First electric SUV from AMG
For the first time, Mercedes-Benz has awarded an electric SUV the AMG label. The EQE SUV is the lucky one. It has become an expensive, lightning-fast car that leaves little to be desired.
Can you still call this a real AMG?
The question arises to what extent a 2.7-tonne SUV can still call itself a real AMG car. Why performance, with such a weight? But the engineers at Mercedes-Benz and AMG have really pulled out all the stops to make the seemingly impossible possible.
How strong is the AMG EQE SUV?
Two powerful electric motors form the heart of this Mercedes-AMG and together they produce a maximum of 687 hp (505 kW). The Mercedes-AMG EQE 43 4Matic SUV can already be ordered. It costs €131,791, has a capacity of 350 kW (476 hp) and is 468 kilometers away (according to the WLTP standard). It needs just 4.3 seconds to sprint from 0-100 km/h and its top speed is 210 km/h. We still have to wait for the Mercedes-AMG EQE 53 4Matic + (505 kW / 687 hp engine power) that will be in the showrooms next fall with prices from €149,788. But we were already able to drive it.
Is the AMG also faster with charging?
With 328 volts, the 90.6 kWh battery pack lags behind competitors that work with 800 volts, such as Porsche, Audi and Kia. With fast chargers with direct current, charging with a maximum of 170 kW is possible. With a normal charging station with alternating current, it is 11 kW or optionally 22 kW. Bidirectional charging is not possible in Europe, but it is possible with the Japanese versions. The fact that this SUV can tow a braked trailer of up to 1,800 kg will reassure caravan enthusiasts. Unless they want to hang a giant Tabbert behind the towbar, of course. There are borders.
What can AMG tweak on an electric motor?
AMG has been working hard on the electric motors. For example, the shaft of the rotor is cooled with a water lance. The result is impressive performance. The top version even has a Race Start function, which temporarily increases power and torque. Then you only need 3.5 seconds to accelerate from standstill to 100 km / h and the top speed is 240 km / h. To complete the driving experience, the seats can make you feel a small vibration as soon as you depress the power pedal deeply.
Fans of sporty driving can also download the software (over-the-air of course) from AMG Track Pace for an additional fee: a virtual race engineer. It registers and analyzes more than 80 driving data, including acceleration and speed. Red and green numbers show how good or bad the driver is doing when it comes to the best lap times scored.
Isn’t such a heavy SUV too unwieldy for sporty driving?
A notorious feature of SUVs is unwanted body movement. That’s what you get when you make cars higher. But in the top version, the Mercedes-AMG EQE 53 4Matic+, this phenomenon is counteracted by active roll stabilization. The anti-roll bars on the front and rear axles are simply divided in two for this purpose. On uneven road surfaces, the electromechanical actuator (containing a three-stage planetary gear) separates the stabilizer halves for more comfortable handling: the car wobbles less. You notice this very well, for example, when you drive over a speed bump with one wheel.
Standard in this SUV is four-wheel drive, which distributes the driving forces variably. The air suspension was developed by the specialists at AMG, as is the roll stabilization. As a result, this SUV hardly tends to roll over, even in the fastest corners. Adaptive cushioning completes the party. The brakes also prove to be up to the task: powerful steel brakes are standard, a larger ceramic format is available for an additional fee.
The chassis is broadly the same as that of the Mercedes-AMG EQS. The rear-axle steering (steering angle of up to 0.9 degrees) not only makes this SUV optimally manoeuvrable, but also entails a remarkably small turning circle of 10.9 metres.
How can you recognize the Mercedes-AMG EQE SUV?
You can recognize this AMG SUV on the outside not only by the Black Panel grille with chrome vertical slats, but also by the AMG brand emblem on the hood. The advanced Digital Light headlamps project the AMG logo onto the ground when the doors are opened and closed.
The AMG logo also pops up everywhere inside. AMG has also left its mark on the Performance steering wheel (covered in nappa leather), the aluminum shift paddles, sports pedals, floor mats and even the door sills with illuminated AMG logo.
What else is on AMG SUV?
And Mercedes wouldn’t be Mercedes if such a top model didn’t also have the necessary pampering on board. For example, the audio system is equipped with the advanced Dolby Atmos. This turns stereo sound into a 360-degree experience: individual voices or instruments can be placed virtually anywhere around you.
This goes well with the high-tech infotainment platform of the California specialist ZYNC. This will present video streaming, games, news and much more. And speaking of sound, you can choose from a huge range of artificial sounds in this Mercedes-AMG. This way you choose exactly the engine sound you want to hear, but also, for example, the click of a turn signal, the sounds of the engine starting or stopping, the battery pack charging or the doors locking.
The spacious seating area in this SUV is particularly pleasant, while its luggage compartment with a capacity of 520 liters does not disappoint either. The sporty interior is covered with synthetic leather as standard. Black microfibre with red topstitching is used in the doors and the transition from the center console to the dashboard. An option is nappa leather: Mercedes apparently does not want to accommodate vegans yet.
The head-up display is really huge: it won’t get bigger in the current car generation. And of course there is also the (optional) hyperscreen in this Mercedes that steals the show: stretched out over the full width of the dashboard, including the option to give the co-driver his own screen. He can sit comfortably on the internet or watch a movie on the go. While the driver is not distracted because he sees nothing at all because of the ‘blanking function’. For the connoisseurs, this SUV can also display a large, analog clock from the very expensive IWC in the middle of the screen: at least you know what time it is.
Will there also be a Mercedes-AMG EQS SUV?
All in all, it’s the refinement that sets this car apart from the regular EQE SUV. Pampered customers always want more. After all the excitement and sensation of driving this sportsman, one question remains. Will Mercedes also pour its even larger EQS SUV with the AMG sauce? It seems only a matter of time.
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– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl