Ford has been at pains to tell us why the recently-launched Mustang Mach-E is fitting of the iconic ‘Mustang’ nameplate from the moment the all-electric crossover was unveiled. However, many Ford Mustang enthusiasts and traditionalists are extremely upset at the company’s decision.
A look over at the Mustang Club of America on Facebook, which has no less than 2.1 million likes, includes hundreds of comments from enthusiasts angry at Ford for calling the crossover a Mustang.
In a lengthy statement, president of the Mustang Club of America, Steve Prewitt, vehemently defends the vehicle’s nomenclature saying, “the Mustang Mach-E is not a Mustang Pony car in the typical sense, but is is a logical move in continuing the legacy of Mustang, specifically in design and innovation in the electric car market.”
Responding to this, Facebook user Michael Newton wrote the following; “Shame on you Steve Prewitt. Carol Shelby once said “There is no replacement for displacement”. That statement embodies what a Mustang has always been. To hang the Mustang name on an SUV is blasphemous. You may sell a few SUVs to the hipsters, but you are seriously alienating the Mustang enthusiasts.”
Also Read: Configure Your 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-e Now And Show It To Us
There are hundreds of other comments with similar sentiments with one member even asking “How much money did Ford give the club to give this positive review?” while another says “It’s almost as if a team of lawyers from media relations wrote this out and you simply shared it.”
Steve McCarley, a past president of the Mustang Club of America, added that he too is unimpressed with the crossover’s name.
https://www.facebook.com/MustangClubofAmerica/posts/3042241115819947
“I am not happy with it personally,” he told USA Today, “Even today, if I close my eyes and picture a car, I picture a ’65 Mustang. Telling me you’re coming with an electric Mustang, you’re not spinning my wheels.”
A couple of days ago, Ford executive chairman Bill Ford said even he wasn’t sold on the idea of calling the electric crossover a Mustang – at least at first.
“They came to me and said, ‘We really think we can make this Mustang-inspired, really Mustang-like.’ I said, ‘You guys aren’t telling me you want to call this a Mustang.’ No one would say yes, but nobody would say no, either. I said ‘No, I’m sorry, I don’t want to hurt the brand. This is not going to be a Mustang.’”
Eventually, however, Ford was allegedly won over by the vehicle’s handling dynamics and decided it was indeed fitting of a Mustang name. We have a feeling hardcore Mustang enthusiasts won’t be so easy to convince.
