Ford is pouring tens of billions of dollars into electric vehicles, betting big on a future that’s already here, but so far, the returns aren’t looking great. While the EV market overall continues to grow, Ford’s own electric sales are moving in the opposite direction. If the Dearborn automaker wants to close the gap with rivals like GM and Hyundai-Kia, let alone take a swing at Tesla’s lead, it needs to figure out how to boost local EV sales, and quickly.

A look at Ford’s most recent sales results does not paint a pretty picture for the automaker. In April, Ford managed to sell 4,859 EVs across the country. This represents a massive 39.4% decline from the 8,014 units it sold in April last year. Ford’s total EV sales for the first four months of 2025 are also down 2.9% from last year, with 27,409 units finding new homes. And that’s with Ford extending its popular Employee Pricing discounts for all.

Read: Ford Chief Says China Leads US By 10 Years In EV Batteries, Needs Their IP

A dramatic drop in demand for the Mustang Mach-E is the main reason why Ford’s sales collapsed last month. In April, 2,927 Mustang Mach-Es were sold, representing a 40.2% decline from the 4,893 sold in April 2024. Interestingly, sales are up by 0.4% year to date with 14,534 sales.

Sales of the F-150 Lightning have also dropped. In April 2024, Ford shifted 2,090 units, but this year, just 1,740. Year-to-date sales are also down 9.2% to 8,927. The E-Transits also had a very bad month with just 192 sales, a plunge of 81.5%.

Unlike its EVs, Ford’s hybrids are actually gaining ground. In April, the company sold 23,331 hybrid models, a 29.6% increase over the previous year. Year-to-date, hybrid sales are up 31.9%, with 74,404 units sold so far in 2025.

Outside of EVs, things are looking good for Ford. In April, the company’s total vehicle sales rose 16.2% compared to the same month in 2024, reaching 208,675 units versus 179,588 last year.

With the exception of EVs, Ford’s overall sales are up through the first four months of the year, despite the turmoil that the whole industry is facing since the introduction of Trump’s tariffs. Year-to-date, Ford has sold 709,966 vehicles in the US, or 3.2% more than the 687,671 it delivered in 2024.

The idea of two American hallmarks of the automotive industry going all-electric might have sounded like a bad sci-fi subplot just a few decades ago, but here we are, watching it happen in real time. The Mustang Mach-E GT Performance and the Dodge Charger Daytona are taking their rivalry to the track in a U-drag race to determine which EV carries its weight (literally) better.

As a reminder, a U-drag race is exactly what it sounds like. At the end of a quarter-mile conventional drag race, the competitors have to turn around and race back to the start line as fast as they can. Essentially, the test helps us understand acceleration, braking, and handling in one convenient competition.

Read: Stellantis Halts Charger Daytona Production As It Temporarily Cuts 5,400 Jobs And Idles Plants

Our entrants are two of the most controversial American cars this side of a Tesla. First up, the Ford Mustang Mach-E GT Performance, which delivers 480 horsepower (357 kW) and 700 lb-ft (948 Nm) of torque. It weighs in at around 4,950 pounds (2,245 kg), making it over 1,000 pounds (453 kg) lighter than its rival.

In the other corner, there’s the Dodge Charger Daytona, weighing in at a hefty 5,974 pounds (2,709 kg). Sure, it’s heavier – by a lot – but it makes up for it with sheer muscle. When the driver hits the special “Powershot” button, the Charger unleashes 670 horsepower (499 kW) and 630 lb-ft (853 Nm) of torque, turning that mass into serious forward momentum.

Numbers vs. Reality

Specs are nice, but we’re here for results. Off the line, the Mustang jumps ahead, its lighter weight helping it put its power down quicker. But it’s short-lived. The Dodge claws back ground almost immediately and overtakes before the first leg is over.

By the end of the quarter-mile, the Dodge is more than a full car length ahead. In the bend at the end, the Mustang is quicker to make the turn, but not quick enough. The Dodge has a large enough lead that it exits the corner ahead and stretches that lead to the finish line.

Round Two: Dodge Power, Ford Control

Race two goes largely the same way, but with one notable change: the Charger struggles during the braking segment and nearly moves into the Mustang’s lane. The consensus is uniform; the Charger is faster, but much more unruly. It feels like an old-school muscle car, says one host.

Of course, that’s not really a good thing in this case. It’s not the performance that we all love about old-school muscle cars, but rather the unwieldy nature that the new Charger mimics. That sounds like it’s in line with other comments we’ve heard about it. Hopefully, we’ll get our first chance to drive one soon.

For now, the Charger wins on speed, but the Mustang makes a case for balance – just not enough of one to cross the line first.

Credit: Edmunds

Remember the outcry from enthusiasts when Ford unveiled the Mach-E in November 2019? They were worried Ford wanted to replace the iconic pony car with an EV but the automaker assured them that wasn’t going to happen. Five and half years later, however, fresh data from Ford shows it’s now the Mach-E that’s the sales winner and the gas-powered car that’s the niche proposition. Are we looking at the end of the road for the ‘real’ Mustang?

Ford’s registration figures reveal Mach-E sales grew 21 percent in Q1 2025 versus Q1 2024, the total number of deliveries jumping from 9,589 to 11,607, no doubt helped by incentives and the threat of federal tax credits going away. Still, that’s a healthy gain. While that was happening sales of the classic Mustang slid by 31.6 percent, dropping from 13,707 to 9,377. That means the Mustang EV is now more popular than the gas car, and by a wide margin.

Related: Ford Mach-E Sales 62% Up This Year, Mustang Keeps Losing To Itself

So modern electric vehicles good, retro-style gas cars bad, right? It’s not quite that simple, because sales of Ford’s F-150 Lightning EV dropped 7.2 percent in Q1 to 7,187 units, and Bronco registrations blew up by 35.4 percent to 32,595 units. The Bronco is now almost as popular as the more affordable Bronco Sport (33,363; up 5.7 percent) and Escape (37,357; up 2.1 percent).

Ford’s (combustion) F-series trucks also increased their sales by a whopping 24.5 percent to 190,389, helping Ford truck deliveries boom by 15 percent. But that wasn’t enough to prevent total sales of Ford-branded vehicles dropping 1.2 percent to 477,560 in the first quarter. Lincoln sales, by the way, dropped 4.7 percent to 23,731.

It’s said that the definition of madness is doing the same thing over and again and hoping for a different result. And it’s looking like Ford’s new-for-’24 Mustang didn’t really offer anything meaningfully new to help keep interest high. Sure, the $325k GTD is entering new territory, but the regular models didn’t.

Which isn’t to say they’re bad cars. We just drove a Mustang GT and found it great fun. But the sales figures prove buyers are looking elsewhere for their kicks at a time when the Mustang has almost no direct opposition, its Dodge (ICE) and Chevy rivals having both been axed.

What do you think is the answer to Ford’s Mustang sales crisis? Is it more power for the base cars, more frugal engines, a four-door coupe or maybe a lifted crossover body? Or should Ford have retired the Mustang at its 50th birthday and focused exclusively on improving the Mach-E and extending its family?

Ford sales Q1 2024 vs Q1 2025