Ford has revealed the first official glimpse of a new 'Mustang-inspired' electric SUV that is set to roll out globally from 2020.
The US car-maker has been busy working on the fully-electric crossover, originally known as ‘Mach 1’, which is set to take the form of a sporty offering with clear links to the Mustang muscle car.
Here, we get to see the first angle of the highly-touted new model; namely, its familiar three-bar tail-light design, fastback roofline and sharp crease across the tailgate – clear pointers to Ford’s venerable muscle-car.
The concept is set to morph into a global production model to take on the Tesla Model X and Jaguar I-PACE.
It was conceived by Ford’s future-proofing Team Edison division, where Ford Australia chief Kay Hart was previously posted. The head of Team Edison is Darren Palmer, whose previous project was designing the seventh-generation Mustang.
Set to offer a range of about 480km, the e-SUV will spearhead Ford’s $A15 billion plans for 16 battery-powered EVs by 2022.
After first touting the electric crossover as ‘Mach 1’, Ford’s head of global markets, Jim Farley, hinted last week that the upcoming concept would go by a different name due to public backlash online.
The Mach 1 name can be traced back to 1969 with the release of the Ford Mustang Mach 1 sports car.