Ford Won’t Release Mustang Mach-E Due To Quality Issues
Ford is holding back the release of Mustang Mach-E EVs in order to complete additional quality checks. All Mach-Es are assembled at a Ford plant in Mexico. As of now, very few Mach-Es have been delivered to any dealers. Ford knows all eyes are on the Mach-E. It’s the first ground-up EV Ford has offered. Also, it is the first Mustang variant.
“We are conducting additional quality checks on several hundred Mustang Mach-E models”
“As part of our commitment to delivering high-quality vehicles, we are conducting additional quality checks on several hundred Mustang Mach-E models built before dealer shipments started last month. We want to ensure they meet the quality our customers expect and deserve,” a company spokeswoman told The Detroit Free Press. “We notified affected customers (several hundred in the US and Canada) that they may receive their Mustang Mach-Es on different timing than previously discussed,” she said. “The team is working to expedite these vehicles, and we hope that customers receive them ahead of targeted dates, providing there are no COVID-19-related transportation delays.”
Ford’s launch of the Explorer last year was a disaster
Ford’s launch of the Explorer last year was a disaster. Problems were so numerous that Explorers were loaded on car haulers in Chicago and taken to a makeshift line at Flat Rock, Michigan, where they were fixed. Only then were they allowed to make their way to dealers.
Part of the underlying motivation might be comments that Darren Palmer, the head of Ford electric vehicles, made about Tesla. In December he listed issues that Tesla was experiencing. About Ford electric vehicles he said, “The doors fit properly, the plastics and other materials color-match, the bumpers don’t fall off, the roof doesn’t come off when you wash it, the door handles don’t get stuck in cold weather…” Obviously, bad-mouthing the competition means you better have your act together.
Once corrections, if any, are made, they are then shipped off to dealers
Similar efforts are being instituted for the 2021 F-150. Ford’s all-new pickup is being stored by the thousands on a huge lot by Detroit Metro. They undergo further scrutiny. Once corrections, if any, are made, they are then shipped off to dealers.
A lot must come together to get it right and Ford knows how to get it right. But it also knows that if the Mach-E experiences problems it will plague every EV Ford wants to make in the future. So the first ones out of the gate must be perfect.
