Mercedes-Benz Enters Electric Vehicle Market with Brand EQ: Electric Intelligence
Whilst BMW is having great success with their electric sub-brand the ‘i’ series (i3 and i8), it is now Mercedes-Benz time to take a bite out of the electric car segment with the introduction of the EQ range.
Meaning ‘Electric Intelligence’, the EQ brand encompasses all key aspects for customer-focused electric mobility and extends beyond the motor car alone. EQ offers a comprehensive electric mobility ecosystem of products, services, technologies and innovations; including electric vehicles to wall boxes and charging services for your home.
Mercedes-Benz have two models in the pipeline, first is the Concept EQC, a medium sized crossover (similar in size to Merc GLC) that was launched at the Paris Motor Show this year, and secondly, the Concept EQA which is a small hatchback of Merc A-Class proportions.
Concept EQC gives the appearance of a sporty SUV coupé with a dynamic exterior design. Despite being a concept it actually looks almost production ready. The new model has a range of up to 500 kilometres and is a typical Mercedes-Benz so will have all the expectations of safety, comfort, functionality and connectivity.
Inside, the vehicle looks very innovative. With a completely new interior concept, this looks to be the benchmark for future EQ models.
Mercedes-Benz Concept EQA previews the three-pointed star’s vision for the next-generation compact electric vehicle. Worth a quick mention is the first two letters in its name mark it as a member of Mercedes new electric brand, while the ‘A’ aligns it with compact cars in the A-class size range.
Concept EQA continues with the dynamic looks such as the laser-fiber headlights and taillights. The front units are integrated into a blacked-out panel embedded with lights that alter colour pending the EQA concept’s driving modes. In the normal Sport mode, the panel displays a traditional pair of horizontal light bars that radiate from the centre-mounted Mercedes-Benz star. Swapping to Sport Plus makes vertical light bars appear on the panel, giving the EQA concept a face that mimics the grille design of high-performance Mercedes-AMG vehicles such as the GT R coupe.
2019 will see production of the Concept EQC (fingers crossed) whilst no date has been set for the Concept EQA. It is expected though the slinky compact hatchback to be built sooner rather than later, competing against rivals like Tesla Model 3 and future BMW i models.