Ford has worked hard to develop a name for durability, especially in regards to its trucks. Now, the Blue Oval has recognized the need for the brand’s durability push to be tied to their recent transition to electric mobility. All that sounds like a lot of corporate jargon, but in essence, it’s pretty simple. Basically, the Blue Oval hit things with a hammer to make sure they don’t go breaking on customers. Honestly, it’s probably a smart move to show how strict quality control is at Ford, in light of the whole Bronco fiasco.

I guess robot butts are part of the durability test process?

I promise I’ll get to the whole hammer thing later. For now, I think robot butts are far more interesting. They’re big, I cannot lie. Moreover, they’re a necessary part of ensuring the durability of the Ford Mustang Mach E, per the Blue Oval. Effectively, Ford needed a lot of people to sit in a Mach E without actually hiring anyone, so they built this. Well, they built it a long time ago, but the Mach E needed this machine badly. You see, making a good first impression with EVs is everything, even if it’s a butt impression.

Ford’s fancy machine is responsible for simulating a ten-year wear cycle, in order to ensure the Ford Mustang Mach E’s new fabric seats hold up to the test of time. Apparently, the machine simulates someone, rather, a large range of someones, getting in and out of the seat over 25,000 times. Moreover, that isn’t all the testing the seats got either. They were also tested for stain resistance, a good thing, as many a Mach E will end up in the hands of parents.

Torture testing needs to make EVs look good

Now, about that hammer. As you can see, it was used to test the durability of the screen in the Ford Mustang Mach E. That big tablet controls a lot in the Mach E, so failure here isn’t an option. Thankfully, it seems someone at Ford is testing it rigorously. And probably having a lot of fun doing so. Breaking things can be cathartic sometimes. Apparently, Ford used a special kind of glass called “Dragontail” glass, built to ridiculously strict qualifications.

That includes the mount that attaches the screen to the dash. It’s magnesium, something that’s usually reserved for Koenigseggs and the like, not a mass-market EV. Ford says that because of those mounts, the screen in the Ford Mustang Mach E is resistant to pulling and bumping. It’s a good thing that the screen is “built Ford tough” as they like to say because I can’t imagine a replacement being very cheap.

The Ford Mustang Mach E sets the EV trend at Ford

As I said above, this durability is important. That’s why Ford put out the press release, after all. They want people like me to tell people like you that the Ford Mustang Mach E will not break. It’s the brand’s first EV, and it needs to make a hell of an impression. Ford effectively has to rebuild their brand image in the EV space, a clean slate so to speak. And right now, it seems they’ve accomplished that.