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Electric Ford Mach 1 crossover to break cover next year?

Electric Ford Mach 1 crossover to break cover next year?

The Mach 1 will be a front-wheel drive crossover built on the Focus\' platform.

New details have emerged about the upcoming Ford Mach 1. The battery-powered model will break cover before the end of next year, according to a recent report.

What's the Mach 1? Well, it depends on who -- and when -- you ask. Ford introduced the Mach 1 nameplate for the 1969 model year on a performance-oriented option package for the Mustang. Nearly 50 years later, British magazine Autocar reports the next Mach 1 will take the form of a front-wheel drive crossover built on the same platform that underpins the new Focus. That means it will be about the same size as the Escape, though it will likely offer a more spacious interior thanks to its smaller drivetrain.

The model is currently under development. It's called CX430 internally and its design borrows some styling cues from the Mustang. It has been on Ford's to-do list for several years, according to insiders, so it's not a hasty response to the industry's shift towards more electrified vehicles.

Sources told Autocar the Mach 1 is one of the so-called "white paper" models Ford will introduce to replace its passenger cars in North America. To us, it sounds like just another crossover, albeit with an electric drivetrain and a more muscular design.

We'll know more about the Ford Mach 1 in the coming months. The model is tentatively scheduled to make its debut next year, meaning it likely won't arrive until the 2020 model year at the earliest.