Even before the debut of the Ford’s new Mach-E Mustang electric crossover, it seems the world had made up its mind that calling the vehicle a Mustang was a sacrilege of untold proportions. It was as if Ford had asked Italians to start putting pineapple on their pizzas. It was bad. When the vehicle was finally revealed, little changed in this chorus of doubt. Mustang fans and owners in particular were incensed that their beloved brand was being watered down with a mass-market people mover.

It would seem that we all very short memories.

In 1964 when the Mustang debuted, it democratized sportscars in America and then around the world. Before then, small, powerful, and sexy cars were exclusively the domain of the British and the Italians. They were also hideously expensive and hilariously unreliable. The Mustang changed all that by bringing the best qualities of sportscars to the people, and leaving behind the drawbacks.

The Mach-E aims to repeat this feat by bringing well-manufactured electric cars to the people. And it will do it at an attainable price point and in a small SUV package that the market clearly prefers right now over sedans and sports cars. The Mach-E could democratize EVs to such a degree as to truly move the needle from the current 2% of the US sales that electric cars represented this year.

No, there has never been a Mustang SUV before, but it is not like the Mustang name is completely unsullied in it’s 70 year history. Mustang wagon concepts were made in the 60s, the 70s and 80s were a very dark time for the pony car that largely gets ignored by fans, and the recent generations have been known more for over-exuberant crashes and reeking of Axe Body Spray than for their vehicular goodness.

Of course the Mach-E should be called a Mustang. It proudly continues the tradition of bringing a highly desired product to the masses. The specs are nothing to sneeze at either, with 459hp, 612lb-ft of torque, and a 0-60 dash of just 3.5 seconds in the GT trim. The burnouts the Mach-E will be capable of should leave few in doubt that this crossover deserves to be a pony car.