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Army Vet Drives Mustang Mach-E Cross-Country for $160

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Sergio Rodriguez's Grabber Blue Ford Mustang Mach-E fueling up at a charging station | Mustang Mach-E takes cross-country trip
Sergio Rodriguez spent $160 to charge Mustang Mach-E on cross-country trip
Photo: Ford

Sergio Rodriguez was one of the many folks who recently got a 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E, and he immediately put that puppy to the test. Rodriguez, an Army veteran, decided to travel 2,500 miles from SoCal to Georgia in his newly purchased pony. The cost he paid out of pocket to charge up will shock you. (Get it? Because electricity?)


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Taking five days and making 23 stops, Rodriguez spent just a shade over $159 to charge his Mustang Mach-E on his cross-country trip. He also noted that he never spent more than 35 minutes at a charging station thanks to the network of Electrify America fast-chargers along his route.

“I mapped out my entire trip and had zero issues with charging,” Rodriguez told @FordOnline. “The car actually maps out your trips for you. It takes out the calculations you would have to do on your own. You just have to drive and follow directions.”

Rodriguez: Mustang Mach-E ‘smokes my Tesla’

As the owner of several EVs, Rodriguez is in a unique position to compare the 2021 Mustang Mach-E to one of its key rivals: the Tesla Model X. And he certainly didn’t mince words. He said that he was particularly impressed by how well the Mustang Mach-E stayed powered up while traveling through Texas, quipping that the Tesla wouldn’t have been up for the same challenge.

“Had I been doing the same in my Tesla, it would’ve died a whole lot faster because it’s going to burn a whole lot more electricity,” he said. “The Mach-E was like ‘What else you got?’”

He also told Ford that the Mustang Mach-E “smokes my Tesla hands-down,” probably not unlike how Mark Zuckerberg would smoke some meats on his Big Green Egg.

Rodriguez opted for the Mustang Mach-E not just because of his fondness for EVs, but also because he’s a pony enthusiast going a ways back. He’s owned Mustangs over the years, including a 5.0-liter V8-powered 1989 Mustang convertible. And you don’t see him complaining about the Mach-E not being a Mustang, now do ya?


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