Ford Data From 36,000 Mach-E Cars Shows Little Battery Wear
Ford's first-year Mustang Mach-E batteries have kept an average of 92 per cent of their health after about five years of use. The figure comes from more than 36,000 cars of the 2021 model year in the US and Canada. Ford published the data on 9 November, and Motor1 and InsideEVs reported it the same day.
Key takeaways
- Average state of health across about 36,000 Mach-E cars was 92 per cent.
- 95 per cent of the cars sit between 87 and 97 per cent.
- More than 2,000 cars past 100,000 miles (161,000 km) average over 91 per cent.
- More than 30 cars past 200,000 miles (322,000 km) average 88 per cent.
What Ford measured
The data set covers about 36,000 owners of 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E models, both retail and fleet customers, with an average ownership period of 5.2 years. The cars have covered roughly 2 billion miles (about 3.2 billion km) on electric power across all 50 US states and Canada, and the figures are current to August 2026. The author, Kevin Vander Laan, is Ford's technical leader for high-voltage battery cells and systems. He pointed out that "averages can hide variation, so that range matters", which is why Ford published the 87-97 per cent spread as well as the mean.
All 2021 cars use nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) cells. Ford says its packs are designed to last at least 10 years, and that across the electric models it has launched in the past five years in North America, average health is above 90 per cent at 100,000 miles. One featured owner's 2022 Mach-E has reportedly passed 400,000 miles (644,000 km) on its original battery. Ford did not split the results by battery size.
Ford's charging advice
Ford's recommendations are simple. Use Level 2 AC charging at home for daily driving and keep DC fast charging for trips. Precondition the car while it is still plugged in, and park in the shade in summer where possible. Owners should follow the charge-level suggestions in the Ford app for their specific car. For the NCM packs in early Mach-E cars, regular full charges are generally unnecessary for daily use. Newer Ford models with LFP cells benefit from an occasional charge to 100 per cent, which keeps the battery management system calibrated.
What it means for buyers
The numbers are useful for anyone looking at a used Mach-E, many of which are now leaving their first leases. A five-year-old car with average wear should have lost less than a tenth of its capacity, but the 87 per cent bottom of the range shows why a health check before purchase still matters. Our guide to checking used EV battery health explains how, and the best used electric cars list puts the Mach-E in context.
Sources
- Ford: Class of 2021 Mustang Mach-E battery health (9 Nov 2026) (accessed 12 Nov 2026)
- Motor1: Ford Mustang Mach-E batteries age better than expected (9 Nov 2026) (accessed 12 Nov 2026)
Found a mistake? Report an error
