Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax

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But actually the EQS 450+ is enough for cruising, according to our test driver Kyle Conner

Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-10-degree rear wheel steering extreme maneuverability

The Mercedes EQS has been available to order since August 10, and deliveries in Germany began in September. US colleague Kyle Conner from site has now got his hands on a US version of the EQS 580 4Matic and made an interesting test video about it (at the bottom of this article).

The exterior of the five-foot-long sedan is one of the few things Kyle doesn’t like about the car. We would agree – the car is not particularly chic. The body is aerodynamically optimal (as a reminder: Cd value 0.20) but aesthetically not very convincing. One point Kyle doesn’t say anything about is the large tailgate, because that’s an advantage over the S-Class with its small trunk lid.

Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-10-degree rear wheel steering extreme maneuverability

In the interior, Kyle is happy about the white leather (delicate but beautiful), the soft pillows, the quality of the turn signal lever, the ambient lighting and of course the huge hyperscreen. The video shows how to configure the instrument display using the touch buttons on the left of the steering wheel. The right buttons control the content of the infotainment display in the middle. The volume setting on the steering wheel is not very precise; and if you use the "swipe" button in the center console instead, you have to press, strangely enough.

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To the configurator

A couple of settings

Kyle first uses the touchscreen to switch off creep gear – because only then does the car stop after it has stopped. He also deactivates the 12 small electric motors on the touchscreen, apparently the haptic feedback annoys him. An interesting setting for increasing the battery life is "Eco Charging", which means that the car is only charged to 80 percent (instead of the 90 percent set by default) and the maximum charging power is reduced from 200 to 100 kW.

Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-relax

Ranges: EPA values ​​strangely close together

Before we get to the driving impressions, here are the most important data of the two versions:

EQS 450+ EQS 580 4Matic
drive RWD (1 PSM electric motor) AWD (2 PSM electric motors)
Power / torque 245 kW / 568 Nm 385 kW / 855 Nm
0-100 km / h / sprayer 6.2 seconds / 210 km / h 4.3 seconds / 210 km / h
Battery (net) 108 kWh 108 kWh
Range 780 km WLTP 676 km WLTP
Charging AC up to 11 kW, optionally 22 kW 11 kW, optionally 22 kW
Charging DC up to 200 kW up to 200 kW
price 106,374 euros 135,529 euros

The WLTP ranges are very high and differ significantly from each other (by around 15 percent). The EPA values ​​of 340 and 350 miles mentioned by Kyle are very close together (only 3 percent difference). Such a small difference is seldom, especially when it comes to two permanent magnet motors, because they cannot be switched off as easily as, for example, with the VW ID.4, which has an induction motor at the front (range of the 77 kWh versions here : 518 km with rear-wheel drive, 482 km with ID.4 GTX, so only about 7 percent difference).

Recuperation and the problem with the brake pedal

The EQS offers four recuperation modes: D Auto, D +, D and D-, whereby according to Kyle, no recuperation takes place in D +. According to him, it gets strange if you choose strong recuperation (D-). Since it’s a hydraulic braking system, Kyle says, the brake pedal then moves away from the foot. When you try to press the pedal, it feels very hard and the braking force is difficult to control. For Kyle, this is an obvious mistake by the developers.

Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-10-degree rear wheel steering extreme maneuverability Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-mercedes

Sense of acceleration: Rather too vehement

Kyle is full throttle at 30 mph (about 50 km / h) and is visibly pushed into the seat. A huge difference to the EQS 450+, according to the test driver: There the car accelerates quickly, but not as vehemently. For Kyle, the 450+ is motorized just right, the 580 apparently has too much direct torque for him.

Do you really need 1,000 horsepower or more like a Hummer EV or a Lucid Air? Kyle says no. He used to drive a Model S P100D himself and now has a Model 3 Performance (0-100 km / h in 3.3 seconds), but he drives the cars like a grandpa, he says. And so is dThe relaxed driving feeling is the best thing about the EQS, according to the colleague.

10-degree rear wheel steering for extreme maneuverability

Kyle is really impressed by the all-wheel steering, which turns the rear wheels up to 10 degrees at low speeds. This makes the car extremely manoeuvrable despite its length of 5.21 meters – a "magical" feeling on small side streets, enthuses Kyle. When pulling out of a parking space in tight spaces, however, you have to bear in mind that the rear of the vehicle will swing out in an unexpected direction.

When getting out of the car, you don’t necessarily have to turn off the car – it does it by itself. To start the car, on the other hand, you have to press the start button in the center console. Our tester is enthusiastic about the fact that the fans turn a little slower at low speeds in order to reduce the volume: This detail shows the incredible fine-tuning that the engineers have given the EQS.

Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-mercedes

Center console with the start button in the middle. The fingerprint sensor to the right of it is only used to activate the personal profile

Charging power limited by the 400 volt system?

As mentioned, the EQS can be charged with a maximum of 200 kW. The Mercedes developers told Kyle that they would have dispensed with a high maximum charging power and instead concentrated on maintaining the 200 kW for a long time. But according to Kyle, 200 kW is pretty much the maximum that is possible with a 400-volt system – for more charging power you would need an 800-volt system (like the Taycan or Lucid Air).

On his first attempt at charging, Kyle found the charging curve to be okay, but he had the impression that the charging performance drops sharply from 80 percent. So: It’s best to charge up to 80 percent, then drive on, according to our test driver.

More about the competition: Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-10-degree rear wheel steering extreme maneuverability Lucid Air: First short test drive with a fast luxury limousine

Mercedes EQS 580 4Matic in the test: a car to relax-10-degree rear wheel steering extreme Tesla Model S Plaid against Mercedes EQS: who is now in front?

Conclusion: the right car for relaxed cruising

In just one week, Kyle has driven the most important competitors in addition to the EQS. His conclusion: the Tesla Model S Plaid is the car of choice when accelerating on straight roads, the Porsche Taycan is the car with the best driving dynamics, the Lucid Air shines with something like "minimalist opulence". The EQS, however, is the best overall package.

You can’t prove it with numbers, says Kyle; Competitors often look better on paper. But there is no other car that drives so relaxed and comfortable, the tester finds. There are only two points that he really doesn’t like: the braking feel and the exterior look.

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