News to Thrill 'Stang Diehards: Baby Mustang Mach-E Might Ride on VW Platform