Mach-E over-the-air updates may lengthen Ford product cycles

DETROIT — The Mustang Mach-E could mark a change in the way Ford Motor Co. designs and builds new vehicles.

The upcoming electric crossover's over-the-air update capability allows Ford to continuously make improvements and move away from the traditional method of redesigning a vehicle every five or six years and sprinkling a more modest freshening in between. It's a strategy popularized by Tesla Inc., which hasn't significantly changed the sheet metal or powertrains of some of its older electric vehicles since they were introduced but has boosted performance and battery range through regular software upgrades.

"It gives us that optionality," Hau Thai-Tang, Ford's product development and purchasing boss, said in an interview last month. "I think we now have the ability to make the vehicle physically better for the customer with these OTA updates, and that's something that's game-changing in terms of the business model."

Thai-Tang admitted midcycle freshenings often are just a "fashion statement," with slight cosmetic tweaks or a compliance-driven regulatory improvement to the engine.

The Mach-E won't necessarily need such traditional upgrades.

Even before deliveries begin this month, Ford has plans to improve it. CEO Jim Farley said last week on an episode of "Jay Leno's Garage" that, roughly six months after launch, Ford will push out a software update that activates an optional hands-free driver-assist system.

Future software upgrades could become added revenue streams for the automaker, as will subscriptions for its charging network available through the FordPass app.

Those revenue streams will help the Mach-E be profitable from the moment it launches.

Ford also is helped by the vehicle's flexible electric architecture. While Thai-Tang said the Mach-E will have little in common with the upcoming F-150 EV or E-Transit van, Ford plans to spread the investment over multiple programs and add a second EV at the Mexico plant where the Mach-E is built.

He also noted that Ford's reliance on suppliers for batteries has helped it avoid additional costs.

"Our strategy on how we're approaching the value chain for battery-electric vehicles, in this early phase of leveraging competitive tension from multiple suppliers to drive that cost down, has been very helpful," Thai-Tang said.

Farley has said Ford is discussing building its own battery cells, but that likely wouldn't happen for years, until EVs are more popular.

"I think the transition will still play out over decades," Thai-Tang said.

"In many markets, many segments, customers still need that range. But we are thinking through that transition. We are very bullish on electrification."

It was important, he said, that the automaker launch the first of a new wave of EVs with the Ford brand and not on a higher-priced Lincoln.

In contrast, General Motors has designated its Cadillac luxury brand to lead the way with EVs, aside from the Chevrolet Bolt, and the GMC Hummer coming next year will cost more than $112,000 at launch.

"The problem with that approach is high price point typically means lower volumes," Thai-Tang said. "Let's not do a $100,000 super truck and sell it to 1,000 people. Let's get it out to a lot of people and polish the brand and reinforce the attributes customers love the most with those icons."

The Mach-E's Mustang DNA is obvious, with not-so-subtle design elements including a pony logo on the front and tri-bar taillights that blink sequentially.

"Externally, we want it to be a Mustang," Thai-Tang said. "But inside the vehicle, as well as the technology and drive experience, we want it to be all about the future."

The Mach-E will come with the latest iteration of Ford's infotainment system, called Sync 4A, that allows owners to customize their driver profile or search for available charging stations, among other features. Owners don't even need a key fob to access the vehicle; those functions can now be performed with their smartphone, although dealers will still give out a fob upon request.

While the interior is similar to that of the Tesla Model Y, including having a large center screen, Ford added a couple of specific, familiar features based on early customer feedback.

They include a physical knob bonded directly on the center touch screen to control volume and a digital cluster above the steering wheel that displays key stats such as battery range or speed.

"I didn't want to do a science fair project," Thai-Tang said. "We didn't want this to be a spaceship. But we wanted it to be a very modern, advanced future experience."