The elegant and stately Mercedes-Benz E-Class has a long history of excelling in CR’s testing. Now the German automaker has produced an all-electric version, called the EQE. This midsized electric sedan delivers a pleasing combination of quick acceleration and a hushed, luxurious cabin. But it suffers from complicated controls and a spongy brake pedal.
Our tested EQE 350 4Matic’s 288 horsepower might seem paltry compared with the output of some luxury EVs, but its acceleration is decisively quick. Drivers feel a strong and whisper quiet push when merging onto the highway. We clocked the EQE’s 0 to 60 mph run at 5.5 seconds, which is very quick though it trails the Tesla Model 3 and Hyundai Ioniq 6.
The EQE 350 4Matic’s EPA-estimated 260-mile driving range, has plenty of juice for daily commutes and around-town driving. More impressively, it managed 332 miles in our own 70-mph highway range test. Charging from empty takes 11 hours. The car’s 9.6-kilowatt on-board charger is a notch below other competing models—most EVs are able to charge at around 10 to 11 kW. This means that home charging at above 40 amps (or about 25 miles of range per hour of charging) is not in the cards.
In public DC fast-charging places, the EQE’s maximum acceptance rate is 170 kW but we never saw a peak power that was even close to that. At one DC fast-charging location, we only saw a max of 85 kW when connected to a 350-kW “EVolve NY” charger even with 10 minutes of preconditioning. During other sessions plugged into an Electrify America 350-kW charger and a Tesla Supercharger (equipped with the Magic Dock, we only saw 72 kW and 76 kW of power, respectively.
In fine Mercedes tradition, the EQE rides comfortably down the road cushioning occupants in the lap of luxury. The suspension skillfully absorbs bumps without breaking a sweat, seemingly never losing composure even when the road gets uncivilized. But even with such a serene ride on tap, the EQE also comes through with surprisingly athletic handling chops. This car is by no means a lightweight (it tipped our scales at just over 5,400 pounds, which is extremely heavy compared to most conventional midsized luxury sedans), but it feels spry through corners, with quick, nicely weighted steering and a planted, secure demeanor. We had to convince ourselves that we were actually driving a luxury car and not a sports sedan.
The EQE delivered short stopping distances when slowing from 60 mph, but the brake pedal’s long travel and spongy feel didn’t instill confidence during regular driving. This was one of the real low points in our testing, since the pedal’s disconcertingly mushy feel forced us to have to readjust pedal pressure when coming to a stop.
The interior is gorgeous, befitting an $80,000-plus sedan, with lots of soft microsuede material and tasteful stitching. This super swanky interior got high marks for its classy color coordination throughout, and the soft-touch material on the upper dash and window sills. And we also noticed the little things, such as a glove box that’s beautifully lined with soft felt.
For the most part we found the front seats comfortable and supportive, and we especially liked the four-way lumbar support for the driver’s seat. Some drivers found that the bottom cushion’s rounded shape wasn’t conducive to holding their legs in place. But the bigger issue for many is the driving position: Not only is headroom tight, but we found it annoying that the steering wheel rim blocks the upper part of the instrument-panel display, for some drivers even cutting off the digital speedometer readout. The rear seat is tight for taller passengers, with minimal headroom and foot space.
In Mercedes fashion of late, the controls are uber complicated. Just about every media and climate function is controlled through the large infotainment touchscreen, which is distracting. The system requires wading through many layers of menus in order to make simple adjustments, such as turning on the steering wheel heat or tuning the radio. We also don’t like the finger-sliding actions for adjusting audio volume and cruise control speed on the steering wheel, which require way too much precision and a supremely deft touch while driving.
Standard active safety and driver assistance features include automatic emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, automatic emergency braking that operates at highway speeds, blind spot warning, rear cross traffic warning, reverse automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane keeping assistance, and automatic high beams. Buyers have to opt for the Exclusive trim to get adaptive cruise control with lane centering and lane-change ability.