Mercedes-Benz Expands its Electric Lineup with EQS SUV

Slated to be built at Mercedes-Benz’s plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the EQS SUV shares many cues with the EQS and smaller EQE saloons, with a cab-forward design, short dash-to-axle ratio, and aerodynamically optimised shapes.

“We wanted to change the character of the car in comparison to bold cars we have done in past decades,” Mercedes-Benz director of exterior design Robert Lesnik told us during a sneak preview of the car at the Frankfurt Messe in Germany. Although it shares the same softly rounded front end and clamshell hood with its saloon counterparts, the EQS SUV’s crossover silhouette with its tapering greenhouse and strong shoulder gives it a stronger presence than the jellybean-like EQ production cars.

Big tyres on 21-inch wheels give the vehicle a more confident stance, while dark cladding above the wheel arches adds a sportier look. Otherwise, the body side is clean and uncluttered. “This car doesn’t need any lines, creases, or undercuts,” Lesnik says. “Just some nice round surfacing.”

It’s the biggest vehicle built on Mercedes’ electric skateboard platform, measuring nearly 5.2 metres long and standing 20 cm taller than the EQS saloon. To enhance aerodynamics, the A-pillar is pushed farther forward, door handles are flush, running boards help channel air along the side of the vehicle, the vehicle’s antenna module is hidden in the rear glass roof. A drag coefficient has not yet been announced for the EQS SUV, but Mercedes-Benz claims the range for European models is more than 600 kilometres.

As with Mercedes’ other EQ vehicles, the EQS SUV wears a distinctive front face with the three-pointed star front and centre, with radar sensors hidden behind. “We believe it’s very important to have a facial expression in the front,” Lesnik says. “There’s so many electric cars coming up these days and they are faceless and all look alike.”

The headlights feature 1.3 million micro mirrors that are capable of projecting images in black and white — like the welcome sequence Lesnik played for us on the wall of the room where the EQS was being shown. Exterior and lighting designers worked with the UX/UI team on the animation — yet another example of how designers are increasingly working less traditionally and across disciplines.

Mercedes’ signature star pattern is applied liberally around the vehicle — splashed across the front face and around one of the optional wheel designs. In the cabin, hundreds of tiny aluminium stars are inlayed into open-pore wood. The EQS SUV also gets an optional third row but save for the larger dimensions and higher seating position, the interior of the EQS SUV otherwise carries over from the EQS saloon. The IP is dominated by the sweeping “hyper screen,” with nearly all functions controlled digitally, including HVAC (the MBUX interface also includes one of the better voice-recognition systems on current production vehicles). There’s lots of ambient lighting around the cabin, with a few analogue details such as air vents that resemble jet-engine turbines.

The EQS SUV is powered by one or two permanently excited synchronous motors; the EQS 450+ uses one rear motor that makes 355 hp and 419 lb-ft. of torque, while the dual-motor, all-wheel-drive EQS 580 4Matic uses a motor on each axle to achieve 536 hp and 633 lb.-ft. of torque. A 12-module, lithium-ion battery pack has a capacity of 107.8 kWh.

Although Mercedes-Benz is only starting to roll out its BEV lineup, we’re excited for the next generation of the brand’s EVs, previewed in the EQXX concept we saw on the same trip at the company’s advanced design studio near Nice, France. Not only will the next-generation powertrain mean more efficiency and range, but the Mercedes-Benz EQ design language, if the latest concept is any indication, will be trading soft for sexy. “The best thing is when you have a cool idea and then a few months later you do something else and develop it further,” Lesnik says. “For example, you will see very cool interpretations of the star pattern grille in the future,” he hints. “This is just the beginning.”