2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E awarded five-star safety rating in Australia

The Ford Mustang Mach-E electric SUV has become the latest battery-powered vehicle to receive top safety marks in Australia – more than six months after it was awarded the scores in New Zealand.

More than six months after independent crash-test authorities gave the Ford Mustang Mach-E a five-star safety rating in New Zealand, the electric SUV has received the same score in Australia.

The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) awarded the Mustang Mach-E a five-star rating for New Zealand in December 2022, though the result was not applied in Australia until now as Ford had not yet confirmed plans to sell the vehicle locally, or any standard specifications.

Although the score is being published in Australia in 2023, the Ford Mustang Mach-E was tested in Europe last year under ANCAP and sister organisation Euro NCAP’s 2020-2022 test protocols – which were superseded by stricter standards this year.

The rating applies to all models except the high-performance GT.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E received scores of 92 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, 88 per cent for Child Occupant Protection, 69 per cent for Vulnerable Road User Protection (pedestrians and cyclists), and 82 per cent for Safety Assist technology.

MORE: 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E price and specs

Local safety scores for the Ford Mustang Mach-E largely reflect those previously seen in New Zealand, though Australian examples add a top-tether child-seat anchor point in the middle rear seat – required for the vehicle to be classified as a five-seater.

Despite scoring strongly across ANCAP’s criteria, the Mustang Mach-E’s results are lower in all categories than the Tesla Model Y – the best-selling electric SUV in Australia and the world.

ANCAP noted the Mustang Mach-E’s ‘active bonnet’ – which lifts to deflect struck pedestrians from stiff components – returned good or adequate results, though the base of the windscreen and pillars had weak or poor results.

No score was awarded to the autonomous emergency braking (AEB) feature’s operation when reversing, or the driver fatigue system, as the safety features do not default to ‘On’ when the car is started.

The AEB system performed well in all other tests – such as car-to-car, junction assist and forward pedestrian – while ANCAP noted the SUV’s lane support system showed good performance.

The 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E is due in Australian showrooms between October and December 2023, priced from $79,990 plus on-road costs in Select guise and up to $108,990 for the flagship GT.

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