The verdict: The 2024 Mercedes-EQ EQS450+ is an all-electric, full-size car that possesses many of the desirable qualities of Mercedes’ S-Class sedan, but more than a few troublesome traits prevent it from being the EV equivalent of Mercedes’ flagship.
Versus the competition: The BMW i7 and Mercedes EQS both deliver tech-heavy user experiences, while the Lucid Air is a bit more driver-focused, even though its interior space is similar to the EQS. All three EVs have cabins that are more richly finished than you’ll find in a Tesla Model S.
The Mercedes-EQ EQS is priced in the realm of Mercedes’ S-Class full-size sedan, and it even has an “S” in its model name, but the car represents a significant departure from the S-Class tradition — even without taking the EQS’ all-electric powertrain into account. Its smooth, cab-forward styling is different, and it feels different when you’re sitting in its screen-centric interior. The result is a different type of luxury experience even with the car’s all-electric powertrain enhancing traditional luxury attributes, like smooth and quiet power delivery.
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Officially, the EQS is offered in sedan and SUV form, but the sedan you see here is really a sleek hatchback; its rear deck lid and glass open as one to reveal a large cargo area. The starting price of our “base” rear-wheel-drive EQS450+ test car was $105,550 (including a $1,150 destination fee), but options raised the car’s as-tested price to $115,160.
So, how does it compare with an S-Class? Let’s take a look.
Comfortable, Quick Enough and Quiet
The EQS450+ delivers smooth, predictable acceleration and braking, and its adaptive air suspension makes for soft, floaty body motions over bumps. Switching from Comfort drive mode to Sport firms up the ride a bit, but it doesn’t drastically alter the experience. Our test car had optional 21-inch wheels and tires, and their higher recommended tire pressure of 41 pounds per square inch front and rear meant there was some busyness in how the tires reacted to rough pavement, though the resulting firmness wasn’t enough to disrupt the cabin most of the time.
While the EQS450+ has steering that’s buttery smooth, it doesn’t offer much feedback. Even so, the EQS feels lighter and more nimble than an S-Class despite being more than 700 pounds heavier, thanks in part to standard rear-wheel steering, which can tighten the vehicle’s turning circle by more than 3 feet, Mercedes says. (Rear-wheel steering is optional for the S-Class.)
The EQS450+ uses a single rear electric motor that makes 355 horsepower and 419 pounds-feet of torque. It’s powered by a 108.4-kilowatt-hour battery pack, and the car has an EPA-estimated driving range of 352 miles on a full charge — the longest range in the EQS lineup. With all of that torque just a press of the accelerator pedal away, this Mercedes’ single-motor setup moves the big car easily, and there’s plenty of power in reserve for highway passing. It’s not as overwhelmingly powerful as some luxury EVs, but it’s entirely acceptable for everyday driving. Mercedes says the EQS450+ can go from 0-60 mph in 5.8 seconds; that’s respectable for a car that weighs 5,500 pounds, but it trails the all-wheel-drive S500’s 4.5-second 0-60 time. The AWD EQS450 can hit 60 mph in 5.3 seconds, and the EQS580 and AMG EQS sedans are swifter still, with 0-60 times of 4.1 and 3.4 seconds, respectively.
The EQS450+ delivers its power silently — so long as you have the car’s sound effects turned off — and below highway speeds, tire and wind noise aren’t big factors in the cabin.
The EQS450+ doesn’t have a one-pedal driving mode, but it does have three settings for energy recuperation when slowing down: Normal, Strong and Off. The car feels like it will coast forever when energy recuperation is turned off, and Normal mode offers minimal regenerative braking. The Strong setting, meanwhile, sheds speed considerably quicker when you lift off the accelerator pedal; it can slow the car nearly to a stop, but you still must press the brake pedal to bring it to a complete halt.
Less Interior Space, Less Quality
The EQS’ sleek styling has consequences in terms of interior roominess and visibility — particularly in the front of the cabin. Its low roofline means there’s not a lot of headroom for taller folks, and the bulky, forward-swept front roof pillars make it hard to get a good view of crossing traffic at intersections. Rear visibility is also quite limited out the small rear window, and when looking over my left shoulder to check my blind spot, I found myself staring squarely at a wide B-pillar that blocked most of my view.
With so many visibility and space compromises in the front of the cabin, I was a bit worried what it would be like in the EQS’ backseat. It’s not quite to the level of S-Class comfort and space, but the rear of the cabin feels a bit more open than the front of the car. Headroom is good, and a rear glass moonroof makes the space feel more open. The seat cushion is a reasonable height from the floor, and legroom is decent. The seatback, however, had too much lumbar support for me, and it isn’t adjustable.
The materials and build quality of the EQS450+ aren’t as good as what you’ll find in an S-Class even though pricing for the two cars is fairly similar. Even though the natural-grain wood trim in the EQS is real, it has a plasticky, fake feel. The stalks on the steering column for the turn signals and gear selector are plastic and not completely smooth; you can see what looks like a separation edge from a mold on them. The round air vents on either end of the dashboard feel flimsy, and I noticed some door-trim flex that’s entirely out of place in a car with a six-figure price tag. Even the movement of the windshield wipers is a bit rickety.
The Glass Dash
The EQS450+ comes standard with the MBUX Hyperscreen, which consists of three individual displays — a 12.3-inch one for the instrument panel, 17.7-inch center touchscreen for the infotainment system and 12.3-inch touchscreen for the front passenger — behind a 56-inch-wide piece of glass. The Hyperscreen isn’t hard to use given most of the settings and systems are readily available from the central touchscreen. Wireless Apple CarPlay worked well, and its interface filled the central screen. In a car with so few physical controls, the interface in the central screen for systems like the air conditioning needs to be well considered and not hard to use, and Mercedes succeeds on this front. And while we’re not the biggest fans of touch-sensitive steering-wheel controls, I never accidentally activated one in the EQS while driving it, so that’s a plus.
The dashboard, however — which the Hyperscreen is part of — creates some issues for the driver. It’s tall, and when you combine that with this car’s short roofline, you end up with a windshield that doesn’t have much height to it. I also dealt with a lot of reflections when driving the EQS both from the tan trim atop the dash, which was reflected in the windshield, and from light hitting the glass surface of the Hyperscreen.
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Surprising Utility
Full-size luxury cars aren’t known for their utility, which makes the EQS’ so surprising. Opening the rear liftgate reveals a large cargo area that’s much bigger than the car’s sleek exterior lets on, and there’s a reasonably sized underfloor storage compartment, too. The split-folding rear seat folds forward to expand the cargo area for longer items, leaving just a small ledge between the cargo floor and folded backrest.
The Future of Luxury?
With its sleek shape, electric powertrain and glass cockpit, the EQS450 Plus represents a tech-centric vision of luxury that forgoes some of the traditional luxury trappings that have been synonymous with Mercedes vehicles. Its clear downgrade in materials quality won’t sit well with shoppers accustomed to top-shelf interiors at this price, but for others, perhaps all of the EQS’ tech features will be more important.
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