Ford's First Electric Vehicle Malfunctions After Charging... "Defects Found Only in Early Models"

Mustang Mach-E Fails to Start After Charging
"Issue Occurs Only in Vehicles Manufactured Before February... Resolution Coming Soon"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] It has been reported that some of the 'Mustang Mach-E' vehicles, Ford's first electric car, experienced a malfunction where the engine would not start after charging. Ford explained that a software defect occurred in some of the early production models and that the issue will be resolved soon.

On the 8th (local time), according to the US IT media outlet The Verge, the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration received reports that some Mustang Mach-E vehicles experienced a malfunction where the engine would not start after charging. Ford stated that the issue occurred due to a software defect found in some early model vehicles produced before February of this year, and since the number of affected vehicles is not large, it will be resolved soon.

According to Ford, this malfunction was caused by the 12V small low-voltage battery discharging due to a software defect while the high-voltage battery pack of the electric vehicle was being charged. The low-voltage battery is used to start the engine and is usually charged together when the high-voltage battery, which powers the electric vehicle, is being charged.

Ford's Mustang Mach-E, launched in November last year, is Ford's first electric vehicle and an SUV designed to compete with Tesla's Tesla Model Y, a representative brand of electric vehicles. Recently, as Tesla's sales slowed due to frequent traffic accidents and touchscreen errors leading to large-scale recalls, the Mustang Mach-E has gained great popularity mainly in the US, with 6,614 units sold in the first quarter alone.

Meanwhile, as the promotion of the electric vehicle industry has emerged as a representative eco-friendly policy mainly in the US and Europe, competition in the global electric vehicle market among automakers is intensifying. Global automobile demand, which decreased by 11% last year due to COVID-19, is expected to rebound by more than 12% this year. Additionally, with the US Department of Transportation announcing a $100 billion (approximately 112 trillion KRW) budget for electric vehicle subsidies, major US automobile brands are competing to focus on electric vehicle production and development.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.