A Week with the Mustang Mach-E: My First EV Rental Experience

by Felix Wong | 08 May 2025

I’ve driven electric cars before—going as far back as 2014, giving test drives as a volunteer with Drive Electric Northern Colorado—but this was my first time renting an EV for a full week. I wanted to experience real-world charging challenges and see if range anxiety was something I’d truly feel. With a trip planned to Northern California, I reserved an electric vehicle through Avis. What I got was a bit of a surprise.

The Rental Process

Upon arriving at SFO airport, I asked the Avis representative about their EV options. He listed several models—the Kia EV6, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and a couple more—but noticeably absent was the Ford Mustang Mach-E. This was odd, considering that’s what Avis had pictured when I booked the reservation.

So, I asked: “Do you have a Mustang Mach-E?”

He hesitated before admitting, “Yes, we have one of those too.”

Naturally, that’s the one I took. It ended up being a rear-wheel-drive, extended-range model that, had the battery been topped up, would be good for 320 miles on a single charge. I even thought the metallic Carbonized Gray paint was quite attractive, despite otherwise being in agreement with FIAT’s 2023 decision to stop producing gray vehicles because the color is drab, dark, and boring.

Initial Impressions

The Mustang Mach-E is, in my opinion, the best-looking EV on the market—excluding all the very rare, two-seat electric sports cars, of course. I hadn’t always felt that way. When the Mach-E first started appearing on streets four years ago, I saw it as a branding abomination—Ford exploiting the Mustang name for something that lacked a V8, a stick shift, or even a coupe body style. But in the years since, my perspective has changed.

Crossover SUVs have become wildly popular, and while I absolutely appreciate traditional muscle cars, I now see Ford’s decision as inspired and forward-thinking. The Mach-E has the acceleration of a real Mustang, and the sales numbers back up its success—it’s the best-selling non-Tesla EV in the U.S. It even outsold the gasoline-powered Mustang coupe last year.

Driving it from San Francisco to Stockton during rush hour, however, gave me mixed feelings. From the outside, it evoques Mustang despite its much taller stance and extra doors. But inside? It felt just like a Tesla—minimalist and dominated by a massive vertical screen. There were a few thoughtful, traditional touches—like the steering wheel buttons and the multifunction knob overlaying the bottom of the touchscreen—but I missed the iconic twin-cockpit layout and round gauge clusters with classic 1960s fonts of a classic Mustang. The driving position was higher, and—naturally—it was completely silent.

At least it had plenty of space. The rear seats had generous legroom, and when folded down, my Raleigh M-30 mountain bike fit inside easily.

The First Charging Experience

I was able to make several trips across the region without needing a charge—that is, until the fourth day, when I planned to go to Sacramento to visit some high school friends.

Following the Delta Century bike ride, I decided to plug in for the first time. The car’s touchscreen listed plenty of nearby chargers, though the software was laggy and failed to provide a map of locations. (I needed to click on each location one-by-one to see where each one was—a process that tested my patience, compounded by how slow the software was.) I picked a ChargePoint station at Lodi City Hall, unsure of its speed but happy to see availability.

After 49 minutes, the car had only gained 3.66 kWh—about 15 miles of range. The process was surprisingly simple enough—paying with Apple Pay and plugging in was not much harder than charging a cell phone—but the slow speed was frustrating.

So then I looked for an Electrify America station that offered speeds up to 150 kW. I had to go a bit out of my way for the closest one in Stockton, using up more than half of the 15 miles of range I had gained at Lodi City Hall during the previous hour.

But Electrify America was a game-changer. Actual charging speeds hit over 110 kW, and in just 21 minutes, I gained 150 miles of range. As the station was next to Walmart, I went into the big box store to use the bathroom, then walk around inside to gawk at all the needless junk being sold, during that time.

The downside of charging at EA? Cost. At $0.64 per kWh, the price was equivalent to fueling a gas car with $4.80-per-gallon gasoline (the cost of regular unleaded in Stockton at the time) and 27 miles-per-gallon efficiency—right in line with a base Mustang coupe. The much-touted energy cost savings from driving an EV apparently does not apply if you are reliant on commercial charging stations.

Driving Dynamics and Tech

Where the Mach-E really stood out was its driving tech. Adaptive cruise control and lane-holding made highway driving nearly effortless.

Engagement-wise, the Unbridled mode, One-Pedal Drive, and Propulsion Sound features transformed the experience:

• Propulsion Sound emitted a subtle engine rumble through the speakers upon acceleration—nowhere near as dramatic as the new Dodge Charger EV’s Fratzonic exhaust system, but reminiscent of the base Mustang coupe’s fake engine sounds.
• One-Pedal Drive made braking almost unnecessary. The increased regeneration strength saved energy while adding an element of fun.
• Unbridled Mode sharpened steering and accelerator response—far superior to the vague steering I’d encountered in a Mazda CX-30 rental the previous week despite its manufacturer’s Zoom Zoom motto.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t until Day 5 with the car that I discovered these drive settings. But once I did, my impressions of the driving experience completely changed from “meh” to “this is pretty cool.”

The Importance of Battery Preconditioning

I learned firsthand how critical battery preconditioning is for fast charging. When I returned to Electrify America in Stockton a second time using my iPhone with Apple CarPlay for navigation, the car charged at only 82 kW—far below the 110+ kW speed it benefited from just days before. The reason? It hadn’t warmed the battery.

However, when I used the Mach-E’s built-in navigation system to find a fast charger in Hayward hours later en route to the San Francisco Airport (I had to return the car with >70% charge), battery preconditioning kicked in. This time, the charger started at 109 kW and only reduced to 82 kW as the battery charge approached 80%. As a result, I was able to get about 40 kWh of charge (or 140-150 miles of range) in 23 minutes.

The Problems with Electrify America

During my rental period, I became face-to-face with two the biggest challenges with Electrify America: availability and reliability. As I headed toward SFO, I was surprised to find that the number of Electrify America stations within a 30-mile radius was sparse. The closest location in Belmont showed all chargers occupied, forcing me to seek out another option in Hayward. Unfortunately, the reality of public EV infrastructure became all too clear when I arrived. The station had four chargers, but three were already in use, leaving just one available.

That would have been fine, but instead of being ready for a quick charge, the last remaining unit was completely out of service, displaying a Linux terminal error screen filled with technical jargon. I now learned what reports that said Electrify America chargers are often “down” meant, adding uncertainty to the charging experience.

I was lucky that another charger freed up 10 minutes later. But this kind of inconsistency is a major drawback for EV owners relying on public charging. When high-speed stations are few and far between—and a significant portion of those that exist are either occupied or malfunctioning—it makes long-distance travel more stressful than it should be.

The Tesla Charging Expansion

One thing that could alleviate the charging challenges is Tesla’s reliable and plentiful network of Superchargers. Today, every new Mach-E comes with an adapter allowing it to use Tesla’s NACS chargers—a huge benefit for availability and reliability. Unfortunately, my rental did not include such an adapter.

Regardless, it’s not a perfect solution. Tesla Superchargers are designed for rear-left charging ports and have traditionally used short cables. The Mach-E’s front-left port could potentially make connecting a hassle. Some owners need may to park awkwardly or block multiple stalls to charge at the Superchargers.

Final Thoughts

The Mustang Mach-E grew on me. Yes, it’s not a true Mustang in the traditional sense, but as an EV, it strikes an excellent balance between style, practicality, and performance.

For those who can charge at home every night, I imagine that range anxiety wouldn’t be a major concern. Long road trips might require more planning, but after this experience, I’d feel comfortable doing 500-mile journeys in this car.

Smooth, quick, spacious, futuristic, and stylish—I ultimately concluded that Ford made a great effort with this one.