Mercedes-Benz EQS 580: S-Class of the Future!?
A sigh of relief rushed through the automotive journalistic world when the Mercedes-EQ EQS was brought to life. Finally, the superficial discussion about the next prophet to upset the Tesla Gods would be over! Finally, the discussion would broaden. Finally, a thoroughbred luxury BEV has sprung to life.
When stakes are high, bet on more than one horse. That's a Dutch saying and it's precisely what Mercedes-Benz has done with the EQS and S-Class. Rather than fully electrifying their current S-Class, a BEV was brought to life alongside their successful limousine. Understandably the world now asks: is the EQS an electric S-Class? I'd go as far as saying the EQS is the S-Class of the future and that it flew back in time to help Mercedes-Benz in the current EV-arms-race. This luxury German BEV feels like a spaceship and the brand's chief designer said this was intentional. Why? Because "technology enthusiasts are the new petrolheads." And the "Hyperscreen is the new V8."
In fact, the EQS is built upon technology we already know but not used in the car to this extend, nor wrapped in the luxury wrapping only German brands can pull off. It carries a battery like any other EV, not a warp core like in Star Trek. It does have a hyperscreen, but can't reach hyperspace like in Star Wars. Line up the most commonly used stats in discussions about EVs and the EQS seems just like a car with a bit more of everything. Batteries ranging from 90.5 kWh up to 107,8 kWh battery, RWD or AWD, 200 kW charging, between 608-770 kilometers WLTP depending on the engine option, and beyond this point you need more than these numbers to explain why the EQS is the S-Class of the future. And to make sense of it all, to wrap it into a context that makes sense, I took an EQS 580 4MATIC on a weekend trip to Luxembourg. A trip that would take me from Rotterdam to Luxembourg, and back to Brussels. Over 800 kilometers driven at the end of November in Northern Europe, where temperatures below 10 degrees Celcius would kill range. On a trip so far from the beaten path, Google would have trouble helping me find DC charge point. Where I'd have to rely on the AI in the Hypersceen to get me home in time.
A rough patch in the love letter
Before I start dragging you into the love letter that the rest of this article is, I have to get two things off my chest about the EQS. Two things which together form the reason this car isn't CJ EV of the year. The first reason is the odd dimensions of the rear seats, them being 3 centimeters closer to the floor and the seating part is around 1 centimeter shorter compared to the S-Class. This results in occupants always pulling up their knees, rather than stretching their legs. And this isn't even because of the lack of legroom, there's an abundance of it. These dimensions are a weird contrast to the seats offered in the regular S-Class, or an even bigger contrast with the 'first class rear compartment' option the S-Class L offers. Even optioning 'Executive Rear Seat package' in the EQS won't change that. The car not having a ‘first class’ option for the rear undermines a fundamental part of what the S-Class is for a select segment, a car you can be driven around in. The EQS can't fill those shoes, as a result it becomes the ultimate luxury car for the driver.
The second miss is the 400-volt system inside the EQS, or better said: that the charging system doesn't benefit from an 800-volt system. Sure, the EQS can take DC charging speeds up to 200 kW but that number is only met under ideal circumstances. Not with a cold battery, not with a battery that is still 50% full. A missed opportunity, but not one easily changed. Mercedes-Benz modular platform is running on 400-volt architecture, they can't easily move up to 800-volt. But the car didn't let me down and even surprised me when it comes to charging. Why? You'll have to wait a bit...
EQ-almost-S
So now that we have the negative part over and done with, it's time to get into what's so impressive about this luxury BEV. Simply put, the EQS is the first-ever EV to offer this amount of luxury and it does so according to Stuttgart tradition: with immaculate build quality, with bizarre comfort and ride quality, and a surplus of power to match. In the case of the EQS 580, the latter comes in at 523 horsepower and 855 Nm. Mercedes-Benz has spent a great deal of time adopting characteristic traits from the S-Class, something you'll find in the air suspension and power delivery matching that of ICE drivetrains from its sibling.
But the electric drivetrain takes the concept of luxury to another level, one of more tranquility. Not only does it add this peace by not having to cope with a noise like a combustion engine has to, but power delivery is also far smoother than any ICE engine could ever manage. Arguably this results in a detached feeling from the drivetrain, but the people lusting after that connecting should save up for the EQS 53. In motion, the 580's drivetrain seems capable of warping reality without you feeling it. Zero to a hundred is met in 4.3 seconds and two-hundred happens in a mere 14 seconds, yet it doesn't feel as brutal as it looks on paper. It is as if the EQS dartles around like the 2.5 metric tonnes aren't there and as if it's half the size. As if the laws of psychics have been muted for the sake of your neck not snapping like a twig. Mercedes didn't stop there though, the brand exploited another feature to add to the tranquility on offer.
Sliding into the Cd
Fighting for supremacy in the luxury segment, manufacturers go through great lengths to set a new standard with each model update or all-new model. It's been a while since something innovative showed up that changed the game. Yet I'm convinced that the bizarre lack of wind noise the EQS can pull off is a revolution we haven't seen the likes of in a while. Serenity is highly valued in the luxury segment, just look at the sheer weight of noise-insulating material that goes into cars in this segment. So going beyond high-tech foams slammed into spaces in the chassis where no human eye will ever look, seemed like a dead end. Enter the EQS, the record holder when it comes to aerodynamic efficiency in the automotive industry. If the EQS could slide into DMs, it would take your girl without you ever hearing it (and the cabin noise canceling would kill any other noise too). Its Cd value comes in at a whopping 0.2, something only achieved by intensive finetuning. And only certain shapes can obtain this value, shapes the majority of the population don't find too appealing. The EQS' design has been moderately criticized for being too functional, too dull. Nothing an AMG-line and optional matte paint job can't fix! These things are two of the few choices on the EQS's options list, the majority of the options coming as standard for the 580 trims.
Of course, this unprecedented low drag benefits the efficiency of the EQS too. Despite the weight and power, the EQS managed to put down an impressive 24,8 kWh/100 Km during the 800-kilometer road trip. A number that could have been far lower if the weather was better and if it was driven with an EQS equipped with the 450+ drivetrain. See, the EQS 580 isn't a true efficiency monster. Its dual-engine setup changes to a single-engine setup in 'efficiency mode' but that deteriorates the feeling of power to such an extent that it's unfitting to the car. And whilst we're on the subject of drive modes, it is worth mentioning that these are exactly what you're used to in an S-Class. Again, nothing too brutal and fitting nicely in the character of a luxury limousine. But what that S-Class can't do, is combine driving assistance with smart recuperation. It's a bizarre experience driving an EQS through windy roads with these systems engaged, the car recuperating down to the right speeds before entering each corner. It did so with impressive consistency, without me ever having to overtake the wheel.
Overwhelmingly competent
Enter the cabin and in any EQS 580, a side-to-side screen will greet you. Dubbed the hyperscreen, this dashboard is like something from the future. But in the first few days, it is simply overwhelming. Day by day it started making more sense and after hooking up a Mercedes-Me account, it became a part of a car I never knew I missed. How? Because it forms the brain of the car, a rock amidst an ocean of technology. It is a platform from which you'll find your way in the car and will find your way outside your comfort zone. The latter is possible how? Because it is capable of calculating a route for you and showing you the charge point along the way. Now that might not seem like a big deal but it does this with a high level of accuracy, whilst showing you if a charge port is occupied, and how long you're going to have to stay hooked up. And in a country that doesn't speak your langue, you'll need a computer to do this for you. Your Google skill will fail you.
In other areas, the technology inside the cabin surpasses expectations too, not just by keeping you entertained with a dozen games whilst charging. No, because when your passenger is playing Sudoku on her side of the screen, the car will shut her game down once you lay an eye on it. Or the fact that it will recognize you when you enter the car, greeting you with the name from your Mercedes-Me account. And like in the new S-Class, voice command genuinely understands your commands. The favorite command was the one that activated the massage function.
Adding up to something new
As visually imposing as the hyperscreen is, so is the rest of the cabin of the EQS. Ambient lighting, Nappa leather, various metals, and wood all add up to a luxury level that is new to BEVs. Luxury is redefined by the EQS its technology in some areas, whilst keeping true to classic values in other areas. Ride comfort has been taken to a new level due to autonomous systems working in conjunction with a refined electric drivetrain. Tranquil is a word that comes to mind the most when adding it all up. Tranquil because the car can offer that in more ways than one. You'll arrive at your destination feeling like that but along the way, many features of the EQS will offer that sense too. Charging could have been improved, but the smart trip planner undermines the need for it.
Mercedes-Benz has created something truly stunning with the EQS 580, a car that in many areas is better than the current S-Class and in other areas simply isn't. In terms of price, it's identical. The car tested costing just over €170k (BE) yet only had 11k in options.
Looking for more facts on the EQS? Then please head over to our article covering the car's launch.
