It was at the 2016 Paris Motor Show that Mercedes-Benz first presented its new product and technology brand for electromobility. In mid-2019 the time has now come: The EQC is the first Mercedes-Benz vehicle to be launched under the EQ brand. With its seamless, clear design and colour highlights typical of the brand, it is a pioneer for an avant-garde electric look while representing the design idiom of Progressive Luxury. With respect to quality, safety and comfort the EQC is the Mercedes-Benz among electric vehicles, and highly convincing in the sum of its attributes. These are accompanied by dynamic performance, thanks to two electric motors at the front and rear axles with a combined output of 300 kW. A sophisticated operating strategy enables an electric range of more than 450 km according to NEDC. EQ also offers comprehensive services with Mercedes me, and makes electromobility convenient and suitable for day-to-day motoring. The Mercedes-Benz EQC also symbolises the start of a new mobility era at Daimler.
As the first Mercedes-Benz model under the new product and technology brand EQ, the Mercedes-Benz EQC has many trailblazing design details and colour highlights typical of the brand. Both inside and out, the EQC embodies the design idiom of Progressive Luxury. This arises from the combination of a previously unknown beauty, the conscious clash of digital and analogue elements as well as the seamless merging of intuitive and physical design.
By virtue of its muscular proportions, the Mercedes-Benz EQC is classed as a crossover SUV. The extended roofline and window layout with a low waistline and the coupé-like roof recess at the rear visually position it between an SUV and an SUV coupé.
The equipment line Electric Art has the design features described above with rosé-gold highlights. The Mercedes-Benz EQC is also available in the sporty equipment line AMG Line, with the options of AMG Line Interior and AMG Line Exterior.
The EQC with AMG Line Exterior features e.g. an AMG-specific radiator grille and mirror housings in the vehicle colour. It also looks considerably more sporty thanks to a distinctive front apron. A wide rear apron in an AMG design further reinforces this impression. Several new AMG wheel designs in sizes between 20 and 21 inches are available for the Mercedes-Benz EQC.
The interior also becomes more sporty with the AMG Line Interior. In addition to a three-spoke AMG multifunction sport steering wheel with flattened lower section, the package includes an AMG sports pedal cluster of brushed stainless steel. The seats are in black ARTICO man-made leather/microfibre, with leather seats and carbon-fibre look trim available as an option. AMG floor mats round off the AMG Line Interior.
MBUX: Intuitive control structure and different display styles
The information of the instrument cluster and media display is easily legible on the large, high-resolution screens. Showcasing elements in an emotively appealing manner underlines the comprehensibility of the control structure and impresses with brilliant pixel-perfect graphics.
Depending on mood or to suit the chosen interior, the user has a choice of three different styles:
- Modern Classic is a further development of the classic display style in an elegant and light material mix.
- Sport has a high-tech turbine look with decidedly sporty black/yellow contrasts.
- Electric Art presents its digital look in reduced form, and emotively displays the current state of the e-drive system. The visible colour changes explain and thrill in equal measure. The glass dials change from rosé-gold in Drive mode to white, and to "Electric Blue" during recuperation. The media display clearly presents functional aspects of the energy situation, e.g. the energy flow or the power consumption history.
Powertrain: Dynamic performance meets efficiency
The EQC, the first Mercedes-Benz representative of the new product and technology brand EQ, features an all-new drive system development. The interplay between performance and dynamism in combination with a high level of efficiency and comfort was a particular focus of the developers. The EQC has a compact electric drivetrain at each axle, giving the vehicle the driving characteristics of an all-wheel drive. Over a wide operating range, the intelligent control allows dynamic torque distribution between the two driven axles, creating the conditions for high vehicle dynamics. The asynchronous motors have a combined maximum output of 300 kW. The centrepiece of the Mercedes-Benz EQC is the lithium-ion battery from in-house production housed in the vehicle floor. With an energy content of 80 kWh (NEDC), it employs a sophisticated operating strategy to supply the vehicle with power, enabling an electric range of more than 450 (according to NEDC, provisional figure).
The vehicle concept of the EQC is designed for all the requirements of a battery-electric drive system. Both the electric powertrains and the battery are tailor-made for the Mercedes-Benz EQC. Tractive power is provided by an asynchronous motor at each axle. The electric motor, a fixed-ratio transmission with a differential, the cooling system and the power electronics form a highly integrated, very compact unit. To reduce power consumption and increase dynamism, the electric drivetrains are configured differently: the front electric motor is configured for best possible efficiency in the low to medium load range, while the rear one determines dynamism. Together, they generate an output of 300 kW and a maximum torque of 765 Nm.
The Mercedes-Benz EQC is equipped with the latest-generation of Mercedes-Benz driving assistance systems, which provide cooperative support for drivers. In the Driving Assistance package, these include new functions such as predictive speed adjustment when approaching the end of a tailback: when a tailback is detected, Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC reduces the speed to around 100 km/h as a precaution. In the tailback itself, the lane guidance system keeps the vehicle off-centre to leave space for the emergency services.
Not only high-mileage drivers are familiar with this tricky situation on motorways: on rounding a bend, the end of a traffic tailback suddenly appears. This is where the EQC assists its driver - by recognising a tailback at an early stage and responding to it.
If Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC with route-based speed adaptation is activated, the EQC is able to recognise and respond to tailbacks or slow-moving traffic before the driver becomes aware of the hazard. When a tailback is recognised (and if the driver does not choose a different response), DISTRONIC reduces the speed to around 100 km/h as a precaution. This can significantly reduce the risk of approaching the end of an unexpected tailback at high speed.
When driving in tailbacks, the rescue lane function becomes active: When a tailback is recognised on a motorway, the speed is below 60 km/h and lane markings are recognised, the vehicle is guided along the outer lane marking without crossing it. If no lane markings are recognised, the EQC takes its lead from the vehicle ahead.
Following vehicles in a tailback: in stop-and-go traffic on motorways and similar roads, stops of up to 30 seconds are possible within which the EQC can automatically move off and follow the traffic ahead.
Once the tailback dissolves, the EQC accelerates back up to the speed preset for Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC with route-based speed adaptation. If the driver has not set a specific speed, this is the recommended motorway speed of 130 km/h in the case of Germany, and it can be individually adapted for the current motorway journey. If traffic signs differ from this, the signposted speed limit is given priority.
Within the entire speed range of the EQC and on all types of road - motorway, country road or in urban areas - the system is not only able to automatically maintain the correct distance from the vehicle ahead, but also to give the driver noticeable steering assistance, even on bends. At speeds up to 130 km/h the system is not necessarily dependent on clearly visible lane markings, as it can also steer actively, as if in a swarm, if the lines on the road are unclear, as is often the case at road works, or even if there are no lines on the road at all. The system therefore makes driving much easier, especially in bumper-to-bumper driving or tailbacks.