Mercedes-Benz, the Stuttgart based German luxury carmaker took the wraps off its battery-powered VISION EQXX electric prototype which it says will have a range of more than 1,000 kilometres (km) per charge. The Mercedes EQXX gets a sporty, sleek and futuristic design likely to serve as the basis for a production car that could rival other luxury EVs like the Porsche Taycan, Audi E-tron GT, and Tesla Roadster.
The VISION EQXX, dubbed the most-efficient Mercedes-Benz ever built, will have energy consumption of less than 10 kilowatt hours (kWh) per 100 km, said Daimler. Tesla's Model S, on the other hand, consumes 18.1 kWh over the same distance. "The Mercedes-Benz VISION EQXX is how we imagine the future of electric cars," Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Kaellenius said.
However, unlike Mercedes-Benz EQXX, the Tesla Model S is a production vehicle already doing good sales globally. Daimler will test-drive the prototype before the middle of the year on various types of terrain, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Markus Schaefer said. Some components of the prototype would be available in Mercedes-Benz vehicles within two to three years, Schaefer said.
The prototype, built within 18 months, "puts an end to range anxiety," Mercedes-Benz said, referring to one of the key obstacles for why EVs have not been in higher demand. This required developing a new battery pack, which the company says would fit into a compact vehicle and whose energy density - measuring how much power batteries can hold compared to their size - stands at close to 400 watt hours per litre.
The interior of the Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX features a massive 47.5-inch screen based on the company's Hyperscreen infotainment display spread across the dashboard. Unlike the current gen Hyperscreen, which is a set of three separate screens set inside one solid, 56-inch piece of glass, the Vision EQXX’s screen is a one-piece display that will also feature 8K resolution and cutting edge graphics.
Also read: Tesla delivers close to 1 million cars in 2021 becoming world's biggest EV maker
Daimler, the parent brand of Mercedes-Benz earlier announced its plans to invest more than 40 billion euros ($45 billion) by 2030, including building eight battery plants. From 2025, all its new vehicle platforms will only make EVs, it has said.
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