In Italy, cream with coffee is considered to be ignorant of coffee etiquette, but this white color has become the essence of Mercedes-Benz electric cars. The powerful "Luxury Express" EQS 580 4Matic wanted to set a new standard, and we wanted to test how successful it was.
The plan is clear: today, The Magic Mercedes must show what it can do. On the road, in the free-flowing traffic, the rain is lingering, the cold tide is coming, and the traffic is congested. The diamond-white luxury electric car, priced at 165,000 euros, passed the driving power test with excellent results. The test results are very eye-catching, accelerating from zero to 100 in 4.2 seconds, cutting through the brakes, faster than the Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo in the snake winding pile, and the turning radius is very small, only 10.9 meters. But now it can't show movement, but it has to deal with traffic. The A8 appears to be congested again, with the huge navigation screen in the middle of the super screen already suggesting alternative routes.
It's time to feel it. Taking the air quality display as an example, the corresponding sensor continuously measures the particle load of the indoor intake air. Can it recognize the old diesel car in front of us? 22ppm, yellow, so the air quality is not very good, and the screen shows a reminder signal. I'm already looking forward to its performance in the Black Forest. The interior of the car is equipped with activated carbon and other filters, so Mercedes can provide passengers with 1.5ppm of air. Respect！
The mad diesel engine was turned off, the acceleration pedal was stepped on, and the driver's 2.6-ton EQS slid like a feather into the country road, floating silently and unconsciously. Because there is no wind and engine noise, the speed of 100 km / h is like 50 km / h. Unbelievable!
Fast access to the A8 motorway
Everything was even more impressive when we had free access to the highway. There are no bumps in gear shifts, no inflated torque, no tense internal combustion engines, only pressure. In less than 15 seconds, the car's top speed reached 215 km / h. The power initially jumped to 100% and then slowly dropped to 30%, which was enough for the Mercedes to reach the 210 km/h it promised in the EQS model. It's hard to imagine how free it would play if it drove at 523 horsepower.
With a record drag coefficient of 0.20 and a windward area of 2.51 square meters, this five-seater car is capable of showing the brake red light strip to many supercars. However, it may not last long, after all, the battery cell with a net capacity of 108 kWh cannot go unchecked. Of course, if you don't think about these and want to drive willfully and quickly, it can also ensure a range of 200 kilometers.
Energy recovery was turned off, and the Mercedes headed for the Rhine and Alsace. During this period, our mileage indicator shows 498 km, the same as the maximum calculated by Mercedes. It consumes 22 kWh of electricity per 100 km, which is incredibly little energy consumption, but if we drive carefully, it is enough to make the range up to 500 km. The electric car has excellent sound insulation, and only a few models can do that.
Of course, everyone wants to know exactly how long the battery will last. As with other electric vehicles, much depends on what driving style is used, how many comfortable configurations are used, and what the ambient temperature is. For a more accurate comparison, we measured three sets of energy consumption data on the same route at a huge cost. The EQS consumes 21.4 kWh per 100 km in economy driving, 33.0 kWh in sporty driving, and 29.7 kWh in daily commuting mode. The average is slightly below 30 kWh, with a realistic range of 400 km.
So far, we've all been driving in economy mode. The Mercedes should also be an excellent station wagon, after all, driving comfort and low noise are part of it. As a result, it completely ignores the damp railroad tracks on the Old Bridge of the Rhine, transforming the bumps into a flat road. Even for the bumpy paths of Alsace, motorists are left little impression, with only rough asphalt glued to the body. It's already a great performance, and we can't really think of anything else that makes people feel bad.
By the way, reversing on narrow terrain should be terrifying for a 5.22-meter-long luxury sedan. So far, photographers have barely taken a satisfactory photo. Too much rain, too little light. The EQS's built-in camera, conveniently positioned rearview mirrors, and the absolutely recommended rear steering (which provides a 10° rear wheel steering angle) make it easy to move between two worn-out but angular French cars, as if the 5-meter giant were a car under 3.5 meters. If an electronic device detects a pillar or something similar, the Mercedes brakes urgently. Boom! Would this startle you, it turned out to be just a bush? So next time it's better to be careful.
It's time to take a good look inside the car. The seats look very comfortable, but the new Napa soft leather is still a bit slippery, so you can't miss the handlebars on the ceiling, especially in the rear seat. The ceiling was a bit thin, like the luggage compartment partition, a little worse than the ideal quality. The same goes for the visor.
If I have to criticize, the €165,612 luxury car should be equipped with a better interior for the luggage compartment and door openings. In this way, everything in the car has reached the level of the S class, which is the highest level. Indoor air can be ionized, you can smell the scent, hear the right music, see comfortable colors, and people can enjoy more.
The design of the vehicle is friendly for children with traffic jams and stress, and there is also plenty of space for adults to relax at the back. Yes, its seats are even more spacious than the S-class, as the cab is moved forward a bit and the windshield is more forward. Coupled with the longer wheelbase (3.21 meters), people will enjoy a huge sense of space in the car. Taller people may feel a little low in head space, especially in the back row. Because of the roof shape, the interior height is average. The battery is located at the bottom of the car, which also sacrifices some seat space. According to the data, the height of the S-Class is 1 cm lower, but its interior is 3 cm more high. In addition to this, the EQS has a large luggage compartment and the tailgate is also very wide. When the rear seat backrests are reclined, the luggage compartment capacity expands to resemble a station wagon (1770 liters). Unfortunately, the payload is not very high, only 460 kg, and it is at a net weight of 2.6 tons.
When driving, you won't notice such a weight at all. On the contrary, mercedes-benz can pass through curves with unprecedented lightness and maintain a straight line with centimeter-level precision, giving people a sports car-like feeling. Now, the hood points to the main road of the Black Forest, where not only almost no one has stepped on it, but also hides the purest air, with an AQI of only 2 ppm. Because energy is produced by migrating ions, rather than by burning hydrocarbons, we can drive on the roads of the Black Forest without affecting the environment.
Fast and quiet
This long car can speed through corners. Two powerful 855 Nm electric motors play an important role here. The Mercedes-Benz surfs on this finely controlled and smooth wave of torque, like going to Zuffenhausen for recuperation. There is no need for this electric vehicle to be supercharged, shifted gears or observed the maximum speed limit. Thrust is consistent and everywhere.
Meanwhile, the wheels never lose grip and the EQS can swallow any bump, no matter how scary they are. Of course, there is another factor: rear wheel steering, which makes movement more agile and less sliding. We must pay the greatest tribute to the developers, because the chassis and power transmission performance of this car is a masterpiece that is difficult to surpass. It's truly a jaw-dropping car that we've never had before. The only thing missing from the car was a clear brake pressure point that felt like stepping on a pudding when braking.
Back to hangout mode
Back among our colleagues, among several other motorists, we went down the hill to Freudenstadt. Turn on economy mode, change the destination in the navigation system, and turn on energy recovery. It is a driving procedure that not only takes into account the terrain, curves and traffic signs, but also pays attention to the vehicle in front of it with its dynamic driving concept. If you have a certain amount of patience with the very cautious distance accessibility, it is quite effective. In addition, the pressure points of the brake pedals will move according to the energy recovery situation, which feels strange.
As an active driver, you can let a heavy car slide down a mountain path and will delight with its minimal driving resistance. In this way, the car can glide for tens of kilometers and save mileage. At the highway service station, a 300 kW fast charging pile ensures that the battery is fully charged during the long coffee break. We've been driving for almost 8 hours now, and the fatigue sensors haven't warned us yet. We were as energetic as if we had just drunk an espresso and could even drive to Munich. It's clear that mercedes EQS belongs to the essence of cream, which crowns every cup of espresso.