Compare the2024 Ford Mustang Mach-EVS 2024 Chrysler Pacifica

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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Both the Mustang Mach-E and Pacifica have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Mustang Mach-E has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Pacifica’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

With its standard Pre-Collision Assist with Automatic Emergency Braking, the Ford Mustang Mach-E is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Chrysler Pacifica, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

	Mustang Mach-E	Pacifica
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Crossing Child - DAY
12 MPH	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH	AVOIDED	-4 MPH
	Crossing Adult - NIGHT
12 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
12 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	-6 MPH
	Parallel Adult - NIGHT
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	-1 MPH
37 MPH Brights	-33 MPH	-22 MPH
Warning Issued-Brights	1.6 sec	1.4 sec
37 MPH Low beams	-16 MPH	No Slowing
Warning Issued-Low beams	1 sec	No Warning

The Mustang Mach-E has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Pacifica doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Both the Mustang Mach-E and Pacifica have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Mustang Mach-E has Cross Traffic Braking (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Pacifica’s Rear Cross Path Detection doesn’t automatically brake.

The Mustang Mach-E’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Pacifica doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Mustang Mach-E and the Pacifica have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras and rear cross-path warning.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Ford Mustang Mach-E is safer than the Pacifica:

	Mustang Mach-E	Pacifica
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	115	167
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Pelvis Force	825 lbs.	848 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	42	83
Neck Compression	22 lbs.	67 lbs.
Torso	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	.87 in	1.1 in
Shoulder Force	268 lbs.	424 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	.94 in	1.97 in
Torso Deflection Rate	4 MPH	12 MPH
Pelvis	GOOD	POOR
Pelvis Force	535 lbs.	1450 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Mustang Mach-E, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 1.4% to 3% less likely to roll over than the Pacifica, which received a four-star rating.

Warranty

There are over 20 percent more Ford dealers than there are Chrysler dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Mustang Mach-E’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Ford vehicles are better in initial quality than Chrysler vehicles. With 49 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Ford higher than Chrysler.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Chrysler vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford above average in long-term dependability. With 4 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Chrysler is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Chrysler vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Ford 8 places higher in reliability than Chrysler.

Engine

The Mustang Mach-E has more powerful engines than the Pacifica:

	Horsepower	Torque
Mustang Mach-E electric motor	264 HP	387 lbs.-ft.
Mustang Mach-E ER electric motor	290 HP	387 lbs.-ft.
Mustang Mach-E eAWD electric motors	325 HP	500 lbs.-ft.
Mustang Mach-E ER eAWD electric motors	365 HP	500 lbs.-ft.
Mustang Mach-E GT electric motors	480 HP	600 lbs.-ft.
Mustang Mach-E GT Performance/Rally electric motors	480 HP	700 lbs.-ft.
Pacifica Hybrid 3.6 DOHC V6 hybrid	260 HP
Pacifica 3.6 DOHC V6	287 HP	262 lbs.-ft.

As tested in Motor Trend the Mustang Mach-E ER electric motor is faster than the Chrysler Pacifica V6:

	Mustang Mach-E	Pacifica
Zero to 60 MPH	6.3 sec	8.3 sec
Quarter Mile	14.8 sec	16.3 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	96.8 MPH	86.4 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Mustang Mach-E gets better mileage than the Pacifica running on electricity:

			MPGe
Mustang Mach-E
	RWD	Electric Motor	106 city/98 hwy
		ER Electric Motor	104 city/90 hwy
	AWD	Electric Motors	95 city/88 hwy
		ER Electric Motors	97 city/84 hwy
		GT Electric Motors	95 city/85 hwy
Pacifica
	FWD	Hybrid Electric Motor	87 city/77 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the Mustang Mach-E gets better mileage than the Pacifica running its gasoline engine:

			MPGe
Mustang Mach-E
	RWD	Electric Motor	106 city/98 hwy
		ER Electric Motor	104 city/90 hwy
	AWD	Electric Motors	95 city/88 hwy
		ER Electric Motors	97 city/84 hwy
		GT Electric Motors	95 city/85 hwy
Pacifica
			MPG
	FWD	3.6 V6 Hybrid	29 city/30 hwy
		3.6 DOHC V6	19 city/28 hwy
	AWD	3.6 DOHC V6	17 city/25 hwy

The Mustang Mach-E can travel with zero emissions on a full charge for 230 to 320 miles. The Pacifica Hybrid has to start its internal combustion engine after only 32 miles.

Regardless of its engine, regenerative brakes improve the Mustang Mach-E’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. Chrysler only offers a regenerative brake system on the Pacifica Hybrid.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Ford Mustang Mach-E higher (10 out of 10) than the Chrysler Pacifica (7). This means the Mustang Mach-E produces up to 11.8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Pacifica every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Mustang Mach-E’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Pacifica:

	Mustang Mach-E	Mustang Mach-E GT/Rally	Pacifica	Pacifica AWD
Front Rotors	14.2 inches	15.2 inches	13 inches	13.8 inches

The Mustang Mach-E stops much shorter than the Pacifica:

	Mustang Mach-E	Pacifica
70 to 0 MPH	158 feet	183 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	109 feet	131 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	142 feet	145 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Mustang Mach-E’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Pacifica’s standard 65 series tires. The Mustang Mach-E GT’s tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Pacifica’s optional 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Mustang Mach-E has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Pacifica.

Suspension and Handling

The Mustang Mach-E has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Mustang Mach-E flat and controlled during cornering. The Pacifica 4x2 suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Mustang Mach-E offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Pacifica’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Mustang Mach-E has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Pacifica doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Mustang Mach-E’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (48.7% to 51.3%) than the Pacifica’s (55% to 45%). This gives the Mustang Mach-E more stable handling and braking.

For better maneuverability, the Mustang Mach-E’s turning circle is 1.6 feet tighter than the Pacifica’s (38.1 feet vs. 39.7 feet). The Mustang Mach-E’s turning circle is 2.1 feet tighter than the Pacifica AWD’s (38.1 feet vs. 40.2 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Mustang Mach-E has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Pacifica (5.8 vs. 5.4 inches), allowing the Mustang Mach-E to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Chassis

The Mustang Mach-E Select/Premium is 1 foot, 6.7 inches shorter than the Pacifica, making the Mustang Mach-E easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Mustang Mach-E is 5.5 inches narrower than the Pacifica, making the Mustang Mach-E easier to handle and maneuver in traffic.

Servicing Ease

The Mustang Mach-E uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Pacifica uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

The Mustang Mach-E’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Pacifica’s standard rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open them fully. Only its driver’s window closes automatically.

If the windows are left open on the Mustang Mach-E the driver can close them all from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can also lower the windows the same way. The driver of the Pacifica can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Mustang Mach-E’s exterior PIN entry system. The Pacifica doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

Consumer Reports rated the Mustang Mach-E’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Pacifica’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Mustang Mach-E’s available headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Pacifica’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Ford Mustang Mach-E has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Pacifica doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The Mustang Mach-E’s optional Active Park Assist 2.0 can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Pacifica (except Touring)’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Ford Mustang Mach-E and the Chrysler Pacifica, based on reliability, safety and performance.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Mustang Mach-E third among compact suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Pacifica isn’t in the top three in its category.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Mustang Mach-E as the 2021 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Pacifica was last chosen in 2017.