Sounds like the Ford 'Mustang-inspired' electric SUV will be rear-wheel drive
At least one variant of it will have power flowing to just the rear wheels, according to a since-amended press release by a Ford partner.
RWD? That's certainly something in common with the Ford Mustang.
All signs point to Ford finally unveiling its secretive "Mustang-inspired" electric SUV in the near future, as the automaker stands by a 2020 launch date. Yet we may have learned a couple nuggets of information thanks to what appears to be slip-up from an odd source.
Ford and Electrify America last week announced a partnership to provide access to hundreds of DC fast chargers in what Ford calls its FordPass charging network. The charging network, however, added a few details not found in the Blue Oval's release. As The Drive first spotted and reported last Friday, Electrify America referred to the "Mustang-inspired" electric SUV as a rear-wheel drive model with "an extended battery."
Ford has never mentioned which wheels will receive power in its first electric car, and mum's the word on batteries. All the automaker has said publicly is it continues to target an EPA-estimated range of 300 miles. The automaker declined to comment on published and since retracted information.
Electrify America, which is a subsidiary of Volkswagen, has since erased any mention of rear-wheel drive or an extended battery from its release, though you can see the original at PR Newswire.
The two pieces of info open up a few possibilities. Foremost, the electric SUV could offer a rear-wheel drive variant alongside a model sporting all-wheel drive. The mention of an extended battery also makes it easier to infer there will be multiple battery packs offered, which will obviously correspond with a longer or shorter range. This would also create more expensive, or affordable, Mustang-inspired electric SUVs .
While all of this has always been likely, it's the first we've seen any of this information actually pushed out to the public -- even if it was by mistake.
Originally published Oct. 22.
Update, Oct. 23: Adds Ford response.
