The 2022 Ford Mustang Mach-E is a sales success, easily outselling its gas-powered sports car counterpart. While there is a lot to love about the Mach-E, its launch has been far from painless with a few nagging recalls and even a temporary stop sale. It seems like Ford has just about weathered the storm though, and can now focus on quality of life improvements for Mach-E owners. Since the car features over-the-air update capabilities, new features can arrive overnight without a trip to the dealer.
That's exactly what happened recently with a new "frunk button" feature in the FordPass mobile app. Previously, the only way to open the Mach-E's 4.8 cubic foot front trunk area was to pull a latch in the cabin, the same way you'd pop the hood on a gas-powered car. Now, owners can do it from their smartphones.
"The new Frunk button in FordPass was the result of customer feedback and a good example of how digital/connected vehicles can improve over time," said Ford CEO Jim Farley.
Ford included this feature starting with the Mach-E GT, but it looks like all Mach-E units will get it as part of a free update.
When we first drove the Mach-E last year, we complained that opening the front trunk was too difficult. Assuming you wanted to throw a shopping item in there, you'd have to open the driver's door, pull the hood latch twice (for safety reasons), then walk back to the front of the vehicle and open it. Using the app bypasses the double pull, meaning owners can now access the frunk without opening the rest of the car.
There is still no button to release the frunk on the exterior or the key fob, but we will count this as a win for usability. The Mach-E lets owners leave their fobs at home with the Phone as a Key feature, meaning we imagine most of them will make good use of this new feature. We enjoyed the Mach-E's front storage area because it features pluggable drain holes, so owners can fill it with ice for a tailgate and drain the water when it melts. Of course, the rear trunk is by far the more usable area with 29 cubic feet of space (59.6 cubic feet with the seats folded).