Ford Mustang Mach E drifting video: fake, real or next Ken Block stunt car?
Mystery surrounds a video of a stripped down 2021 Ford Mustang Mach E electric SUV conducting drifting tests deep inside a secret facility.
The shaky handheld video footage – posted on YouTube earlier this month – has been filmed in a highly secure area not accessible by or visible to members of the public.
The video ends with the person running through bushland, as if it they have been spotted by Ford personnel.
However, it is suspected the video was filmed and released by Ford – or an agency or person linked to the US car giant – even though the YouTube user name is Carolina Guy.
After initially being obscured by light bush scrub – presumably making the ‘spy’ photographer visible to the driver in the test car – the vehicle miraculously stops in full view of the camera after performing a few smoky drifting stunts.
Closer inspection of the footage shows large cooling fans attached to the front and rear of the vehicle – and wider wheels and low profile tyres – and it sounds much louder than a standard electric car. Even with body panels removed, it's unlikely to be this loud in standard trim.
This has led to speculation this vehicle could be the basis for the next Ken Block Hoonigan stunt machine – for the next Gymkhana video – and that the vehicle is getting a shakedown during its development phase with the help of Ford engineers.
While it's unclear what this car is, overseas reports based on information from Ford say certain variants of the Mach E will have the ability to drift or perform a burnout.
US websites have also reported most models in the Mach E range are set to get a power bump from their initial claimed outputs.
The base model rear-drive Ford Mustang Mach E will have an output of 198kW/429Nm (up from 190kW/414Nm). The Extended Range rear-drive model will have an output of 216kW/429Nm (up from 210kW/429Nm).
An all-wheel-drive Extended Range is said to have an output of 258kW/580Nm and the flagship Ford Mustang Mach E GT will top out the range with an output of 342kW/830Nm.
The 2021 Ford Mustang Mach E is expected on sale in the US and China later this year or early next year.
Although the vehicle will be factory-built in right-hand-drive and has been confirmed for the UK, the Ford Mustang Mach E is not yet officially planned for Australia.
Drive understands the Ford Mustang Mach E will be constrained by production capacity in its first few years at least, but it could become available in Australia later in its model cycle.
Here is the video as it appears on YouTube. Let us know in the comments below if you think the footage was staged, could be Ken Block's next stunt car, or if this is a legit spy video.