To define his future, Ford looked to his past. In November, the American automaker unveiled the Mustang Mach-E, placing the iconic pony logo in Ford’s biggest hit in the electric vehicle category.
The rationale for trusting a legacy nameplate is clear. After all, a battery-powered Mustang inspired far more interest than a new electric vehicle without the nostalgia it would have, and the $ 500 “First Edition” deposits due in late 2020 quickly dried up. Saying “Mustang” means not only that Ford cares deeply about this car, but also that it expects Mach-E to compete in the new world of Tesla-inspired high-performance electric vehicles. The name is so powerful that Ford may launch Mustang as a brand derived from Ram (née Dodge) or Genesis (Hyundai), a subfamily of vehicles destined to be united by Mustang DNA.
However, any reinvention of an established car name carries serious risk, which is evident given the many car enthusiasts who raged at the idea of an electric crossover named after a pony car – 47% disapproved of the measure. in a recent Autolist poll; only 19% supported it.
To see an automaker get it right, take a look at, well, Ford. The last Bronco rolled off the assembly line nearly a quarter century ago, not long after the rugged 4×4 became synonymous with a certain Los Angeles car chase. In 2017, the company announced a new Bronco for the 2021 model year, and so far the launch has been a resounding success. The revived Bronco promises to be a rugged, off-road, body-on-frame SUV. Most importantly, it looks like a Ford Bronco. The sturdy, boxy front end feels like a modern take on a boxy classic, similar to the way Ford’s 2005 reinvention of the Mustang brought a classic shape into the 21st century.
Compare that approach to the old Bronco foe, the Chevrolet Blazer. General Motors tried to elicit warm feelings by resurrecting the nameplate on its own rolling box, but the new Blazer shares little of its namesake’s DNA. Instead, Chevy took some aggressive styling cues from its current model Camaro sports car and applied them to a midsize crossover, disappointing fans who expected something more like the Blazer they grew up with. And where Ford promises to build its revived Bronco in Michigan, GM opted to build the Blazer in Mexico, then further stirred up local auto workers by displaying the car at the Detroit Tigers ballpark as a symbol of Chevy’s future. (The automaker quickly replaced it with the Traverse, which is made in Michigan.)
However, when it comes to sales, these mistakes may not matter. Sales of the Blazer in 2019 didn’t match the flashy totals of established Chevy crossovers like the Traverse and Equinox, but they found enough niche to propel Chevrolet to resurrect a related name, the Trailblazer, for a modern little crossover vehicle. GM made a big bet that America’s craze for high-end crossovers has yet to reach its peak and redefined its classic names for a new era.
However, when nameplate revivals swim against the automotive currents of their time, a famous name may not be enough. In 2012, Dodge discovered the Dart name from the 1960s and 1970s to spark interest in a new small sedan derived from the company’s new business partner, Fiat. (Both brands are now owned by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, the Italian-American result of their merger.) The new Dart had the energy of small sports cars, but it came about as American interest in small cars waned. The Dart died in 2016. Meanwhile, the Lincoln Continental, Ford Motor’s luxurious flagship of the 20th century, returned in 2017 after a 15-year absence to negligible sales figures in a world that had come a long way.
Name recognition cannot ignore design flaws either. In 2002, Ford revived the Thunderbird after a five-year gap with a gorgeous retro convertible reminiscent of the 1950s and wowed the automotive press. Those same messages later focused on the two-seater, citing cheap materials, lousy driving dynamics and a high price. The Thunderbird disappeared permanently in 2005.
The Mustang Mach-E signals a similar shift in the way automakers will attempt to sell battery-powered versions of well-known brands. It’s been tried before: Ford in the 2010s made some electric Fusion sedans with the “Energi” badge, a name more in line with pure green electrics like the Nissan Leaf. But “Mustang” and “Mach-E” are callbacks to Ford’s past performance, indicating its intention to compete with companies like Tesla. At the same time, Ford is halting production of most of its car models to chase the wave of crossovers. By placing the pony insignia on a tall crossover, the American brand is betting it can squeeze the excitement into an electric without alienating fans who view the move as anathema. (The new coronavirus pandemic will not delay the official launch of the Mustang Mach-E, Ford says, although it will affect the debut of the new Bronco.)
On the other hand, Jeep, another Fiat Chrysler brand, is preparing a plug-in hybrid version of the Wrangler, an American design so iconic that the brand will never be able to change its main profile. Meanwhile, Porsche of Germany took the opposite route to Ford: it applied a new name, Taycan, to its performance EV project, rather than risk diluting an existing name like the Panamera, which comes with comparable performance and almost the same. same price. The Stuttgart automaker also notably refused to build an e-911 that would no doubt scare off the flat-six faithful.
As pop culture continues to recycle, so will car names. And for those who do not like a classic name to put something new? Well you can always buy a revived DeLorean but still.
