Mercedes Goes Electric with the EQC
- Matthew
- Dec 18, 2019
- 3 min read
Hello and welcome to your daily ChargeSmart blog! Today, we will taking you through Mercedes' all new EV- the EQC.
Earlier this year, Audi’s much anticipated E-tron SUV recently went on sale in New Zealand with the tagline “electric has gone Audi” so it was only natural to expect that Mercedes-Benz would be the next big German brand to launch an electric SUV downunder. And surely enough, they did because you can now place an order for the Mercedes Benz EQC SUV in Australia with New Zealanders having to wait until next year to order the all new Merc.
Above: The new EQC
Let’s take a look at the EQC then! It is Mercedes’ first foray into the electric car market and they’ve made quite a statement already. The EQ sub-brand is the German giant’s dedicated electric car wing, they will also be racing in Formula E under the same name. Their first offering, the EQC is meant to lock horns with the Jaguar I-Pace, Audi E-tron and of course, the Tesla Model X with the Mercedes somehow being the cheapest of the lot. That’s quite the surprise! The EQ ushered in a new era for Mercedes as they plan to invest more than $12 billion into their EQ brand for the research and development of EVs. The EQC uses an intelligent system where it has dual electric drivetrains at each axle meaning that the car can put 402 horsepower and some 760Nm of torque to the ground with ease. This means that the mammoth Merc can do 0-100 in just under 5 seconds, that’s very quick for an SUV that is set to weigh well over 2 tonnes. Not only will the EQC be a fast car but it will also be great to drive as Mercedes have optimized the drivetrain so that the front motors are optimized for efficiency while the rear motor is designed for a sporty drive. The EQ is essentially the new generation equivalent of Mercedes’ infamous AMG cars. It’s nice to see that Mercedes are using some of their Formula E experience in the EQ range of cars to keep their enthusiast community alive as well as catering to those luxury EV buyers.
Above: The interior of the EQC, luxurious just like a Benz should be.
Then there’s the battery. The EQC comes with a fairly substantial 80kWhr unit with a maximum range of around 434 kilometres. The figure isn’t overly impressive but then you have to keep in mind that the EQC is quite a bit cheaper than the other high end EV SUVs on the market. Mercedes haven’t given any updated figures on the car but they have said that it will have DC fast charging with an ability to charge to 80% in 40 minutes!
The EQC is still going to be a very luxurious SUV no matter what so it will get the latest version of Mercedes’ MBUX infotainment system with a voice assistant, navigation and all that good stuff. That’s standard across the Mercedes range now but the EQ line of cars will get what’s called ‘EQ optimized navigation’. This means that the car will constantly look for charging stations for you along with helping you to plan your routes so that you maximise the distance you get from your current charge level. Conversely, Mercedes owners can also find chargers along the way through their Mercedes Benz me Charge card or the Mercedes meApp. Like most modern EVs, all the settings for the car will be controlled through a large 10.25-inch touchscreen. Production of the EQC has already started at Mercedes’ plant in Bremen, Germany.
Above: The EQC makes quite the statement in the looks department
The car is set for a New Zealand launch in January next year. Starting price will be $142,900 NZD which is around $2,000 cheaper than an I-Pace S and a substantial $6,000 cheaper than the base model E-tron. Customers can also add a Mercedes Benz Wallbox Home which can be installed on single phase power and will up the output to 7.4kW for a rapid charge. The car comes with an 8 year or 160,000 kilometre warranty on the batteries which shows that Mercedes are really prepared to take on the competition head on. The EQC will be the first of 10 Mercedes EQ models to hit the showrooms by 2022.
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