2022 Mercedes-EQ EQS 450+ review: Setting a high bar for luxury EVs

When Mercedes puts 'S' in a model name, expectations run very high. Good thing that the Mercedes-EQ EQS – basically the Nouveau S-Class for the electric age – meets and sometimes exceeds those expectations.

As the brand's electric flagship, it feels extremely futuristic, but at the same time retains the secure, vault-like feeling you'd get from an S-Class, and not least from the fact that you can easily do 500km on a single charge.

It's also ridiculously refined, and likely the quietest vehicle CarBuyer has ever driven to date.

We've been itching to get our hands on the EQS because it's the first electric luxury limousine (think Merc S-Class, Audi A8, BMW 7 Series) to hit the market, and that's a segment where electric propulsion fits to a tee.

Secondly, it's the car that debuts Mercedes-Benz's new electric platform EVA, and it'll gauge just how proficient the three-pointed star has (or hasn't) become at making EVs. 

The EQS debuted in Singapore in late July with two model variants, as our news coverage explains in detail, and here we test the EQS 450+, which is the less expensive, rear-wheel drive version that should make up most of the sales numbers here.

Design and appearance

Like most electric sedans, the EQS goes for a one box shape for better aerodynamics but the EQS certainly doesn't look much like an S-Class, or anything else on the road for that matter.

For now, the EQS 450+ comes with the AMG Line styling choice as default – the non-AMG Electric Art version could be available in the near future.

As we note in our video walkthrough of the car, it makes the EQS 450+ and EQS AMG 53 look quite similar.

Like the EQA and EQC, the EQS has a similar face with the blacked-out front section (featuring tiny Merc stars) and front and rear light bars. But compared to the SUVs, it takes a bit more getting used to.

It's certainly elegant in its own way, echoing the first-gen CLS in its greenhouse, but the proportions and cues are very different from a traditional sedan, with the very low swooping nose, and the way the A-pillar windows start very close to the front wheel.

But there is a very good reason for this : The wind.

The EQS has a drag coefficient of 0.2Cd, which Mercedes claims is the lowest for any production car. That's a feat of minor technological wonder, if you compare Volkswagen's fuel-saving XL1 from 2011 that had a 0.186 Cd, and it was a limited -production, extreme fuel-saving technology demonstrator. For the EQS though, its slippery nature pays off in major ways for an EV, though it also has some drawbacks. 

Interior and features

The EQS gives a similar entrance to the S-Class: As you approach the flush door handles pop out, and the cockpit seems to envelop you with its wrap-around styling. From there, the sense that you're driving the future only increases.

Much of the hardware (and software) we saw previously on the S-Class: The large, crisp 12.8-inch OLED infotainment screen, and a 12.3-inch driver's display, supported by a small contingent of buttons and touch controls.

The EQS 450+ doesn't have the Hyperscreen as standard – it's a $38,000 option. 

But the EQS ups the ante further. The dashboard on the left features a large winglike trim panel finished with backlit three-pointed stars, and the EQS appears to have even more interior lighting strips than the already LED-festooned S-Class.

Mercedes-Benzes the most RGB-ified cars and the EQS is the most RGB-ified of them all, taking ambient lighting to an extreme level. The strips can display different colours simultaneously plus active animations now.

It's certainly dramatic and tone-setting, and no other carmaker can claim this level of intense, in-car bling, for better or worse.

Even if you don't like this sort of thing, you can't help but be impressed at the level of detail. While you can turn it all off if you wish, it can also be distracting.

We've covered the fiddly nature of the mostly touchscreen interface and various touch controls in the S-Class, and it's the same here.

But the light strips do serve a practical purpose besides just being bling with reactive animations for functions (make the AC colder and a blue pulse appears) and safety (for example, they light up red to warn if you're going out of lane).

The EQS 450+ isn't a cheap car by far, and it never feels it. Unlike other costly rides, you won't need to shell out lots to make it comfortable and useful.

It has wireless chargers front and rear, an advanced air filtration system (Energising Air Control Plus), cooled/heated seats for four, a very advanced 360-camera, self-parking, and a full complement of active safety systems (adaptive cruise and steering assist, AEB, lane keeping/warning, blind spot monitoring, and more).

Space and practicality

EV packaging means that the classic 'skateboard' layout applies here: Passengers sit on the battery pack, while the wheels are pushed far out, so it delivers lots of legroom and interior space but is a bit short on headroom.

With 2,912mm between the wheels, the EQS has almost the same wheelbase as the S 450 L while being around 70mm shorter at the same time. That translates into mucho legroom, so you can really kick your feet out and relax on long rides.

But the car's low, slippery aero profile does translate into less headroom than an S-Class, and you need to stoop a little to enter the car.

Our test car came with the optional panoramic sunroof, which probably eats into hair space a little, but if you are above 1.8-metres tall you may brush the headliner.

The EQS has a hatchback rear door, much like the AMG GT 4-Door, and this makes for a wide, spacious boot that is easy-to-load.

There's additional space below the false floor, and the seats fold down to expand the cargo area from 610-litres to a spacious 1,770-litres.

So in practicality terms, the EQS is actually better than a luxury limo with a conventional boot that makes loading bulky items difficult. 

Unlike the S-Class, there is also plenty of stowage space up front too with an armrest compartment, front console compartment, and large shelf underneath that – the upside of not having a gearbox.

Driving experience

While the EQS looks and feels very futuristic to be in and around, it actually retains, and exceeds, a characteristic of the S-Class: It's the sort of car that makes miles simply melt away, no matter where they're covered.

The EQS 450+ is the entry-level EQS model in most countries, and it has a single 462hp electric motor driving the rear wheels.

Accordingly, it's not lightning-quick, but picks up speed rapidly and without drama, even on full-bore acceleration. Mercedes gives you two flavours of electric sound (Silver Wave and Vivid Flux) to match, but it's all quite understated, and the drivetrain has been very obviously engineered with smoothness in mind.

We know EVs are generally quiet, but the EQS truly reigns when it comes to silence. Road noise is almost non-existent, and because of the aerodynamics, there's very little wind noise as well.

The EQS simply floats along in tranquillity, and you'll hear much more of everyone else's road noise than your own. It's so quiet you could record an album in it, and talking without having to raise your voice at all is just another bonus.

To my abused ears at least, it is the quietest road car on the market now, and that includes cars like the Rolls-Royce Phantom in the equation.

Of course Rolls-Royce's own EV, the Spectre, might have something to say about this, but it's not here yet, and will probably cost four times as much.

The only downside to the EQS' refinement is that the ride quality isn't perfectly comfortable – and that's also because the quietness throws it into contrast.

The 21-inch wheels do thump a little over expansion joints, while the car has that typical EV feeling of lurching into depressions.

If you set the suspension to Comfort mode it removes the former but accentuates the latter, and vice versa for the Sport setting.

Speaking of sport, as is the Mercedes way, this is a car centred on refinement and comfort. It'll make short work of twisty roads, and can be driven quickly, but it's certainly less of a driver's car than a chauffeur's one.

Four-wheel steering is standard, so the EQS doesn’t feel heavy at any speed, and is much easier to handle in tight carparks as a result. The excellent 360 degree camera also makes things much easier too.

And roll on it will. Because it's not particularly heavy, and very aerodynamic, the EQS is impressively efficient, especially for a car of this size. Our 200km with the EQS delivered 18.0kWh/100km.

At around 30/70 urban/highway work, with stationary time for video and photo shoots included, it's an impressive figure and would mean the car can do at least 500km per charge.

So no range anxiety matched with tranquil driving. The EQS is a car that's a joy to return to each time.

You can almost feel your heartrate slowing when you close the door and begin rolling along in peace.

Competition and pricing

The EQS is not a cheap car, and its buyers won't expect it to be, either. But the interesting thing is that it's quite a bit less costly than an S 450 L – $599,000 vs $530,000, thanks to EEAI and a maximum VES rebate of $25,000.

As pointed out, the EQS doesn't lack any major features we expect of a luxury car, so there's no need to go crazy with the options list. For example, our car came with the Burmester surround sound system ($6,400) and panoramic sunroof ($8,400), which are nice-to-haves, but not essential.

The EQS is the first luxury limo EV to land in Singapore, and has no direct competition for now. The closest would be four-door luxury EVs like the Porsche Taycan and Audi E-Tron GT, but those are sportier and less luxurious.

Conclusion

The EQS will  have its first challenger soon in the form of the electric flagship BMW 7 Series, the i7.

We'll see how refined the EQS is in comparison then, but for now the EQS is the King of Silence, and leads the way on how luxurious, refined electric motoring should be. 

2022 Mercedes-EQ EQS 450+

*LTA homologated figures for Singapore