Today I’m behind the wheel of Mercedes-Benz relatively new all-electric luxury
EQE SUV – I drove the EQE300 single e-motor rear drive at $134,900 plus on road
costs. It has a deceptively roomy cabin in a body that’s wide and accommodating
with a stack of storage space. The EQE300 SUV is somewhat surprising it terms
of interior space and with exceptional seats is supremely comfortable, roomy
front and back with good luggage space. Power source, a rear mounted
180kW/550Nm electric motor driving the rear wheels with an 89kWh battery and a
claimed range of 539 km – charge time on my 22kW wall box charger with 3-phase
power took 1 hour 20 minutes to charge from 60 percent to full capacity. For the
money the Mercedes-Benz EQE300 is a value buy in luxury terms, highly
equipped, and stacked with features. The interior, dash, instrument cluster and
large centre touchscreen a standout and along with a driver’s head up display as
good as it gets. Biggest disappointment, and it’s the same on Benz sedan
models, the steering wheel touch pads and sliders, far too small for a male’s
fingers, frustrating to use and take your eyes off the road. Battery warranty –
peace of mind at 10-years/250,000km. I’m David Berthon