EQC ‘proudly a Mercedes’

This story first appeared in the december issue of evtalk CLICK HERE to download the magazine FREE

Whether it stands for Emotional or Electric Quotient, the all-new “smart” EQC is about to arrive here in New Zealand, and Mercedes-Benz are justifiably very excited.

“The EQC is a vehicle that we can proudly launch as a true Mercedes,” Horst von Sanden, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific told EVTalk at the launch event in Melbourne.

“It ticks all the boxes.

It’s a new drivetrain, it’s fully electric but it’s also a full Mercedes.”

“What makes it a real Mercedes is that you can drive any other Mercedes-Benz, jump into the EQC and not have to change anything you do, that’s really important.

This has always been the philosophy within the internal combustion engine range, but we’ve now transferred that into an electric vehicle.

You don’t need to ‘re-learn’ driving, you just jump into the EQC and drive.

The only thing you’re missing is the engine noise and you get used to that pretty quickly.”
Mercedes-Benz New Zealand general manager Lance Bennett says New Zealand would be among the first countries in the world to receive stock of the EQC.

“Electric now has a Mercedes.

The EQC changes the game in the electric vehicle market, adding a level of luxury and attention to detail that meets the exacting demands of our customers in every way.

“We’re not the first to market in the electric segment, we simply wanted to be the best.

The EQC is a complete, user-friendly solution to future mobility, but it’s also a signpost to an exciting rollout of hybrid and all-electric vehicles from the EQ division over the next few years and beyond.

“New Zealanders have shown great enthusiasm as early adopters of electric vehicles, and the arrival of the EQC heralds a maturing of this segment that further prises open the door for the EQ models that will follow.”

The Mercedes-Benz EQC 400 4MATIC is priced at $142,900 (MRRP). It will be on sale and available to view in EQ showrooms from January, with first customer deliveries to begin from early 2020.

The Australasian launch event began at Mercedes-Me store/cafe in Melbourne, with an initial briefing that was succinct and to the point, an introduction to the salient points about the EQC 400, including design, powertrain and suspension – the front axle has steel springs and passive dampers with the electric motor positioned above hub, while the rear has air springs, passive dampers and the electric motor positioned below hub.

EQ is the division of Mercedes-Benz that’s been established to guide the company’s transition to electric mobility.

It will offer a range of options including electrically boosted combustion engines, plug-in hybrids and fully electric models, with the EQC being New Zealand’s first electric Mercedes-Benz production vehicle.

Although the EQC is based on the GLC platform, it shares just 15% of its components with the popular SUV, with much of that being steering and suspension.

The new EV SUV’s 4.77m long, 1.88m wide and 1.62m high body has been designed to look modern and aerodynamic but it’s also not overtly futuristic.

Up front, the black panel grille bears the brand’s iconic three-pointed star below a softer more rounded bonnet.
Its large multi-beam LED headlights are connected via a near full-width LED light bar, while to the lower corners, side air scoops channel airflow to the EQC’s specifically designed halo-ringed 20 inch alloys (or 21-inch option).

Aerodynamically, the EQC boasts a 0.28Cd Drag Coefficient that’s been optimised with regressive roof tilt towards the rear, a prominent roof spoiler for improved flow and a smooth underbody allowing for unhindered air flow.

At the rear, LED lighting and another LED full-width light bar grabs much of the attention, with the tailgate granting access to 500L of seat-up luggage space.

The interior is unquestionably modern Mercedes-Benz but with subtle nods to its electrical evolution.

It has leather luxury and exposed stitching throughout.

Dual 10.25-inch display screens that are touch, pad and voice controlled and come complete with the latest MBUX iteration.

Those that have been inside any current Mercedes-Benz vehicle will find it all instantly familiar, but one point of particular interest is the “range cloud” that overlays your vehicle’s range on to the EQC’s navigation screen as a cloud.

It’s real time, based on your current driving performance.

As expected, the EQC is a front runner in terms of safety and driver’s aids.

Attention assist, pre-safe plus, pre-safe sound, active parking assist, active blind spot assist, evasive and active steering assist, multibeam LED,
active distance assist distronic, active brake assist to name but a few.

Plus, in the new EQC 400’s five-star ANCAP safety rating, it scored 96% for adult occupant protection and 92% for child occupant protection.

That represents the highest-ever adult occupant score for an electric car and the equal highest-ever child occupant score of any car.

Regenerative braking levels are managed or controlled via steering wheel paddles.

Upon start-up the EQC begins in drive with a more natural brake bias.

Paddle up to D+ and the EQC offers virtually zero motor braking, D- moderate braking and D – offers full regen.

This new Mercedes-Benz EV is powered by two 150kW electric motors generating a total of 300kW of power and 760Nm of torque.

Generally speaking, when you’re driving around town, the front motor is the one that’s engaged for everyday driving, but if you’re asking more of the car in dynamic, both motors are engaged.

It comes with an electric drivetrain, direct drive, fixed ratio transmission for each axle, that offers smooth and linear acceleration and improved efficiency – 0-100km/h is 5.1 seconds.

The 405-volt output, 80kWh (usable) lithium-ion 625kg battery forms part of the EQC’s floor, providing a low centre of gravity and comes with an eight-year/160,000km warranty, while a three-year, unlimited-kilometre vehicle warranty applies to all other items, with annual servicing intervals.

Energy consumption for the EQC is rated at 21.4kWh/100km.

With a full charge on board, the EQC can travel between top-ups for up to 434km (ADR) or 353km WLTP.

Charging 110kW DC/7.4kW AC.

Type 2 AC charging 4km/30mins via a domestic socket, CCS DC 220km/30mins via ultra-rapid charge.

So how does it drive?

The first thing you notice when jumping behind the wheel of the EQC is how modern-Mercedes normal it all is.

Leather thoughout and the expected up-market feel, dual 10.25 inch MBUX interactive screens combined with lavish cockpit comfort.

Everything is where you’d expect it to be and well within arm’s reach, but the EQC’s trim also has several hints towards its electrification status.

The air vents feature copper-wire inlays and there’s a silver circuit board surround to the dashboard, a dashboard that features an unusually tactile “rubberlike” finish.

The navigation screen comes with a cool new trick too, but I’ll get to that soon.

Drive is engaged via Mercedes traditional steering column stalk and aside from the lack of interior engine sound and gear changing, the EQC pulls away into city traffic like any other modern Mercedes SUV.

Provided you don’t step down hard on the accelerator and unleash all that instant torque, the EQC is a smooth operator around heavy congestion.

Visibility is great all-round and the ride is comfortable.

It doesn’t take long before you are confident enough to start fiddling with the SUV’s EV extras.

First and foremost, the battery regeneration, which is all handled via steering wheel paddles.

Upon start-up, Drive mode is engaged and as I said, this gives a very natural feel to the vehicle.

Pull on the right paddle and D+ is engaged, a drive mode that seems to make the EQC free-wheel in some kind of perpetual motion, much like slipping a conventional car into neutral but still being able to accelerate when required.

Left paddle engages D-, a mode that gives moderate regenerative braking when you’re off the accelerator and D – which is almost brake-check firm.

In all honesty, around the city, D is just fine.

Free of the city and with Dynamic drive engaged, the EQC really ups its game.

The steering is well-weighted and the turn-in is sharp.

Acceleration is responsive, not terrifyingly quick, but rapid enough to be within GLC AMG 43 level, which is impressive enough.

The suspension is both pot-hole absorbing and 4Matic confident.

I was initially unsure of the springs in front, air suspension in the rear set-up, but it seems to work, and work well, offering quite an exhilarating ride when pushed without a glimmer of understeer.

The EQC’s navigation map comes with a “Range Cloud” feature.

It superimposes a virtual fence over the regular map that shows, based on your real-time driving, what the SUV’s current range expectation is.

The faster you go, the more power you use, the narrower the cloud’s circumference.

It even extends out over the Tasman, but we didn’t venture out there.

We arrived at the RACV hotel in Torquay with a little under half the battery life available making the WLTP 353km range more pertinent than the brochure claims.

But in the EQC’s defence, it was being tested quite hard at times.

In their own words, Mercedes may have taken their time in releasing the EQC, but I have to say, it’s well worth the wait.