The Ford Mach E is Ford’s battery electric vehicle (BEV), blending the sportiness of the Mustang line, the utility of a crossover, and the environmental benefits of an electric vehicle. With the help of the TAPTITE Pro®[EH1] thread-forming fasteners, Ford also ensures manufacturing efficiency, cost savings, and maximum performance in its assemblies and electrical grounding applications.
How does the TAPTITE Pro® help the Mach E’s efficiency?
TAPTITE Pro® fasteners are used to secure the battery trays in the Ford Mustang Mach E. These fasteners are proven to provide superior electrical grounding performance to conventional machine screws in a range of electrical grounding applications. At insertion, TAPTITE PRO® screws form their own threads into an untapped hole. This unique process ensures a perfectly mated, “hand-in-glove” fit between the fastener and nut member. In an independent test conducted in 2020 by Element Materials Technology (an A2LA-certified testing lab), results revealed that TAPTITE PRO® screws yielded 60% less voltage drop with 80% more consistency than conventional machine screws. (For the full details of the electrical grounding report please visit taptite.com/groundingreport )
In modern electric vehicles like Ford’s Mustang Mach E, the efficiency of every system is of paramount importance. Every electrical component in an EV needs to be as consistent and reliable as possible. In a critically competitive market, Ford trusts the design of TAPTITE PRO® thread-forming screws to provide the consistent electrical grounding performance required of the Mach E, and many of the other vehicles in its product line.
TAPTITE PRO® Fasteners help Ford reach Battery Electric Vehicle cost parity.
Controlling costs while maximizing performance remains a delicate balancing act for all automotive manufacturers. The cost to develop, test and manufacture an entire new category of electric vehicles can consume profits and led many auto makers to delay launches or raise prices on their BEVs. Automakers have been searching for any tool that will be able to get BEVs to cost parity with ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles. TAPTITE® products have been reducing in-place costs by up to 85% for over 50 years*, and TAPTITE® fasteners have long been Ford’s standard for cost-savings and performance in critical assemblies.
In a report, titled: USCAR FAS 1005 – Machine Elimination through Application of Thread Forming Fasteners in Net-Shaped Holes, the United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR) found that if these applications were universally adopted in North America with estimates of 16 million vehicles built, 500 fasteners per vehicle and an average savings of $.08 per fastener, the total net cost-savings would total US$640 million per year for automotive manufacturers.
Since Ford already used TAPTITE PRO® as their standard for cost savings across their legacy ICE vehicles, it was a no-brainer to bring the same cost savings to the Mach E and help bring BEV to cost parity - the holy grail for automakers.
TAPTITE PRO® thread-forming fasteners are one way that the Ford Mustang Mach E has raised the bar for EV performance. The advancements and cost savings that TAPTITE Pro™ screws provide have allowed the team at Ford to design and engineer a breakthrough EV product and set the stage for the next chapter in electric mobility.
*based on REMINC | CONTI’s Big 85 worksheet which can be found at taptite.com