Ford says 2021 Mustang Mach-E batteries average 92% health after two billion miles

Ford has published a battery health report card for the 2021 Mustang Mach-E, saying the EVs it analysed retained an average battery state of health of 92% after more than two billion collective miles. The study covered more than 36,000 Mach-Es sold in the US and Canada in the model's first year on sale.

According to the figures Ford shared, 95% of the analysed 2021 cars have batteries sitting between 87% and 97% health, including high-mileage examples. The results suggest degradation fears around early EVs may be overstated, at least for this model.

Kevin Vander Laan, technical leader of high-voltage battery cells and systems at Ford, described the dataset as one of the company's most valuable feedback loops at this scale: more than 36,000 vehicles, five-plus years and billions of real-world miles. He said the data is encouraging and continues to inform how Ford approaches battery systems, software guidance and future electric vehicle programs.

The car behind the numbers

The Mustang Mach-E was Ford's first series-production EV of the modern era, pitched as a rival to the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y. It uses the company's Global Electrified 1 architecture, and 2021 and 2022 models were offered with standard-range and long-range battery packs.

Ford's conclusion from the study is that these packs can handle high mileage with minimal degradation and should last the life of the vehicle without a replacement. That is a manufacturer claim drawn from owner data rather than an independent laboratory test, so it is best read as Ford's own assessment of its hardware.

What comes next from Ford

Ford's next significant EV is the Fathom pickup, which will start at $29,945 and be the first model on the company's Universal Electric Vehicle platform. It will use large aluminium castings for its shell, offer bidirectional charging and adopt a simplified 400-volt electrical architecture with Ford's fifth-generation battery management system.

Ford has not said whether the Fathom will carry any specific battery warranty or health guarantee based on these findings, and it has not released state-of-health figures for Mach-Es from model years after 2021. The report card therefore covers the earliest cohort only, which is also the one with the most miles behind it.

Kia has presented Rafael Nadal with a full-size clay sculpture of the EV4 GT hatchback, made using soil taken from the clay courts where he won his record 63 singles titles. The one-off piece was handed over at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca.

What the sculpture is, and what it is not

The model is a non-drivable, full-size replica that keeps the five-door hatchback proportions of the production EV4 GT but replaces metal and paint with clay. White automotive design tape runs across the orange-red surface to stand in for the lines of a tennis court.

Etched into the body are the numbers behind Nadal's clay-court record: 63 singles titles on the surface, a run of 50 consecutive sets won and the five seasons he finished ranked world number one. His signature also appears on the piece.

Kia says those markings belong only to this sculpture and will not appear on the production EV4 GT. Clay modelling is routine in car design, letting engineers judge surfaces and proportions by hand before a car reaches digital tooling or a wind tunnel.

The choice of the EV4 GT is not arbitrary: it sits in Kia's growing performance EV line-up alongside the EV3 GT and EV5 GT. In production form it pairs dual-motor all-wheel drive with 288 horsepower and a claimed 0-62 mph time of 5.6 seconds, figures that are still pending final European homologation.

A partnership that dates back to 2004

Kia Spain first backed Nadal in 2004, before he had won a Grand Slam, and he became the brand's global ambassador the year after his breakthrough French Open title in 2005. He held that role for more than two decades and continued it after retiring from professional tennis following the 2024 Davis Cup Finals.

Soohang Chang, president and CEO of Kia Europe, said Nadal's determination and resilience have inspired tennis players and fans worldwide and that those values have been central to the partnership since 2004. Nadal said receiving a tribute created from the material that has defined so much of his journey was incredibly meaningful after more than twenty years with Kia.

Kia's tennis connections go beyond one ambassador. In 2026 the brand marked 25 years of sponsoring the Australian Open, and it has separately extended its sponsorship of English cricket's Surrey County Cricket Club through 2029.

The sculpture is a marketing gesture rather than a product announcement, so it changes nothing for buyers shopping for an EV4 GT. What it does show is how far Kia is willing to stretch a two-decade ambassador relationship, and how the GT badge is being positioned as a performance line rather than a single model.