The Mustang Mach-E has been on a wild journey. It saw a sales surge in 2025 despite the United States’ dramatic pivot from supporting the EV industry, but collapsed by 50% in early 2026. Instead, drivers have been buying the gas-powered Mustang. The real Mustang.
I have been a personal hater of the Mach-E for a while. It’s an okay SUV I guess, but I feel it shouldn’t have the Mustang name. That sorta set it up to be lame. When I got inside one for a Lyft ride a few years ago, it was remarkably unremarkable. Very forgettable. Nothing Mustang about it. Just an electric SUV.
But if you were even partially tempted by the Mach-E, there may be a random way to finally get one for a good price.
Is the Mach-E worth it?
Americans don’t want electric SUVs like they used to. And that’s largely due to the price. While the rest of the world is getting cheap Chinese EVs, we are stuck with luxury EVs that are well beyond what the average family is willing to drop on a boring commuter. And they don’t even have enough features to really justify it. The recent Mach-E models got rid of the frunk! No more shrimp cocktails, I guess.
Not that anyone was tailgating with the Mach-E, let’s be real.
Anyway, you can get a special Shelby Mustang Mach-E model for a pretty good price if you purchase it through Hertz. This would be through its “Rent-A-Racer” program. The special-edition Mach-E is now offered for $40,000, $25,000 less than when it was released in 2024.
Let me be clear, however. This is not a race-ready vehicle. Shocker, I know. The Shelby Mustang Mach-E is a Mustang by name only. It’s just a Mustang Mach-E GT (all-wheel drive, 480 horsepower, 280-mile range) with a gold stripe on it and black wheels. But hey, it’s only $40,000. However, it’ll probably have a good amount of miles on the odometer. I see some examples for far less than 10,000 miles, however.
At this point, it feels a bit like Tesla’s Signature Edition thing, which made the discontinued Model S and X cost tens of thousands more just for a paint color. You can get a new Mach-E GT for a little over $50,000. However, a pretty nice electric SUV under $50K? It’s pretty tempting in the current market. Or you can wait it out a bit longer and see if Hertz sells it even cheaper.
And at least you don’t have to go to a tacky cult meetup and buy Mach-E merch if you buy this special edition.
I think if you were already contemplating the Mach-E, you might as well get one. If you were on the fence, keep waiting. And if you don’t want one, don’t bother at this point. Just get a Mustang.
