Ford brings impressive EV routing to its Mach-E via Apple CarPlay

Ford Mach E in gold
Ford Mach E in gold (Image credit: Ford)

What you need to know

  • Ford has announced EV routing support for the Mach-E.
  • Drivers will be shown how much charge will be left after a trip.
  • Trips that require a top-up will have a charging location added to their route automatically.

Ford has announced that drivers of its Mach-E Electric vehicle can make use of EV routing when using Apple CarPlay and Apple Maps.

The feature, which allows carmakers to suggest where drivers can stop to charge their EV while on a trip, will require people to have their iPhone connected to their Mach-E and then use the Apple Maps app to plan their route. If they do that, the Mach-E will then prompt them to use EV routing.

Once up and running EV routing will show how much battery will be remaining when a trip is completed. If the current charge level won't allow drivers to complete their journey, stops will be suggested where chargers are located.

As 9to5Mac notes, the feature is coming to the Mach-E initially but will eventually be available on the F-150 Lightning and E-Transit Evs as well. Ford outlines the following compatibility requirements.

  • 2022 Model Year (MY)
  • 2021 MY with the following SYNC®** software versions (see Checking Your SYNC 4A Software Version):
    • 21281_PRODUCT.244
    • 22028_PRODUCT.358
    • 22034_PRODUCT.364

Drivers will also need to have an iPhone running iOS 15.4 or later in order to take advantage of the new EV routing feature, too.

Ford worked with Apple to develop communications between the vehicle and the Apple device. However, the battery level will only update when the Apple device connects to the Mustang Mach-E through CarPlay.

Apple CarPlay is already a great feature for drivers but support for EV routing takes things to a whole new level while helping eliminate any range anxiety that could be suffered.

Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.