As Mercedes-Benz continues its transition to greater electrification, it introduces two new electric-vehicle (EV) entries in the higher-volume midsize segments for 2023. One is the recently introduced EQE sedan and the newest is the EQE SUV, the subject of this review. According to Automotive News, the EQE SUV's gasoline-powered SUV counterpart—the midsize GLE—has been among the German automaker's top-selling products in the United States in 2021 and 2022.
The first-ever midsize EQE SUV shares its wind-cheating design philosophy and premium-class vehicle architecture with the EQE sedan, but otherwise has its own sheet metal and overall look. Unlike conventional gas-powered SUVs, you won't find a roof rack on the new EQE SUV. It has a sleek, aerodynamically shaped body that is 6.8 inches taller and 1.5 inches wider but 5.4 inches shorter than the even more egg-shaped EQE sedan. Yet the EQE SUV sports a cargo hold that can swallow up to 55 cubic feet, loadable through a generously sized power-operated liftgate.
Currently on sale in the U.S. are three EQE SUV models:
Prices include the $1,150 destination charge.
What's interesting here is that Mercedes-Benz offers the rear-wheel-drive (RWD) EQE 350+ SUV and EQE 350 4Matic SUV at the same $79,050 price. Potential buyers will weigh the 350+ model's 24 miles of added driving range against the 147 pound-feet of additional electric motor torque and all-wheel-drive (AWD) traction of the 350 4Matic model.
The 2023 EQE SUV is available in three trim levels: base Premium, mid-level Exclusive, and range-topping Pinnacle. Mercedes has announced that a high-performance AMG version of the EQE SUV will join the lineup in the coming year.
Major premium midsize electric SUV competitors include the Audi E-tron, BMW iX, Cadillac Lyriq, Genesis GV60, and Tesla Model X.
Photo: Ron Sessions
The Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV competes in the Upper Midsize Premium SUV market segment. According to data collected from verified new-vehicle buyers for the JD Power 2023 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, 65 percent of new Upper Midsize Premium SUV buyers are male (vs. 61 percent for the industry), and the median age of a new Upper Midsize Premium SUV buyer is 58 years (vs. 56).
As part of the APEAL Study, owners rated the Upper Midsize Premium SUV segment in 10 primary categories. Listed below in descending order, you'll find their preferences, from their most favorite thing about the vehicle to their least favorite:
Photo: Ron Sessions
In the sections that follow, our independent expert analyzes an EQE 350+ SUV equipped with the following options:
The test vehicle's price was $86,790, including the $1,150 destination charge.
Photo: Ron Sessions
Despite a roof more than half a foot taller than its EQE sedan counterpart, the new EQE SUV is easy to get into and out of thanks to a step-in height that's not much higher than a passenger car. There's no climb up into the cabin as in some other SUVs, and I found the optional illuminated running boards an unnecessary impediment to ingress and egress. However, they do add to the SUV look of the vehicle. The running boards are too narrow to step on but wide enough to dirty my pant legs if I try to step over them.
The cab-forward design of the EQE SUV offers a cavernous interior that's significantly roomier than the gas-powered GLE SUV. Headroom and legroom are generous, and with no driveshaft or transmission tunnel, a flat floor helps impart a feeling of spaciousness.
Like the EQE sedan, the EQE SUV's interior design is clean and elegant. Sporting two large and colorful, high-resolution OLED screens, switchgear clutter is kept to a minimum. A driver-configurable 12.3-inch gauge cluster and portrait-ratio 12.8-inch center infotainment touchscreen dominate the dash decked out in optional Anthracite 3D Optic trim and sweeps into the doors in dramatic fashion.
The standard three-zone automatic climate control uses all-touch-sensitive controls with haptic feedback along the lower portion of the big center screen. Dramatic in low light, a 64-color ambient light show accents the edges of the dash, center console, and doors.
In the mid-grade Exclusive trim, material quality was excellent in the EQE SUV. The test vehicle's MB-Tex faux leather-covered seats didn't leave me wishing it had the optional Nappa leather. As expected of a Mercedes, the generously sized heated and ventilated front seats were comfortable and supportive. The power seat adjustment controls are on the front doors in the usual Mercedes practice. Still, they neither move nor give a tactile response when operated. An exception is the power lumbar front seat controls, which live on the outboard edges of the lower cushions and move when depressed.
The cabin storage is excellent. With the flat floor design, a large open bin under the arching center console is big enough for a purse, tablet, or small camera bag. Atop the console, there's a covered bin for cupholders, a wireless device charger, a tray for small items, and a deep covered bin under the bomb bay doors of the center armrest.
At one point during my test drive, I got stuck in traffic behind an older, oil-burning pickup truck. But air quality inside the EQE was just fine, undoubtedly aided by the optional Energizing Air Control Plus with HEPA filtration.
The split-folding rear bench seat offers generous headroom and legroom for three passengers. The flat floor also helps net some extra foot space for a center rear passenger.
The EQE SUV's thick windshield pillars degrade outward vision to the front quarters. The tall hood and rounded bodywork make it challenging to see the front edges of the EQE SUV, as well. Standard Parktronic active parking assistance, which uses ultrasonic sensors to determine the distance to nearby obstacles and uses audible beeps of increasing intensity and an overhead graphic in the center screen, helps here.
Photo: Ron Sessions
The 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQE comes standard with the same Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX) infotainment components used in the EQE sedan, C-Class sedan, and GLC SUV. Standard features include:
The EQE SUV's standard 12.8-inch portrait-format infotainment touchscreen features vivid colors. Its Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) display delivers sharp graphics and easy readability of infotainment, navigation, climate control, smartphone, and other system content. A Zero Layer design brings the most frequently visited functions and apps on easy-to-access tiles toward the outer edges of the display, helping to minimize the need to scroll through menus while driving. And if you do get deep in menus navigating the system anyway, prominent Back and Home tiles in the lower middle part of the screen provide a quick exit.
Most everything happens on the screen. There are no volume or tuning knobs or radio on/off control. Touch-control sliders for volume adjustment on the steering wheel and center stack are available for this function. Still, they lack tactile feedback, and adjusting gain is difficult, often requiring repeated, distracting attempts to get the desired volume level.
I turned on my favorite satellite radio station by simply asking the MBUX system to do so via voice control. You can access voice control using the touch control on the steering wheel or by uttering a wakeup phrase such as "Hey, Mercedes." In the EQE SUV, voice control is natural language-enhanced. Once the system recognizes the speaker, you can use it to perform tasks such as making a call from your phone's contact list, navigating to a point of interest, checking the weather, choosing an audio source by station, artist, or genre, or adjusting the climate control settings. The artificial intelligence in the system knows if it's the driver or front passenger doing the asking. So, combining those two talents, if the driver were to say," Hey, Mercedes, I'm cold," the MBUX system would hike cabin temperature by several degrees on the side of the vehicle from which the voice came.
When planning a trip, the standard MB navigation system takes into account the weather, traffic, topography, remaining driving range, and the location of charging stations along the way.
Mercedes equipped the EQE SUV test vehicle with optional Augmented Video for Navigation. When navigation is active, the augmented video feature adds a front camera-generated real-time view of the road and traffic ahead above the map display. It then superimposes over the camera view upcoming navigation instructions, arrows showing the direction of the next turn, major cross streets or highways, and the street address of the destination.
The EQE SUV's standard 710-watt, 15-speaker Burmester 3D surround-sound system delivers an immersive listening experience with excellent separation and crystal-clear fidelity. It offers pre-set listening modes that can place you in different soundscapes, for example, on stage or in a concert hall setting, or you can choose a customized sound experience in settings. A 6-month trial of SiriusXM satellite radio is standard.
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There are three powertrain options for the 2023 Mercedes EQE SUV. The EQE 350+ is RWD with a single motor rated at 288 horsepower and 417 pound-feet of torque. Moving up to the EQE 350 4Matic nets AWD and two motors delivering a total of 288 hp and 564 pound-feet of torque. The EQE 500 4Matic also comes with AWD and bumps total output from its two motors to 402 hp and 633 pound-feet of torque.
The electric driving range varies between 253 and 279 miles depending on the powertrain. Mercedes-Benz estimates zero-to-60-mph acceleration at 6.3 seconds for the 350+, 6.2 for the 350 4Matic, and 4.6 seconds for the 500 4Matic.
The EQE SUV 350+ test vehicle delivered ample acceleration roughly equivalent to a V6-equipped Toyota Camry. As with all EVs, the EQE's electric drive-off feel from rest is turbine smooth with satisfying torque that gets you out in front of traffic smartly. That trails off at higher speeds with the single-motor version of the EQE SUV, but it never feels sluggish.
Overall, the electric drivetrain offers exceptional smoothness and quiet operation. Mercedes tuned the 4-link front/multi-link rear coil spring suspension for comfort, but it feels agile due to the relatively short wheelbase. An option is an Airmatic adjustable air suspension with real-time individually adjustable adaptive damping. Both systems deliver good vertical body control. Ride quality and handling are Mercedes-appropriate. The EQE SUV corners with minimal body roll.
Mercedes equipped the test vehicle with optional rear-wheel steering, adding up to 10 degrees of same-phase steering at speeds below 37 mph. Steering response is quick at low speeds with excellent maneuverability, more characteristic of a compact sport sedan than a new-age electric SUV. Mercedes limits the rear steering to 3 degrees at highway speeds to aid stability and cornering ability.
Steering effort and accelerator response are driver-adjustable in Dynamic Select with available Comfort, Sport, Eco, and Individual modes. When equipped with Airmatic suspension with adaptive damping, ride frequency is also adjustable. 4Matic models add an Off-Road driving mode.
Adjustable regenerative braking is available via steering wheel paddles in three steps: normal, one-pedal, and coasting. Whereas the most aggressive one-pedal setting might be fun for carving through canyon roads in a sports car—offering instant deceleration the moment the driver lifts the accelerator—I found that in traffic, it caused following drivers to bunch up on my tail. This probably irritated them, even though lifting off the accelerator does illuminate the brake lights.
With a 32-amp, 9.6-kilowatt 240-volt AC home charger, Mercedes says you can charge the battery in the EQE 350 from 10 to 100 percent in 9.5 hours. According to the automaker, a 170-kW DC fast charger takes the big 90.6-kWh lithium-ion battery from 10 to 80 percent charge in 32 minutes.
Photo: Ron Sessions
The all-new EQE SUV continues the German luxury brand's rollout of safety-related advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). In addition to seven airbags, standard features include:
Optional in base Premium trim and included with Exclusive and Pinnacle trim, an available Driver Assistance package adds:
In the new EQE SUV, Mercedes-Benz has assembled an extensive safety net of technologies that are either standard or available in the highly recommended optional Driver Assistance package. Those I could safely evaluate on public roads performed as described.
While testing the lane-keeping system on a gently curving road with sun-faded lane markings, I relaxed my grip on the steering wheel for a few seconds to see if the EQE SUV could still follow the road. Sometimes the system followed the weaker lane markings, other times not, but almost always, that procedure initiated a visual and audible hands-off warning, reminding me to grip the steering wheel again.
In a crowded grocery store parking lot, a rear passenger attempted to open the door to exit the SUV just as a shopper, approaching from the rear, was walking by. The vehicle correctly initiated an exit warning.
Photo: Ron Sessions
Behind the rear seat, the EQE SUV's 14 cubic feet of cargo space is about the same as that in the EQE sedan's trunk. However, with the 60/40 split rear seat folded flat, EQE SUV cargo space expands to a more SUV-appropriate 55 cubic feet.
There is no front trunk or "frunk" for small items, as in some competing EVs such as the Genesis GV60. However, a generously sized compartment under the rear cargo floor provides ample storage for the home charging cord and a hidden space for small valuables such as a laptop, purse, tablet, or camera bag.
Access to the cargo area is via a standard power-operated liftgate.
At 279 miles for the EQE 350+ SUV, 253 miles for the EQE 350 4Matic SUV, and 269 miles for the EQE 500 4Matic SUV, the driving range of the Mercedes-Benz midsize EV SUV is competitive for the segment, topping that of the Audi E-tron, but trailing that of the BMW iX, Cadillac Lyriq, and Tesla Model X.
The EPA-estimated MPGe for the EQE 350+ SUV test vehicle is 94 mpg city, 87 mpg highway, and 91 mpg combined.
The EQE 350+ test vehicle did not arrive with a fully charged battery. Still, the big, 90.6-kWh lithium-ion battery delivered more than 220 miles of range during a week of mixed residential and highway driving in torrid 110-plus degree weather without recharging despite the maximum air conditioning usage.
As of the posting of this review, neither the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) nor the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) had posted crash-test ratings for the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV.
The base prices of the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV run from $77,900 for both the EQE 350+ SUV and EQE 350 4Matic SUV to $89,500 for the EQE 500 4Matic. The additional destination charge is $1,150.
In the JD Power 2023 Initial Quality Study (IQS), the Cadillac XT6 ranks highest in the Upper Midsize Premium SUV segment. The BMW X6 and the BMW X5 are the next highest-ranked models.
In the 2023 APEAL Study, the BMW iX ranks highest in the Upper Midsize Premium SUV segment. The next highest-ranked models are the BMW X6 and the Land Rover Range Rover Sport.
Other competitors to the 2023 EQE SUV include the Audi Q7, Genesis GV80, and Mercedes-Benz GLE.
Photo: Ron Sessions
The all-new EQE SUV bravely goes toward an electrified future, sporting a bold, aerodynamic shape that looks apart from traditional, gas-powered Mercedes-Benz SUVs. Its turbine-smooth electric power and prodigious torque on tap, a roomy and sumptuously appointed cabin, spacious cargo hold, supple and hushed ride characteristics, and the brand's latest infotainment and driver-assistive technology reinforce the premium elements that have long been emblematic of the Mercedes-Benz brand.
Ron Sessions is a seasoned vehicle evaluator with more than three decades of experience. He has penned hundreds of road tests for automotive and consumer websites, enthusiast magazines, newsletters, technical journals, and newspapers.
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