Mercedes EQB review: Lucky 7 for this electric Mercedes
As a 7-seat electric car, the Mercedes-EQ EQB has few rivals. That includes combustion cars
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APART from a Mercedes badge, the EQB has a USP, because if you want an electric car with 7 seats you’re not going to find much else out there.
It starts at S$305,888 (including Certificate Of Entitlement) for the EQB 250, a single-motor version with 190 horsepower. If you can stand to part with S$352,888, there’s the twin-motor EQB 350 that The Business Times spent a weekend with.
In some ways it was a pretty wild weekend, because the EQB 350 takes off from standstill like something from the spirit world. Pin the accelerator and the hefty Mercedes gets up to silly speeds quicker than you can say “Boo!”, and it does it in spooky silence.
The EQB even handles pretty well. At more than 2.1 tonnes, it doesn’t particularly like being chucked into tight corners, but it cuts a surprisingly graceful figure through the higher speed stuff.
It helps that, as with all EVs, the batteries live under the floor, where their weight keeps the body from lurching drunkenly in corners. The bottom line is, if you’re committed to getting through a bend fast, the EQB is admirably game. All you have to do is trust it.
Of course, using the EQB as intended means having up to 6 people you like on board, in which case you’d be better off being gentle with the steering and exploiting the motors’ smoothness instead of their immediacy.
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Mind you, when you’re alone in the car, the motors’ silence gives you the chance to have a quiet moment to yourself.
In any situation, however, the EQB 350 is a comfy car. Though it’s firmly sprung, it seems to ride more serenely than Mercedes’ own EQC, a larger Sport Utility Vehicle.
It’s even defiantly practical, not just because the rearmost seats are habitable (though Mercedes recommends staying out of them if you’re 166 cm tall or taller) but because you can flop the second and third row down to create a flat loading floor, along with 1,620 litres of cargo space.
Another surprise: For something so roomy, the EQB 350 is a doddle to parallel park. Turns out it’s only a bit longer than a Honda Civic.
If the EQB has a weakness, it’s the cabin. The ambient lighting, driver displays and infotainment graphics are all gorgeous, but there’s little hiding the fact that the EQB is built on the bones of the GLB, a car from Mercedes’ low-end passenger car range. The interior doesn’t feel premium, and when there’s no one in the front passenger seat, the seatbelt there tends to clonk the B-pillar annoyingly.
The Mercedes badge still counts for something, but above all the EQB 350 is practical, refined and properly versatile. It’s also something to drive if you just can’t stand the thought of putting more carbon into the atmosphere than necessary.
It’s also subversively fast, which has its own appeal, though the EQB 350 obviously wasn’t created to slay sports cars. Instead, driving it makes you realise that if it’s here to bury anything, it’s the combustion engine.
Mercedes-EQ EQB 350 4Matic AMG Line
Electric Motor / layout Twin / Front and rear
Motor power / torque 292 hp / 520 Nm
Battery type / net capacity Lithium-ion, 66.5 kWh
Normal Charge Type / Time 11 kW AC / 6.25 hours
Max Fast Charge Type / Time 100 kW DC / 32 mins (10 to 80 per cent)
Range 423 km
0-100km/h 6.2 seconds
Top Speed 160 km/h
Efficiency 18.8 kWh/100km
Agent Cycle & Carriage Industries
Price S$352,888 with COE
Available Now
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