What exactly is luxury? For traditional fuel vehicles, luxury means "ride a Mercedes, drive a BMW", means Audi's quattro, and also means Lexus's bamboo interior and Cadillac's diamond-cut design. Both consumers and car brands have their own understanding of luxury.
So in the era of rapid development of new energy vehicles, how should we define luxury? This seems to be a pseudo-proposition, because there are many new car-making forces trying to position themselves as luxury or at least high-end brands, as if as long as it is "new" it is eligible for the "premium club".
But when it comes to the landing of specific products, they have "retreated" again, and none of them dare to step into the ceiling-level market segment of D-class cars. So for a long time, the new energy market did not really define the top luxury models.
Until the emergence of Mercedes-Benz pure electric flagship sedan, the Mercedes-Benz EQS, we finally saw a form of "new" luxury cars.
■ Please understand before judging
Mercedes-Benz EQS is launched in December 2021, there are currently four versions of the new car, the price range is 1.0796 million to 1.5186 million yuan, they are divided into single motor rear-drive and dual motor four-wheel drive in the power system, CLTC operating range from 720km to 849km.
I remember when the Mercedes-Benz EQS was first released, many people, including me, said that they did not understand the design of this car, because the Mercedes-Benz S-Class has always given us the feeling of being a tall and upright posture, as well as a non-arrogant aura, especially suitable for the daily car of the "overbearing president", so the Mercedes-Benz EQS, which adopts a new design language, has formed a strong contrast with the "predecessors".
Before judging whether I can accept this contrast, I feel it is necessary to understand the origin of the Mercedes-Benz EQS.
In Mercedes-Benz's thinking, pure electric luxury models must have one ability, that is, "high energy efficiency". Some time ago, when it was announced that the VISION EQXX concept car can achieve a battery life of more than 1000km through the actual road test, Markus Sch fer, a member of the board of directors and chief technology officer of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, responsible for research and development and procurement, said that the measured endurance of this concept car proved to the world that "energy efficiency will be the new hard currency".
And this concept is also fully applied to the Body of Mercedes-Benz EQS, all of its shape design, power configuration, intelligent functions, all in order to improve the "energy efficiency" to the extreme.
Therefore, we see that in order to achieve a wind resistance coefficient of 0.20, Mercedes-Benz EQS adopts a bow-shaped body structure, and tilts the A-pillar as far back as possible to form a front windshield with a very small angle, with a lower posture of the closed front face, so that the windward wind resistance area of the vehicle is only 0.5 square meters.
On the side, in addition to a smoother silhouette, the Mercedes-Benz EQS reduces the windward area, accelerates air circulation and further optimises aerodynamics with concealed door handles, frameless doors and specially crafted wheel hubs.
In the rear of the Mercedes-Benz EQS, we see a rare edge and corner, that is, the design of this "ducktail", but it is still born to effectively channel the air flow, but it has become a plus.
When we understand Mercedes-Benz's "energy-efficient" car-making concept, we also understand why the Mercedes-Benz EQS has such a softer design than the traditional S-Class. Of course, whether it's the "Dark Night Star Array" decoration on the closed trim panel, or the digital meteor shower headlights and 3D through-the-top spiral taillights, it fills the tech luxury texture of the Mercedes-Benz EQS, and it is still a sharp flagship sedan.
From this, I also thought that when we judge whether we can accept a model design style, we should still try to understand what the original intention of the brand to create this model is, and then see if this original intention matches our preferences, and then judge whether its "appearance" is its own "dish". Falling on the Mercedes-Benz EQS, it is designed to be more efficient to travel, and if you are also pursuing these, then it is a perfectly shaped car for you. It's like "lovers out of the eye", when you like "savage girlfriends", they are cute, aren't they?
■ The high energy efficiency in the car should start from the MBUX super screen
If the appearance of Mercedes-Benz EQS is completely to improve power efficiency, then its design in the car is more to improve the ability and efficiency of driving services, and this has to start from the MBUX super screen.
First of all, in the overall shape, the mbUX super screen plays a role in the use of the Front Center Console of the Mercedes-Benz EQS to be more simple and regular, while the designer can better handle the position and shape of the air conditioner outlet, extending a decorative line from the air outlet to the door, forming a surrounded cockpit.
In addition, the MBUX super-joint screen uses just the right bevel structure, and the glass is derived from Corning's gorilla curved glass, and there are three coatings, which can effectively reduce the reflection, so that we will not be very tired when looking at the screen, and improve the operation and efficiency of the screen.
Functionally, this MBUX super-integrated screen embeds a 12.3-inch digital instrument display with a resolution of 209 PPI; a 17.7-inch central control OLED high-definition touch screen with a resolution of 201 PPI; and a 12.3-inch co-driver OLED display with a resolution of 209 PPI.
You may have noticed that the largest display resolution of the three screens is the lowest. My understanding is that Mercedes-Benz wants the driver or co-pilot passenger to use the center control screen as a large control panel, on which to set the vehicle status, navigation, and driving mode. The work of displaying information and navigating can be undertaken by the display screen in front of the main co-driver, so that the driver can drive more safely, and the co-driver can listen to songs and watch dramas more comfortably.
In this ultra-connected core, it is an 8-core CUP composed of NVIDIA Xavier chips, which also has 24GB of storage capacity and 46.4GB/s memory bandwidth. This allows Mercedes-Benz EQS's MBUX vehicle-machine system to perceive the inside and outside of the vehicle through 350 sensors, and has a high degree of learning ability, providing personalized services for 7 different user accounts.
In addition, if we look at the layout of the control screen, we will find that the MBUX system cleverly uses our most commonly used navigation map as a "background board", and below is a fixed shortcut navigation bar.
I think there are three advantages to this, first of all, it is to further clarify the role of the central control screen as a "control panel", so that the driver and co-pilot passengers will not rely too much on it; secondly, it can easily and quickly operate the commonly used and practical car machine functions, such as the bottom fixed navigation bar will automatically store the most commonly used functions of the user, such as Bluetooth phones, a car APP, etc., and do not need to manually drag; and finally, it can optimize the energy consumption of some car machines, such as reducing the cache and loading of background wallpapers. Try to provide computing power and processing power to common functions and so on.
Of course, many of the learning functions mentioned above can only play a role when using MBUX super-screen for a long time, and the navigation bar below the screen will gradually be enriched. However, our test drive experience time this time is still too short, so we did not feel the effect of "studying well".
In addition to the MBUX super screen, I think there are two details that can improve energy efficiency in the Mercedes-Benz EQS car, one is the huge HUD head-up display system, which officially said that its size is 77 inches, which is even larger than the sum of the central control triple screens. In the actual experience, this head-up display system will show us a very large map and more detailed driving information.
Although the amount of information is large enough, it does require a relatively long adaptation process for the driver, because when on the road, this head-up display system is like the following picture, sometimes "printed" on the body of the vehicle in front, or even in the taillights, but will affect the display effect. This effect is not obvious when driving short distances, but it increases fatigue when driving long distances.
Another efficiency is the open storage compartment under the central armrest area, which is easy to pick and place whether it is for some items that are ready to use or for women to change their heels temporarily. Especially for full-time drivers, some invoices, change or thermos cups can be placed here, and it will not make the car look messy.
However, the Mercedes-Benz EQS in the creation of luxury in the car, not only to improve energy efficiency, but also to enhance the comfort of the design. In addition to the "basic operation" of Mercedes-Benz such as the rear seats that can be heated and massaged, and the multi-functional steering wheel of Nappa leather, today we introduce a new "Changxin Air Shield" system equipped with a Mercedes-Benz EQS.
In the front of the Mercedes-Benz EQS, a "HEPA" filtration system consisting of a three-layer filter is equipped, the first layer is a pre-filter, which can block many larger particles, such as wind sand, fallen leaves or pollen; the second layer is the "HEPA" level filter element, which can block particles between 2.5 microns and 0.3 microns, with a filtration efficiency of 99.65%, which is close to the level of 99.7% of the operating room level N100 mask; the last layer is a filter filled with 600 grams of coconut shell activated carbon , the adsorption area is equivalent to 150 football fields.
You may not have a concept of these numbers, the following picture is a very vivid display of the "HEPA" level filter cartridge capabilities, the outside of the picture of the glowing sphere is equivalent to 0.3 micron particles, and in front of them there is a mesh wall, this is equivalent to the "HEPA" filter, its fineness is higher than the particles, this filtration system can not only block dust for the cockpit, the key is to block viruses and bacteria, to ensure the freshness and cleanliness of the air inside the car.
■ High energy efficiency in driving, starting from the rear wheel steering
With the energy-efficient design of the exterior interior, what is missing from the Mercedes-Benz EQS? Of course, it is high energy efficiency in driving, and this part of us will start with the rear wheel steering.
Mercedes-Benz EQS has a 10-degree rear wheel steering function, its working logic is that when the vehicle is driving at high speed, the rear wheel will rotate in the same direction as the front wheel, playing a role in stabilizing the body; and when driving at low speed, the rear wheel will rotate backwards, playing a role in reducing the turning radius; and when the lateral intelligent parking, the front and rear wheels of Mercedes-Benz EQS can rotate in the same direction at the same time, so that access to the parking space can be more convenient.
In the actual experience, when I tried to steer at medium and high speed, the excellent trackability and tightness of the Mercedes-Benz EQS allowed the vehicle to quickly and smoothly turn, and it would not become sluggish because of the 5227mm length, and even let me have the feeling of driving flight. When it comes to automatic parking, in fact, the body feeling of rear wheel steering is not obvious, but it does make the process of entering and exiting the parking space faster.
In addition, the combination of timely four-wheel drive + 4-wheel air suspension assembled by Mercedes-Benz EQS allows the vehicle to give strong lateral support when passing through the corners, and when passing through the ditches and ridges, it can effectively suppress body bounce and vibration, ensuring that the vehicle can keep the body stable no matter what kind of road conditions, in this regard, Mercedes-Benz EQS is in the same line as the traditional fuel version of the S-class, and there is no change.
It is worth mentioning that the Mercedes-Benz EQS can switch between the suspension between the comfort or the sport mode, but in the actual experience, the two modes are the same in terms of support and smooth performance, but the road sense of the sports mode is clearer, especially the identification of small ground cracks and gaps, and the sport mode is more obvious.
In terms of driving mode, Mercedes-Benz EQS can switch to energy-saving, comfortable and sporty modes, in which energy-saving and comfort are biased towards comfort in the driving process, acceleration and braking are more linear, while the sport mode will be slightly more aggressive, mainly in the acceleration, braking sensitivity, but this is for the driver, for the rear passengers are very comfortable.
In addition, the Mercedes-Benz EQS can adjust the kinetic energy recovery intensity through the paddles on the steering wheel, and there are three gears of "D-, D, D+", but I think the difference between them is really not particularly obvious, especially compared to many other brands.
In fact, the energy-saving mode or energy recovery intensity of Mercedes-Benz EQS is not so abrupt, in addition to Mercedes-Benz's own pursuit of luxurious and comfortable texture, it also stems from the confidence in its own three-electric system. For example, the Mercedes-Benz EQS 450+ deluxe version of our test driving experience, which is equipped with a rear-drive motor with a maximum output power of 245kW, the fastest acceleration of 100 kilometers is only 6.4s, and it matches the 111.8kWh NCM811 ternary lithium battery, with Mercedes-Benz's self-developed battery management system, the cruising range of CLTC can reach 813km under working conditions.
Finally, talking about the driving assistance function, Mercedes-Benz EQS itself has a series of high-level driving assistance capabilities, such as pilot assistance, lane keeping, adaptive cruise, etc., but when we walk through the city, driving the vehicle is easy and comfortable, and even enjoy it, driving assistance is not commonly used. But when you really want to steal a little lazy, Mercedes-Benz EQS can still help you with automatic lane change, fixed distance follow-up, active avoidance and other operations.
■ Bang reviews
After a short test drive, I had a more intuitive understanding and feeling of the Mercedes-Benz EQS, and also understood the definition of Mercedes-Benz for "energy efficiency is the new hard currency". Indeed, the Mercedes-Benz EQS is a flagship pure electric sedan that pursues the ultimate energy efficiency, which is set according to this goal in terms of appearance, interior, configuration and three-electric system, and it also adheres to the ultimate requirements of Mercedes-Benz for driving texture for a hundred years. Therefore, I think that Mercedes-Benz's original intention in developing this car has not changed, but it is just trying to explore the appearance of top luxury cars in the new energy era.
So which consumers is EQS suitable for? I think it should be those who, like the Mercedes-Benz brand, have their own insistence on quality and taste, and dare to try new things, dare to explore new areas, and take pleasure in it. Of course, the premise is that you have a sufficient budget. If viewed according to such standards, Mercedes-Benz EQS will be fully attractive to the new elites after 80, 90, and even after 00.