Ford Mustsit

On quacking, swimming and actually being a duck

I conducted what turned into a bit of a social experiment the other day, using “Twitter”, which is a means of giving those who don’t deserve an opinion a means to broadcast obnoxious viewpoints far and wide.

With the world gripped by Mustang fever and people clamouring to praise or condemn the idea of Ford harnessing the power of the Original Ponycar’s name to ease the blue oval into the electric SUV market, I thought I’d see what might happen if I illustrated the brand being stretched to breaking point. So, I took a Ford press pic of a Mustang Mach-e and another of a Ford Transit, and mashed them together on Photoshop in a fairly crude way. I then shared it with the world, along with this:

“I’m all for Mustang being a standalone brand if it means we can have that Mustang Transit we’ve all been waiting for”

My initial inspiration to create this image was one of protest. A kind of “yeah, might as well slap your brand on anything” deal. I certainly didn’t expect it to be given a rapturous reception on its own merit. Comments ranged from “Why do I not hate that?”, through “The actual Mach-e moved the Overton window so far that this looks plausible and even good!”, to “I’d buy the heck out of this.” Right now it’s riding on over 300 “likes”. Usually, my Tweets struggle for more that a shrug of the world’s collective shoulders.

So, what has this proven? Well, I’m not really sure. I think it says that, while not infinitely elastic, the Mustang brand has the exciting potential to enliven a whole range of products, providing they have a driver-centric appeal. I think it demonstrates that many of those who are really bothered about the Mustang name being “squandered” are probably being more than a little stuffy – I certainly was. Perhaps Mach-e should be seen not as threatening a legend, but reincarnating a dinosaur.

What’s definitely encouraging, though, is the sheer extent to which people are affected by the Mustang brand. It was generally accepted among those who responded to the Tweet that a Mustang Van would be awesome. It follows, then, that a Mustang anything would be awesome. On the basis that Mustang is pretty much the strongest brand name that Ford has ever carried in its portfolio, this has to be fantastic news for Dearborn as far as marketing is concerned.

So, no, the Mach-e isn’t a Mustang as we know it, but perhaps Mustang is just a state of mind.

Mustang/Transit mashup copyright @RoadworkUK / Hooniverse 2019.

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17 responses to “On quacking, swimming and actually being a duck”

  1. Batshitbox Avatar
    Batshitbox

    I believe that’s trademarked by the Reliant Robin.

    1. Lokki Avatar
      Lokki

      Yes.. the skidding car is definitely Reliant Robin… but I’d you remove that and just leave the lightning bolts…
      although I suspect some will feel it more appropriate on a German Car like an electric Opel.

    2. Lokki Avatar
      Lokki

      Yes.. the skidding car is definitely Reliant Robin… but I’d you remove that and just leave the lightning bolts…
      although I suspect some will feel it more appropriate on a German Car like an electric Opel.

      1. crank_case Avatar
        crank_case

        either that, or the worlds weirdest truck nuts

  2. Maymar Avatar
    Maymar

    After sharing a bit of lineage with the Ford GT(40), isn’t a connection with the Mustang kind of slumming it? Although, I’m all for more Supervans.

    https://bangshift.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ford-archive-supervan-1.jpg

  3. Zentropy Avatar
    Zentropy

    I love it! Anything beats the Transit’s current ugly mug.

  4. Rover 1 Avatar
    Rover 1

    So Ford isn’t Ford any more?

    It has become the Mustang Motor Company?

    1. Rust-MyEnemy Avatar

      Might as well…

    2. mdharrell Avatar

      Hey, if it worked for Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft to start calling everything a “Mercedes” then why not?

  5. Vairship Avatar
    Vairship

    Make it a Mustang Mach-TransitConnect-e and I’m all in!
    Even if they just created a plug-in hybrid version of the Transit Connect (just use the C-max Energi hardware already!) I’d be interested.

    1. Scoutdude Avatar
      Scoutdude

      I just don’t understand why they haven’t offered even a Hybrid Transit Connect. The power train should pretty much drop right in since the C-Max and TC were on the same “C” platform. Yeah they would probably want a different battery pack to fit the vehicle better. I would think there would be room underneath like the are doing in the new Escape. Or mount it vertically on one of the walls, at least in the cargo vans. Or for the Plug in make it fairly thin, say 3-4 inches, and cover the entire floor, with of course a tough cover on it. It would be ideal for local light deliveries like auto parts stores and florists.

      1. Vairship Avatar
        Vairship

        Yes, there was even a Focus BEV on the same platform. So they could have rolled out full electric or hybrid versions and absolutely owned the in-city delivery market due to low running costs/low maintenance. But instead they threw all that away and are now buying technology from VW.

        Then again, don’t ask me why Chevy isn’t selling a van-version of the Bolt to USPS etcetera. It’s got to be about the same size as the mail delivery Jeeps and they loved those… And mail delivery happens at low speed, lots of start and stop (where electrics are at their best) and there’s no way they drive more than 200 miles in a day in the city.

  6. crank_case Avatar
    crank_case

    “Twitter is the playground of idiots” – Noel Gallagher

    Not that I rise above internet idiocy, but this is the only conlusion we can safely draw from any of this.

    1. outback_ute Avatar
      outback_ute

      He would have a fair insight!

      1. crank_case Avatar
        crank_case

        And he’s the clever one in the family..

  7. 0A5599 Avatar
    0A5599

    Duck.

    You keep using that word. I do not believe it means what you think it means.

    https://www.justtrucks.com.au/sites/default/files/advert/left%20side%20dukw%202010.JPG