2023 Nissan Ariya vs. 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E

2023 Nissan Ariya ・ Photo by Nissan

The Ford Mustang Mach-E is an electric vehicle that was all-new for the 2021 model year. Despite the familiar name, this is not just an electric version of the Mustang. It's an entirely separate vehicle developed from the start as an EV independent of its famous muscle car roots.

The Nissan Ariya is also an electric vehicle, but it’s all-new for 2023. This crossover comes in a wide range of trims with front-wheel and all-wheel drive and sleek styling inside and out. It’s the second electric vehicle in the Nissan lineup, joining the existing Nissan Leaf. Let’s take a closer look at the 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E and 2023 Nissan Ariya to see which is the best EV option.

A Matter of Performance

Driving an EV is a completely different experience than driving a traditional gas vehicle. It’s not so much about horsepower, although that does make a difference, but about torque. All the torque is instantly available in an EV. This makes acceleration downright aggressive if you stomp on the accelerator.

While both of these EVs offer strong performance that engage the driver, the Mustang Mach-E has the edge. Owing to the muscle car heritage of the original Mustang, Ford made sure there are special performance variants of their new EV that the Ariya simple doesn’t offer.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Ford

A Wide Range of Trims and Pricing

The Nissan Ariya is available in seven trims starting with the base Engage at $43,190 with front-wheel drive and the standard range battery. All-wheel drive adds $4,000 to the price. The rest of the lineup has an extended range battery with varying all-wheel drive availability. Pricing tops out at $60,190.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E comes in four trims with either rear-wheel or all-wheel drive. It also offers a standard range battery on base trims with an extended range battery on top trims in the lineup. The base Select is $46,895 with rear-wheel drive and the standard range battery with the top trim priced at $69,895. The Ariya comes out ahead for its wider trim lineup and lower starting price.

: Nissan Ariya

Photo by Nissan

Only One Is a Performance Crossover

The Nissan Ariya with the standard range battery offers 214 horsepower with 221 lb-ft of torque. There’s an increase to 238 horsepower with the extended range battery while torque remains the same. Those are strong numbers that make the Ariya responsive and easy to merge into highway traffic.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E offers varying performance figures depending on the exact configuration you choose. The base trim with the standard range battery and rear-wheel drive has 266 horsepower with 317 lb-ft of torque. At the top of the lineup, the GT Performance delivers 480 horsepower with 634 lb-ft of torque. The Mustang Mach-E is more powerful in any guise, but especially in its top trim.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Ford

How Far Can You Go?

Equipped with the standard range battery, the Nissan Ariya has a range of up to 216 miles per charge with front-wheel drive or 205 miles with all-wheel drive. Those figures increase to 289 miles and 270 miles, respectively, when equipped with the extended range battery.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E also offers standard and extended range batteries along with varying power outputs that give it a wider range spread. The base trim with rear-wheel drive has a range of 247 miles per charge with all-wheel drive dropping that figure to 224 miles. The best range is achieved with the extended range battery and rear-wheel drive with up to 306 miles on a single charge, making the Mustang Mach-E the range champion.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Ford

How Fast Can It Charge?

The Nissan Ariya with the standard range battery charges from 20 to 80 percent at a 130-kW charger in 35 minutes. With the extended range battery, it charges from 20 to 80 percent at a 130-kW charger in 40 minutes. At a Level 2 charger, it’s either 10.5 or 14 hours.

The Mustang Mach-E with the standard range battery can charge from 10 to 80 percent in about 38 minutes at a 115-kW charger. The extended range battery can accept up to 150 kW. We give this to the Ariya for having a minimum of 130 kW charging for the full lineup despite the higher figure for top trims of the Mustang Mach-E lineup.

: Nissan Ariya

Photo by Nissan

Passenger Comfort

The Ford Mustang Mach-E has an attractive and comfortable interior with plenty of room for five adults. The rear seats are spacious so even taller adults will find them comfortable, and materials are all high-quality with plenty of soft touch surfaces that lend a bit of upscale appeal.

The Nissan Ariya is beautifully appointed across the lineup with perhaps a more elegant and attractive interior, but it’s slightly smaller than the Mach-E. There’s less headroom and legroom for rear passengers. Although it’s not by much, this does make the rear seats less comfortable for adults, especially if you’re sitting three across or heading out for a longer road trip.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Ford

Infotainment With Plenty of Features

Infotainment in the Nissan Ariya includes a 12.3-inch color touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay, wired Android Auto, AM/FM, and a 6-speaker audio system. There are two front USB ports and two rear USB ports along with standard navigation and Wi-Fi hotspot connectivity. Wireless charging is standard on select trims.

The Ford Mustang Mach-E has a 15.5-inch color touchscreen that’s mounted vertically on the dashboard. There’s standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, wireless smartphone charging, six-speaker audio, and two USB ports. The Mach-E comes out ahead for better standard features and its larger screen size.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Ford

Good Standard Safety

Standard safety features on the Mustang Mach-E include rear parking sensors, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, forward and reverse collision warning with pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning with lane keep assist, and driver drowsiness monitoring. There’s also BlueCruise, which offers hands-free driving in select highway scenarios.

The Nissan Ariya has automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, forward collision warning, lane departure warning, blind-spot warning, rear cross traffic alert, rear automatic braking, driver alertness warning, and traffic sign recognition. There’s also ProPilot Assist with navigation which is hands-on system or ProPilot Assist 2.0 on top trims, which offers hands-free driving. The standard hands-free driving offered by the Mustange Mach-E gives it the win.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Ford

Room for Cargo

The Mustang Mach-E has 29.7 cubic feet for cargo behind the rear seat. If you need a bit more room, then fold those seats and you have 59.7 cubic feet of cargo room behind the front seats. There’s also a front trunk or frunk with an additional 4.7 cubic feet for cargo.

The Nissan Ariya has quite a bit less room for cargo behind the rear seats at only 22.8 cubic feet. It also lacks a frunk. If, however, you’re looking at the room behind the first row, then it’s dead even with the Mustang Mach-E at 59.7 cubic feet. Although overall room is equal, we give this to the Mustang Mach-E for its better room behind the second row.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Nicole Wakelin

And the Winner Is….

The Nissan Ariya is a strong contender in the growing crop of electric crossovers. It has attractive styling with a comfortable interior that easily seats five people and good overall cargo room. Its range and battery charging speed are good, and both standard safety and infotainment are comprehensive.

Despite those positives, the Ford Mustang Mach-E simply offers more. It has more power, more room for people and cargo, and a more comprehensive infotainment system with a larger screen. It also offers hands-free driving across the lineup making it ideal for road trips, which helps make it the stronger offering of the two.

: Ford Mustang Mach-E

Photo by Ford