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.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH moderate front offset crash tests on new cars. In this updated test, results indicate that the Mustang Mach-E is much safer than the Pacifica:
|
Mustang Mach-E |
Pacifica |
Overall Evaluation |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Structure |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Driver Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck Rating |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Chest Rating |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Thigh/hip Rating |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Thigh Forces L/R |
90/67 pounds |
180/292 pounds |
Leg/foot Rating |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Thigh Forces L/R |
90/67 pounds |
180/292 pounds |
Leg Forces L/R |
315/360 pounds |
472/742 pounds |
Restraints |
GOOD |
GOOD |
|
Rear Passenger Injury Measures |
|
Head/Neck Rating |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
Chest Rating |
GOOD |
MARGINAL |
Thigh Rating |
GOOD |
GOOD |
Restraints |
GOOD |
ACCEPTABLE |
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.
The Ford Mustang Mach-E (built after August 2024) has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2024 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The Pacifica was last only a “Top Safety Pick” in 2023 but no longer qualifies.