Cars and Drivers

Ford Sticks With Gas Powered Car

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: September 19, 2022 10:30 am

Ford, which wants to stamp itself as a world leader in EVs, says its fleet will be all electric by early next decade. It wants to bury Tesla in the process. Is it any wonder? Ford’s market cap is $59 billion. Tesla’s is $951 billion.

Along with every other global manufacturer, Ford is desperate to fill that market value gap. Therefore, it is odd that one of Ford’s most heavily promoted models for next year is the V8 2024 Mustang, the latest version of a car that was first launched in the early 1960s. The nearly 500 HP car will eat through gas at a remarkable rate.

The other Ford model that carries the Mustang badge is, ironically, the Mustang Mach-E, an all electric crossover. Ford management supposed the Mustang brand would help sell the new car. It appears to have worked. The Mach-E is sold out.

The new gas powered Mustang will go on sale in the summer of 2023. Ford has made a large mistake by putting the car at the center of its highly promoted vehicles for next year.

Ford’s remodeling of itself as an EV powerhouse has been driven so far by the Mach-E and the new Ford F-150 Lightning full sized pickup The F-150 has the advantage that over 6 million of these have been sold in the last decade. This means the EV model has a massive potential pool of new buyers.

Ford has stumbled with its EV introduction. Because of the costs of components for its two Flagship EVs, it has had to raise the price of the models by well over $5,000. This will push some people away from purchases of the crossover and full sized pickup that are so expensive. Consumers may opt for gas powered versions as they wait for prices to come down – if they do. Ford has made the decision it will not lose money on the Mach-E or Lightening, which will likely erode sales.