By releasing the zero-emissions EQA earlier this year, Mercedes has already signaled an EV onslaught. It joins the larger EQC and will soon be followed by an EQB, but these three models are all based on platforms initially developed for cars equipped with combustion engines. The first dedicated electric vehicles are the ones in the image above – EQS sedan, EQS SUV, and the EQE sedan.
The EQS models have now been spotted on a public road in Germany together with several other models carrying the three-pointed star. The sedan has less camouflage than ever before on its production body, while the SUV is heavily disguised and features provisional taillights. There’s a very good reason as to why we’re seeing more of the sedan because the regular EQS will be the first to come out, later this year. The EQS SUV will be launched in 2022.
It’s worth mentioning the standard EQS won’t actually be a sedan, but rather a more practical liftback in the same vein as the future BMW i4. Both dedicated EVs from Mercedes will ride on the Electric Vehicle Architecture platform that will also underpin the smaller EQE due late this year and its SUV counterpart arriving in 2022.
The German premium automaker has been relatively coy on details about the EQS, only revealing the sedan will go 435 miles (700 kilometers) between charges. It’s too soon to say, but the SUV could have a lower range considering it will be heavier than the liftback/sedan, but that remains to be confirmed. The standard EQS’ optional 56-inch Hyperscreen will be available for the high-riding model as well.
Another feature the two will have in common will be the electrically deployable door handles, which will remain flush with the doors when not in use to give the EVs a sleeker profile for better aerodynamic efficiency. Speaking of which, Mercedes hasn’t released details about the type of battery these EQS models will use, although the 2019 Vision EQS concept had a 100-kWh pack.
As a final note, the two lesser-known cars infiltrated in the Mercedes convoy are an electric sedan and SUV belonging to Chinese automakers Xpeng and Aiways. Presumably, Mercedes was benchmarking its two new EQS models against the two EVs from the People’s Republic.
Source: walkoARTvideos / YouTube
