VW ID.4 Pro S AWD vs Ford Mustang Mach E AWD SR (eqpt group 300A)
Owned both vehicles in the title for a while now and thought I'd do a quick comparo. Hope this might help someone deciding between.
Price: Lots of factors at play here with tax credits, the IRA, etc. Paid sticker for both and the VW was about $3K less. We had a very good experience with both dealers – no games on price or anything else.
Cabin/Etc: Hard to call. The Ford’s pano glass roof is much more tinted, probably because it does not have a manual or powered shade like the VW, and it starts further back. The VW’s cabin in general feels brighter, and more open and expansive. The MME interior overall feels higher-quality and more solidly put together. The MME has more storage areas in the center console area and it has a sunglasses holder up high. I am very tall and have a little more legroom in the VW.
Looks: ID.4. Obviously subjective, and I get zero looks in the VW versus a number in the Ford, but I prefer the exterior look overall of the ID4.
Acceleration: ID.4. I imagine the LR battery AWD MME would be a better match, but the ID4 feels right quick while the MME is no slouch but feels slower.
Ride/Handling: MME, but close. The VW has an unpleasant twitchiness when cruising while the MME feels dead stable and centered. Both cars have decent initial turn in and cornering capability due to the low center of mass, but both also make their heavy weight known after that initial turn in if you try to hold speed through or accelerate out of a corner.
Noise: MME. The MME has noticeably less tire roar/road noise and is overall a bit quieter with wind noise. However, the Ford does have turbulence noise near the upper A pillar that stands out and starts around 60 MPH.
One-Pedal Driving: Ford, hands down. It has true OPD and enough brake regen to comfortably and normally come to a complete stop in most driving conditions. This didn’t seem like a huge feature going in, but after having both, it became clear quickly that true OPD is a huge positive. One of two of the biggest surprises.
Driver Aids: Close. I find the LKA on the ID.4 overly sensitive and its corrections too harsh. The sensor can be fooled fairly easily, and it’s no fun to have an unexpected tug on the wheel in heavy rain or with snow/ice on the ground. It can also be a real issue on narrow lined roads: if there’s an oncoming large vehicle, I want to be able to casually drift my passenger side tires onto or even slightly over the edge line without having the car forcefully jerk me back (into the oncoming vehicle). The Ford’s seems less intrusive and safer. I don’t find myself regularly using the VW’s travel assist feature, and haven’t had the Ford on a longish drive on a highway that supports full Blue Cruise. Both’s adaptive cruise works well.
Headlights: edge to VW. Both vehicles have very good low beam headlights but the VW with the foul weather (turning/side) lights is excellent for driving in neighborhoods, around parked cars, and in general where you are concerned about cross people/bikes/etc.
Foul weather driving: NA, but likely Ford. I drove the VW through last winter and found it atrocious on the OEM Alenzas in even light snow. A modest low-speed turn with no acceleration makes the rear squirrelly. It is great and confidence-inspiring in the rain. We will see how the Ford compares this winter.
Parking: Tie. The VW has an amazingly tight turning radius while the MME is just fine/normal. But the MME parking sensors are quicker to turn on and react, and it has the 360-degree camera view.
Electronics: Hands down the MME. The Ford has PAK (phone as key) that works flawlessly with multiple phones/drivers. Approach the MME with a paired phone and it’s just like you have a key fob in your pocket. And, you can just walk away and have the car automatically lock. This was a surprise feature and even more of a surprise how convenient it is – the other of the two biggest surprises. Connecting, setting up, and switching devices is well….modern like and iPhone or iPad whereas the VW is a mess. The Ford has real buttons on the steering wheel for adjusting volume, changing track, etc. I hate the capacitive buttons all over the VW and haven’t gotten used to them in almost a year. The main center computer has had no bugs or issues while the VW’s has. The Ford B&O stereo is superior in terms of solid, tight bass and clarity at higher volumes. Both have wireless CarPlay which is how we use the system. While the Ford’s screen is bigger, I prefer the horizontal orientation and slight cant toward the driver of the VW.
Updates: Ford. We’ve had the VW almost a year and not gotten a single update or improvement to the software. In a month with the Ford we’ve already gotten one or two.
Mobile App: Hands down the MME. The VW app is slow and unreliable and has fewer features. The “upgrade” to the iOS app around 6 months ago was anything but – it now often requires manually re-inputting username/password and almost always requires re-entering a PIN. The MME app works flawlessly with FaceID. The Ford app also has better notifications – eg, when the vehicle is fully charged.
Charging: MME. The VW has weirdness with the charge rate between 9.6kW and 4.8kW while the Ford doesn’t allow setting a universal max charge amount. That said, the Ford mobile app allows easily overriding a given location’s max charge to 100% instead. Both charge easily overnight on a L2 EVSE delivering 40A (ie, 50a circuit). The tipping point is the charge port location of the Ford is superior (front driver fender versus rear passenger quarter panel).
Range: Tie (see details). The VW has more range versus the standard range (ie, smaller battery option) Ford. However, we find ourselves renting an ICE vehicle for long road trips, so the VW’s extra range and EA network and free supercharging aren’t a factor for us.
Owned both vehicles in the title for a while now and thought I'd do a quick comparo. Hope this might help someone deciding between.
Price: Lots of factors at play here with tax credits, the IRA, etc. Paid sticker for both and the VW was about $3K less. We had a very good experience with both dealers – no games on price or anything else.
Cabin/Etc: Hard to call. The Ford’s pano glass roof is much more tinted, probably because it does not have a manual or powered shade like the VW, and it starts further back. The VW’s cabin in general feels brighter, and more open and expansive. The MME interior overall feels higher-quality and more solidly put together. The MME has more storage areas in the center console area and it has a sunglasses holder up high. I am very tall and have a little more legroom in the VW.
Looks: ID.4. Obviously subjective, and I get zero looks in the VW versus a number in the Ford, but I prefer the exterior look overall of the ID4.
Acceleration: ID.4. I imagine the LR battery AWD MME would be a better match, but the ID4 feels right quick while the MME is no slouch but feels slower.
Ride/Handling: MME, but close. The VW has an unpleasant twitchiness when cruising while the MME feels dead stable and centered. Both cars have decent initial turn in and cornering capability due to the low center of mass, but both also make their heavy weight known after that initial turn in if you try to hold speed through or accelerate out of a corner.
Noise: MME. The MME has noticeably less tire roar/road noise and is overall a bit quieter with wind noise. However, the Ford does have turbulence noise near the upper A pillar that stands out and starts around 60 MPH.
One-Pedal Driving: Ford, hands down. It has true OPD and enough brake regen to comfortably and normally come to a complete stop in most driving conditions. This didn’t seem like a huge feature going in, but after having both, it became clear quickly that true OPD is a huge positive. One of two of the biggest surprises.
Driver Aids: Close. I find the LKA on the ID.4 overly sensitive and its corrections too harsh. The sensor can be fooled fairly easily, and it’s no fun to have an unexpected tug on the wheel in heavy rain or with snow/ice on the ground. It can also be a real issue on narrow lined roads: if there’s an oncoming large vehicle, I want to be able to casually drift my passenger side tires onto or even slightly over the edge line without having the car forcefully jerk me back (into the oncoming vehicle). The Ford’s seems less intrusive and safer. I don’t find myself regularly using the VW’s travel assist feature, and haven’t had the Ford on a longish drive on a highway that supports full Blue Cruise. Both’s adaptive cruise works well.
Headlights: edge to VW. Both vehicles have very good low beam headlights but the VW with the foul weather (turning/side) lights is excellent for driving in neighborhoods, around parked cars, and in general where you are concerned about cross people/bikes/etc.
Foul weather driving: NA, but likely Ford. I drove the VW through last winter and found it atrocious on the OEM Alenzas in even light snow. A modest low-speed turn with no acceleration makes the rear squirrelly. It is great and confidence-inspiring in the rain. We will see how the Ford compares this winter.
Parking: Tie. The VW has an amazingly tight turning radius while the MME is just fine/normal. But the MME parking sensors are quicker to turn on and react, and it has the 360-degree camera view.
Electronics: Hands down the MME. The Ford has PAK (phone as key) that works flawlessly with multiple phones/drivers. Approach the MME with a paired phone and it’s just like you have a key fob in your pocket. And, you can just walk away and have the car automatically lock. This was a surprise feature and even more of a surprise how convenient it is – the other of the two biggest surprises. Connecting, setting up, and switching devices is well….modern like and iPhone or iPad whereas the VW is a mess. The Ford has real buttons on the steering wheel for adjusting volume, changing track, etc. I hate the capacitive buttons all over the VW and haven’t gotten used to them in almost a year. The main center computer has had no bugs or issues while the VW’s has. The Ford B&O stereo is superior in terms of solid, tight bass and clarity at higher volumes. Both have wireless CarPlay which is how we use the system. While the Ford’s screen is bigger, I prefer the horizontal orientation and slight cant toward the driver of the VW.
Updates: Ford. We’ve had the VW almost a year and not gotten a single update or improvement to the software. In a month with the Ford we’ve already gotten one or two.
Mobile App: Hands down the MME. The VW app is slow and unreliable and has fewer features. The “upgrade” to the iOS app around 6 months ago was anything but – it now often requires manually re-inputting username/password and almost always requires re-entering a PIN. The MME app works flawlessly with FaceID. The Ford app also has better notifications – eg, when the vehicle is fully charged.
Charging: MME. The VW has weirdness with the charge rate between 9.6kW and 4.8kW while the Ford doesn’t allow setting a universal max charge amount. That said, the Ford mobile app allows easily overriding a given location’s max charge to 100% instead. Both charge easily overnight on a L2 EVSE delivering 40A (ie, 50a circuit). The tipping point is the charge port location of the Ford is superior (front driver fender versus rear passenger quarter panel).
Range: Tie (see details). The VW has more range versus the standard range (ie, smaller battery option) Ford. However, we find ourselves renting an ICE vehicle for long road trips, so the VW’s extra range and EA network and free supercharging aren’t a factor for us.
