Thoughts on the use of the Mustang and Mach names on Ford’s latest electric crossover aside, you have to admit that it’s a pretty compelling package for an all-new model. As a mass-produced, heavily funded, stone-cold competitor to the Tesla Model Y, you would think that Tesla and Elon Musk would be a bit worried about the Mustang Mach-E. On the contrary, though, Musk is actually pleased and “excited” about it.

Elon Musk Was Excited to See the Announcement of the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E

Elon Musk, and Tesla in general, have always been about encouraging other automakers to bring sustainable EVs to the market. One could even argue that Elon Musk, for better or worse, is the reason that we’re in the middle of this crapshoot that is the evolution from gas-powered vehicles to battery-powered vehicles.

We’ve yet to see an automaker actually do what Tesla does. Sure, models like the Jaguar I-Pace promise something similar, albeit with a shorter range, and Mercedes is on the edge of competing with the EQC. But, mainstream automakers don’t only find it difficult to compete but find it hard to even get the same attention or following. When was the last time you heard someone talk about the Jaguar I-Pace, Mercedes EQC, or Kia Niro EV the way Tesla fanboys talk about the Model S, Model X, Model Y, Roadster, or Pickup? Models like the Kia Niro EV have been on the market, and models like the yet-to-be-revealed Tesla Cybertruck and Model Y garner more attention.

Elon Musk has always said that he welcomes competition and that his whole goal is to encourage other automakers to follow suit. Well, in the face of true competition, he held true to his principals, as you can see in the tweet above. It’s commendable, to say the least.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E Really Is a Tesla Rip off

The are some minor differences between the two. The Mach-E does have a longer hood, the rear end sits a little lower, and the roofline is a little less bubbly, but even the waistline is damn near identical, as are the body lines on the side. It almost looks like Ford stole the Model Y’s CAD files and tweaked them just a bit. You’d think Musk would be pissed, but at least he holds true to his principals.

Check out the charts below or learn more about that from Ciprian and his deeper look into the Model Y and Mach-E.

Final Thoughts

Say what you want about Tesla, at least Elon Musk really is excited about new electric cars coming to the market, even when they are blatant rip-offs of Tesla’s design or have the ability to really compete. The thing is that Ford is actually hoping that using the Mach and Mustang name will make the EV more relevant and marketable, but we’re not sure that’s the case. That really didn’t work out for Mitsubishi and the Eclipse Cross, and it didn’t even work for Chevy when they plastered the Blazer name on a family-oriented, not-going-off-road crossover. One day, maybe automakers will realize that certain names belong to certain types of cars. Mustang and Mach are about muscle, not fast crossovers. We’ll have to see how this plays out, but chances are the whole play on the name isn’t going to help move the crossover as Ford hoped it would.