CarBrandLogos archive · Mercedes-Benz · 2021

Mercedes-BenzMercedes-Benz EQS

The slipperiest production car ever measured, on a purpose-built electric platform.

Photo: Alexander Migl · CC BY-SA 4.0

The story

A defining chapter in Mercedes-Benz history.

Explore the ideas, engineering and context that shaped the Mercedes-Benz EQS, then continue into its specifications and place in the marque's lineage.

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQS at IAA 2019 IMG 0753

Origins

Mercedes-Benz's first electric cars were adaptations of combustion models. The EQS, launched in May 2021, was the first built on a dedicated electric architecture, and it was positioned at the top: an S-Class equivalent, with the engineering budget that implies.

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQS at IAA 2019 IMG 0753 · Alexander Migl · CC BY-SA 4.0

Design and engineering

The most consequential decision was the shape. Free of an engine and a transmission tunnel, the designers under Robert Lešnik produced a one-bow silhouette — a continuous arc from windscreen base to tail — that recorded a drag coefficient of 0.20, the lowest of any production car ever measured. It is efficient and it is also divisive, because it makes the car look like a large hatchback rather than a limousine, and buyers in the segment expect a three-box saloon.

Mercedes-AMG EQS 53 4MATIC+ front · Tokumeigakarinoaoshima · CC BY-SA 4.0

In production

Inside, the optional Hyperscreen ran three displays under a single curved glass panel more than a metre wide. Rear-axle steering, air suspension and near-total sound isolation gave it a claim to being the quietest car on sale.

Mercedes-AMG EQS 53 4MATIC+ interior · Tokumeigakarinoaoshima · CC BY-SA 4.0

Legacy

Sales fell short of expectations, particularly in the United States and China, and Mercedes has since publicly rebalanced its electric plans and moved future models toward more conventional proportions. The EQS remains a technically impressive object that got the aerodynamics right and the semiotics wrong.

At a glance

The facts that define it.

Produced

2021–present

Designer

Robert Lešnik

Body

5-door liftback

Technical specification

The Mercedes-Benz EQS, in detail.

Production: May 2021 – present
Class: Full-size luxury car (F)
Body style: 5-door liftback
Layout: Rear-motor, rear-wheel-drive ; Dual-motor, all-wheel-drive (4Matic)
Transmission: Direct-drive automatic
Designer: Robert Lešnik, Lukas Haag, Mark Fetherston, Gabriel Nemeth, Balázs Filczer
Assembly: Germany: Sindelfingen ; India: Pune (Mercedes Benz India; MBI) ; Thailand: Samut Prakan (abbr; TAAP; Thonburi Automotive Assembly Plant Co., Ltd.) ; Malaysia: Pekan (HICOM Automotive Manufacturers (Malaysia); HICOM)
Manufacturer: Mercedes-Benz Group