I was enjoying my 2019 S450 W222, and when my car was in for service, the sales rep lured me into buying an EQS sedan. (It was a great deal)
EQS is a nice car overall, but charging is really annoying. I have an EV charger at home but just plugging it in and making sure the battery doesn't go over 90% or drop below 20% is a pain. Just like the W223, the EQS also has an issue with the battery malfunction, which disables the car. MB still has no solution.

I'm going to switch back to W223 once my lease is up late next year early 25.

How has the W223 been? are the early issues been solved? My W222 was absolutely flawless. I want that kind of an experience with the 223.

 

The car's onboard charger should manage the charging process. Just plug it in and forget it.

 

It does, but the dealer and my SA told me not to go below 20% if possible. (When on long trips pretty annoying)
Also, they recommend me not to go over 80%, but I keep it at 90% just because the 80% range sometimes is too short. One thing you constantly have to look at.

I just want to put gas now...; Also electricity isn't cheap in my area. The 2-year free charging at Electrify America does work great it's just I live in LA
where a lot of people drive EVs, and the line is similar to the line at Costco Gas station, so I end up charging home.

 

I've had no issues with my '22 S580 other than a failed trunk kick sensor early on. You will likely lose a lot of money trading in your EQS though.

 

I wouldn't listen to your dealer at all, I know lots of people with EVs and I have done a lot of research into it, I have never heard anyone have any such concerns. I think you are letting what they told you ruin what could be a positive experience with the car. Dealers like to say all kinds of crap that isn't true. The reason they say to charge it to 80% is just thats the quickest way to charge when on the go, charging speeds reduce significantly when charging over 80%. When at home just let it charge until it stops.

You want to do all your charging at home, I would try and avoid ever charging it at an outside charger. The whole point is to just never have to worry about fueling again, it charges overnight while you sleep and you never have to think about it. Electricity isn't free, but its way cheaper than gas. I pay $400 a month just in fuel for my S560...charging it at home isn't going to add $400 a month to your electric bill. The charger also can be set to charge overnight when the electric rates go down.

Try just charging at night and not worrying about it being over 90% or under 20% and see if your experience with it improves.

 

Will do. Also, it did add about $300 to my electric bill. It is cheaper than gas but I did some math and it comes to about 50mpg.. which is good for a full-size luxury car but not "free" like people say.

 

Yes... EQS is dropping value like crazy.

I usually never lease a car, but I'm glad I did with the EQS.

MB can deal with the ****ty residual after I'm done

 

Nothing in life is free lol. Make sure your charger is set to only charge overnight when the rates go down and see if that makes a difference in your cost. If your energy is twice the cost of the national average per kWh it should cost about $40 to charge an EQS from zero at home, seeing as you should only need to do that about once a week it should be way less than $300 a month.

 

My S580 has overall been fantastic. Some minor issues but nothing major. I thoroughly enjoy the car and have had a thoroughly enjoyable 18 months. I wouldn’t hesitate recommending the S580.

 

To the OP:
MBUSA is buying back my 2022 S580. After new 2013, 2015, 2018 & 2020 S Class sedans, I found most everything about the 2022 to be problematic, annoying and utterly disappointing in comparison. If you loved your W222, I strongly suggest you pick up a nice used one, while great, low mileage examples are still plentiful. Perhaps, when the 2025 W223 “face lift” model arrives, they will have HOPEFULLY resolved all of the issues. Best of luck to you.

 

You can go over 80% and under 20%. The main thing is just don't leave it at those charge states for a long time. If you are on a trip, by all means charge to 100% and drain it to zero, just charge it up.

I have about 75,000 miles across 6 EVs and this recommendation is pretty universal.

How in the world did it add $300 to your monthly electric?? If you have any other questions/concerns I would love to help you out if possible.

 

If you are leasing your EQS, you basically have a rental. Why concern yourself with battery health if you're going to trade out of it in a year or two? Let MBUSA worry about that at the end of your lease.

I had a BMW lease many, many years ago. One of the nice things about a rental is you can treat the car like a rental, and then walk away from it at the end of your lease.

 

I’m in full agreement. Just treat the car like an appliance. If it breaks, give it to the dealer and have them fix it. If it becomes overly problematic for the OP, with him being in California—where next to the weather, the best thing might be the very consumer friendly Lemon Laws—get them to take the car back.

MB & other makes have made many sweeping changes in the way their vehicles operate and have done so without being completely transparent to the consumer, about what it takes to successfully drive these new beasts. You sign the papers, they hand you the keys and they send you out into the “mean streets” in something that might resemble the vehicles we have driven for decades, but which requires that you constantly jump through hoops to drive the things. I look at this as being a failure on the manufacturer’s & dealer’s part and we need to hold them accountable. I believe that they are playing the odds with consumers, knowing that most will just “shine on” the issues and never complain. With a toaster, that might be OK. With a vehicle, it’s not, in my humble opinion.

 

Why is it that when you go to a cycle shop the salesperson knows the product in and out from a thousand different angles, but a car salesperson selling $100k EVs lacks a basic understanding of even the most fundamental concepts?

 

To The OP:

For full disclosure this is the second S Class Streamliner has had Mercedes buy back. Previously MB bought back his W222 wherein he had problems with his transmission. Be aware of this history. It is unfortunate that Stream has had this level of bad luck but impressive that MB appears to have stepped up to rectify the problem.

Good luck OP. Just be aware that there are many of us on this forum and many who are not participating on this forum who have thoroughly enjoyed and are thoroughly enjoying their W223s. Unfortunately on forums like this negative reviews can end up dominating the forum.

 

Thank you for all the comments. The EQS is my 5th MB, and I've had both great (W222, W213, W211) and negative experience (W205, W163).
MB is either really rock solid or a true lemon in my experience nothing really in the middle maybe my EQS? is the middle one as of now....:I
The good MB's that I had never any issues very solid cars they also share that they are made in GERMANY.
However, the two horrible ones I had were W205 and W163 just had issues over issues and they are both from the infamous Alabama trash can.
W205 spent 180 days in the shop, and MB bought it back. W163 was a CPO purchase (MY 2005 in 2008) just had constant issues... I lived with it after the warranty no point in fixing it if it comes back on a yearly basis.

So my philosophy for MB is to buy a 3rd year or later of that model and make sure the VIN starts with "W" and not with a number.

The EQS has the second part right but the first part off by 1 year. Currently, my EQS has battery malfunction (it is a really common issue that MB has no fix for) and squeaky windows when the window is wet. :C

 

I had to lemon my 2015 W205 8 years ago now. Time flies lol
It was in the shop 180 days out of the year I owned it.
MB actually fought back, stating that the issue that came up has been fixed and my issue was that the new issues kept popping up.

My lawyer fought really well with them and got a refund in the end.
However, going to the dealer service dept on a weekly basis and knowing the SA by their first name (also became friends..), and trying out ALL of their loaners is NOT something I want to do anymore.

 

Just when I thought I heard the dumbest thing from a car dealer...

So this is general advice for any device with Li-ion batteries (phones, laptops, etc) that is designed to make the battery last as long as possible.

But this is something only really **** people would do. The kind that never take the plastic wrap off new products.

The reality is you will be replacing the product long before the battery becomes an issue. And for a dealer to tell you to babysit a car like this is quite silly.

But I still agree that electric cars are not ready for prime time.

 

I thought the never below 20% and never above 80% were done per a battery cell basis directly by the car's software. (please tell me if I'm wrong)
So if my assumption is correct, you're actually having your battery between 44 and 64% which would be way over conservative...

As for letting it charge at home overnight, I'm pretty sure the software will make sure to cut the charge way before anything bad can happen, like laptops and phones do now.

 

The car and the charger manages the charging process, yes. Just plug it in and forget it.

Its like people who worry about overcharging their iPhone. Just charge it, who cares? Especially with a leased car.

 

There have been a few folks here who have said things, that make it sound like MBUSA has been just SO magnanimous and forthright for repurchasing my last two MB’s. Well, nothing could be further from the truth. In both cases, MBUSA refused to do anything in the way of a buy back, until the cars hit that magic “30 Days Out of Service” mark. In California where I live, once that 30 day threshold is achieved, it is virtually a done deal that the manufacturer will take the car back. MBUSA knows this and if they don’t respond in kind, all the owner need do, is hire a lawyer and then they’ll have to buy the car back AND pay all the customer’s legal expenses.

Taking this a step further, by repurchasing a vehicle and calling it a “Customer Accommodation,” the vehicle is not branded a “Lemon,” and MBUSA can turn right around and sell repurchased vehicles on the open market. In the case of my 2020 S560, a few months after they took it back, I saw the exact, same car for sale at a non-authorized MB dealer in Georgia. I actually compared the VINs and it was MY old car! In the CARFAX report attached to the listing, it was noted as a “repurchase,” but that was it.

I’ve bought or leased 17 brand new, higher end MB’s. The first 15 were virtually trouble free and I truly enjoyed them. The 2020 had a rough shifting transmission that MBUSA refused to fix. I absolutely HATED to part with that car and in hindsight, I should have kept it. The 2022 S580 is a WHOLE new ballgame. There were and continue to be SO many issues with that car, it is just so frustrating and disappointing to me. I won’t be getting another new MB unless and until the W223 is significantly improved with the 2025 model.

As a long time, very loyal MB customer, it pains me to talk this way about the W223, but it is my opinion that the cars were rushed to market, without being thoroughly tested and refined. Blame it on the CCP Virus fiasco if you will, but when released and at least continuing to the 2022 models, the cars were not fully sorted out. For those who have had a good experience with theirs, I’m happy for them, but buyer beware.

 

Now that your lemon vehicle is out of your possession, you should update some of your threads with the VIN so hopefully a smart purchaser who googles the VIN can see the history of it beyond what Carfax says.

 

I wonder whether the huge development costs incurred by MB for the EQ vehicles has reduced budgets for developing and testing the likes of the W223, and we are now seeing the inevitable consequences of that....

 

If you are speaking about my 2022 S580, I still have it. In another week or two, when they finally take it back, I will post the VIN.

 

Congratulations! I know of no one who gave this car a good shot more than you. I admire your tenacity.