If your Uber driver is behind the wheel of a white Ford Mustang Mach-E electric vehicle (EV), they may be part of a new emissions-free pilot program.
California Uber drivers now have the option of driving 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E battery-electric crossovers for their work rides. The zero-emissions vehicles are part of a new joint Uber-Ford Motor Group pilot program, a first-of-its-kind initiative between an automaker and a rideshare network. The partnership, called Ford Drive, offers flexible lease opportunities to Uber drivers in the San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles areas.
"At Ford, we believe that electric vehicles have broad utility for all kinds of people, and rideshare is one exciting way to deploy this technology," Bill Knapp, CEO of Ford Drive, told Newsweek.
Ford Drive launches in the three cities following a pilot program in 2022 that allowed San Diego drivers using Uber to lease a Mustang Mach-E. More than 150 of the vehicles were used during the program.
California is Uber's top market for EV drive miles. It's also the leading EV adoption state in the U.S., with over half a million registered EVs on the road today.
About 21 percent of the new vehicles sold in California each year are zero-emission vehicles, far exceeding the national average. Zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) are a classification made up of battery-electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs).
"We began piloting the Drive program last year in San Diego, a top ten city for electric miles driven on the Uber platform in the U.S. Part of the reason we've decided to expand it to other cities is that the emissions impact was so cool to see. Within our first four-month pilot deployment, we found that drivers had offset 7,000 gallons of gasoline and 68 metric tons of CO2," Knapp said.
"In high-density areas like these California cities, it's key that high-mileage rideshare drivers have electric options—because when high-mileage drivers make the switch to electric, communities see up to four times the emissions-reduction benefit compared to the average car owner making the switch. Over 80 percent of our original San Diego drivers chose to re-up their leases with us, so we also felt we'd hit on something that clearly worked for them."
To take advantage of the program, drivers must qualify by having an Uber driver rating of 4.85 or more, and a lifetime trip count of 150 or more.
Qualified drivers can choose to lease the Mustang Mach-E for between one and four months. After signing on the line, lessees receive their vehicle within two weeks.
Leasing the Mustang Mach-E costs $199 per week with an allowance of up to 500 miles without an additional charge. Drivers can opt to pay $249 per month to have 1,000 miles included. Drivers pay 20 cents per mile for every addition mile logged beyond the limits of the lease.
Uber driver lessees use the Ford Drive app to manage the payments for and service of their Mustang Mach-E. Maintenance and service is conducted at the dealership and is complementary.
Ford has worked with dealers in each of the cities to purchase a fleet of the electric crossovers. The models are colored Space White, Iced Blue, Lucid Red, Grabber Blue Metallic, Dark Matter Grey and Carbonized Grey.
A recent tweet by @GuyDealership showed a number of Space White models stored in a Southern California parking lot awaiting deployment as part of the partnership.
The vehicle is able to be hailed as part of Uber's premium zero-exhaust ride offering, Comfort Electric.
Uber is angling to become a zero-emissions platform. By 2030, the company aims to have 100 percent of rides take place in EVs in the U.S., Canada and Europe. Globally, Uber plans to have 100 percent of rides taking place in ZEVs, on public transit or with micromoblity, such as e-scooters.
Uber has also pledged $800 million in incentives and resources to assist drivers making the switch to EVs. Drivers who are behind the wheel of an EV as an Uber driver are eligible for the company's Zero Emissions incentive, which gives them an extra $1 for every trip, up to $4,000 per year.
"The Mach-E is really such a flexible vehicle with seating for up to five, and generous frunk and trunk space for loading suitcases, strollers, wheelchairs or gear. We're finding it works great for a lot of different customers with different needs, from families to gig workers," Knapp said.
Ford recently upped the production capacity for the Mustang Mach-E, part of its larger plan to scale EV production to the rate of 600,000 by the end of 2023, and more than 2 million annually by 2026.
The automaker sold around 17,500 Mustang Mach-Es through the first half of the year, besting Chevrolet's Bolt EV and EUV electric crossover sales by about 4,000 units, but falling far behind Tesla's Model 3/Model Y sales. Hyundai has sold nearly as many Ioniq 5s as Chevy has Bolts. Kia EV6 sales reached 8,328 units in the first half of 2023.
About the writer
Eileen Falkenberg-Hull leads the Autos team at Newsweek. She has written extensively about the auto industry for U.S. News & ... Read more
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