Previously, if you wanted your final ride to be in a Ford Mustang, you didn’t have any options short of some very awkward coffin Tetris-ing.
Now, British coachbuilder Coleman Milne has revealed its solution: a hearse conversion of the Ford Mustang Mach-E.
While it mightn’t use a classic V8-powered Mustang as a base, the Mach-E crossover would appear to be an easier base to work from.
Called the Etive, after a river in the West Scottish Highlands, this 6.28m-long hearse and its limousine counterpart will be produced in both left- and right-hand drive.
They’ll be available for demonstration in the first half of 2023, with Coleman Milne expecting type approval to be achieved by the second quarter of 2023.
Etive models will undertake structural durability testing at Millbrook over the coming months which the coachbuilders says is “to validate its integrity across 40,000 miles [64,378km] of road usage].”
The hearse model features a glass roof, an aerodynamic wreath rail and three full-size bearer seats with lap-sash seatbelts. Buyers can also specify a power tailgate, full-sized sliding deck, slide-out under-draw deck, and illuminated signage.
The limousine seats seven passengers in addition to the driver and measures 114mm taller than a regular Mach-E.
Both body styles use a 75kWh battery with a claimed WLTP range of 322km, down somewhat on the 439km claim of the Mach-E it’s based on.
Coleman Milne says the full suite of active safety and driver assist features, including lane-keep assist, are standard on its conversions. The front of the cabin will also be familiar to Mach-E owners with its 10.2-inch digital instrument cluster and portrait-oriented 15.5-inch touchscreen infotainment system.
“We have long championed the electric hearse at Coleman Milne,” said Coleman Milne national sales director Graham Clow.
“The excellent, longstanding relationship that we have with Ford enabled us to model the range on its Mach-E platform. The Mach-E is the perfect base for a comfortable, quiet and respectful hearse and limousine, while also providing funeral directors with all the benefits and innovations found in today’s electric vehicles.”
The Mustang Mach-E isn’t the first electric model from Coleman Milne, with Whisper hearses derived from the Tesla Model S. It also produces plug-in hybrid Mercedes-Benz E-Class-based models.
No other coachbuilders have appeared to build a hearse from a Mustang, though one enterprising Mexico City resident fashioned a final ride from a fifth-generation Mustang.
Coleman Milne has done conversions of Mercedes-Benz and Rolls-Royce products, but it’s perhaps best known for its Ford hearses.
After the Ford Granada and Scorpio exited production, Coleman Milne used various Ford Australia products despite these not being officially sold in the UK.
Converted models included the BA/BF Fairlane and the FG Falcon.
