I talked to the GM at my dealer this afternoon and he told me that there are strong rumors that the EQ portion of the name will be dropped and that there will be an all electric S Class instead in a different platform. He wasn’t sure of the timing.

 

This has been confirmed by MB. The all EV S Class will be on a different platform than the ICE S Class but they will look very similar.

 

As mentioned, the first sort of non EQ branding electric MB is the Mercedes-Benz G 500 with EQ Technology and not called EQG, it will take some time.

The other small changes of removing the EQ branding was on the W206 C-Class so mild hybrid models. 2022 or was it 2023 the EQ logo is gone.

 

That's too bad, I like the departure from the S class. Just make a better looking EQS or whatever they want to call it. Make it look closer to the EQS Concept car not the S Class.

 

Buyers by and large though don't like the departure

 

Not all change is good. Even if something is broken, sometimes its better to not fix it.

 

I understand this is an EQS thread but I will just throw mazda in just as an example of how much a model designation is recognized and plays a role in a product portfolio, it might indeed be smart for MB to just call the EQS an S-Class (electric) as that is what people is familiar with just how mazda went with the double number naming scheme yet still released a new CX-5 and not a CX-40 for example, as CX-5 is well recognized in the customer database and less confusion for the customers.

Although we enthusiasts can tell EQS "is meant" to be the S-Class EV (yes yes... I know the "real" S-Class EV is coming out that has luxury and leg room closer to the S-Class sedan ICE) , the confusion also lies in having CLS, so the the CLS is an S-Class? nope. The simpler the name, the better I guess.

That said, there are exceptions, putting a four cylinder in the C 63 S E Performance and calling it a C 63 S... um that, doesn't work.

 

I think they should have just not made the connection between the EQS and the S Class and people like me wouldn’t have been so off out by the EQS

 

My favorite of your criticisms of the EQS was that it looked like a computer mouse.....I both hated and loved that! I also loved my EQS, and in many ways, wish I had kept it instead of letting it go so cheaply (oh, to have a three car garage!!). But, having developed a great relationship with my Panamera, the only thing I miss now is the rear wheel steering. The Panamera beats it on luxury, has an equal stereo, handles better, has a much better air suspension system, and looks fabulous. I guess I also miss operating it on about $35-$40 per month of electricity.....I spend more than that each time I fill up. Anyway, I hope electric vehicles survive and improve, and the infrastructure to support them develops.....I may again have one in the future.

 

IMHO, the market challenge for the EQ brand has been largely PRICING and not S-class positioning. The latter is a far smaller contributor. As a consumer and owner of many MB models, pricing the EQS580 sedan or SUV at $120K base and then optioned up to $150K is a challenge to justify, especially considering where the more established EV competition is priced at. If/when MB re-invents their EQ business will be interesting if they reel-in pricing and make that commensurate with the market.

I am sure glad I own one of this super nice EQ models. Loving it and truly enjoying it. As an avowed dye-in-the-wool ICE enthusiast, I am surprised at how quickly I am evolving and liking an EV. MB did a great job in this first release, hoping they perfect it in their next iteration... if a re-design, let's wait to see it... if it is a long pause to re-think the business model, then so be it. Somehow MB cannot afford to exit the EV space, the future really belongs in EV, IMHO.

 

I don't think the pricing is out if line if they deliver the product that is comparable at that price.

 

Scrap the EQ branding. Make the cars look like the cars that are familiar to the core audience. There's no reason to make ESTABLISHED BUYERS change the form of power their vehicles will have as well as make them accept a totally new look that they are already happy with. Remember, Mercedes are NEVER going to undercut other brands in direct pricing, and shouldn't. I sell Mercedes and after early adopters have gotten on the electric train, we've had to fight to give EVs away. I'm in TN where the mentality in conservative and not quick to adapt. I understand the more progressive markets will have differing opinions and market needs, but the numbers and the dollars have spoken. PIVOT NOW, gain traction, experiment later. My $.02

 

Thats exactly what they're doing, and your experience mirrors what people I know at MB dealers have said also about the selling experience.

What I find interesting is whenever I see a BMW 5 or 7 Series, it almost always is an EV version around here, and I rarely see an EQ sedan (I do see more EQ SUVs). I have to think if MB made the E and S in EV lines it would be the same way, that most of the ones I see would be EV.

 

not the S class EV but the GLC EQ Technology might be coming out soon. Reason I mentioned it is because the "EQ branding" and its existence was discussed in this thread. Back to the S-Class...

 

I do see quite a few EQ vehicles on the road here in Maryland... even a Maybach EQS680 was ahead on another lane on the 495 a couple days ago. Took me awhile to identify it as a Maybach tho' In general, I often run into other EQ owners at charging stations. A few nights ago (early evening, actually), I was charging next to an EQE500 sedan. What a lovely lovely car. The owner and I spoke at length about our experiences owning an EQ vehicle. His only complaint was the high depreciation... duh! but everything else has been superb. Same here... For me, the attraction is the different design language of the EQ brand vs the regular MBs. As for BMWs not distinguishable between ICE and EVs, well neither are to my design taste (so garish!) so I don't really much care for them... and this is from a long-term BMW owner of 3x 5'ers in my driving history... been there, done that...never again. So put me in the camp of buyers that want something different... if MB goes back and adopts the BMW language for their EVs, so be it.. I won't be buying any more MB EVs anyways... the one we have now is a keeper till it dies.

 

I do too but most of the ones I see are the EQ SUVs. Stylewise they aren't as "out there" as the sedans. Comparatively I see a lot of EV BMW sedans. I firmly believe the MB EVs would be a big hit if the styling was more attractive to the typical MB buyer. If my S Class for instance had come in EV, I likely would have one. When I was considering the 7 Series I was only considering the EV. The EQS sedan though just doesn't look the way a car of its price point should look IMO... you look at an EQE and an EQS for instance and you wonder, why is the EQS twice the cost? It doesn't look like it should be. The SUVs actually I would drive.

 

I agree the EQ SUV styling isn't as "out there" (using your words) as the sedans, but the sedans are pretty nice looking too, IMO. The sticky issue for some, like you, is that it is a different design language, rather than just sticking batteries into the regular MB models and calling them the EQ-technology versions. That may work if you are just making evolutionary products, but if you want to advance EV and stake out a position and brand, then you create something "new" and build it out. Here is where the debate is... my take is the plan was great, execution as in pricing was the big failure. You also stated it as such, when the EQS is priced so high while it doesn't quite showcase the higher value from its design. Again, my take is the failure of the EQ brand is that MB priced these vehicles outrageously, and marketed them poorly. And these created market confusion resulting in the price cratering and lackluster sales for these otherwise very awesome products.

 

But we can see in the sales results that MB's approach hasn't worked en masse. For buyers like me who are not adopters, we want what we have always wanted just in a modern EV. We don't want it to look different or weird, if we wanted weird there are lots of options. MB can sell us EVs, but they have to look and feel the way they always have because thats what we want.

MB tried to chase Tesla buyers instead of trying to create a vehicle that appealed to their own buyer and that was a mistake. They're not really priced outrageously, they are similar to other comparable vehicles. If you watch what everybody else is doing now, they are following BMW's lead. EV BMWs look just like their ICE cars. Range Rovers new EVs are identical. Cadillac's EVs are mirroring their crossover looks because they have gone all crossover. If I was going to buy a BMW or a Range Rover or a Cadillac I wouldn't even consider the ICE over the EV, but MB I am still ICE only because of the design of the EVs.

 

Yesterday I saw an article stating MB is coming out with 30 new models in the next 2 year.........30! (wth)

 

That’s concerning! Having enough problems with QC with the models they have.

 

I like the way BMW made an electric version of the 7 as well as an ice version that look the same. The car itself, ehhhh ....

 

It’s the best selling car in the segment. Outselling the S class for the first time ever and 40% sold are EVs. So, something is going right with it.

Personally I think they look awesome

 

I agree in part. To be unique in an already "unique" segment of the market for such a traditional and legacy brand is a huge risk and we see how it played out. My second point is this, i literally have clients that flat out call the cars UGLY. That's something I've never had with other models. I'll get a few, "not my style" or "i prefer something different" but outright ugly? That's bigger than bad marketing.

 

True. Numbers don't lie. I don't have anything against them. I think my bias is showing

 

oh wow!! That's pretty tough to deal with if you are selling these vehicles. I don't share that sentiment, but then, the market speaks with their wallets... Your feedback and opinions do matter as someone intimately familiar with these vehicles, no matter how biased they are.