At CES in Las Vegas 2022, Mercedes unveils the EQXX concept car. This 100% electric compact sedan boasts a range of over 1,000 km! What’s his secret? L’argus presents this four-seater in detail.
To start the year 2022, Mercedes has decided to make an impression. The firm with the star unveils since the CES Las Vegas 2022, the Show celebrating technological innovation, its Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX concept car. The letters E and Q indicate that this is a 100% electric model, but the double X does not refer to an SUV. No, on the contrary, it designates a sedan with an ultra-elusive roof line and a streamlined stern. A body designed to optimize the aerodynamics of the automobile – the coefficient of drag (Cx) is 0.17 – and thus enable it to cover more than 1,000 km on a single battery charge. What to definitively discard the diesel!
EQXX: a CLA format?
However, Mercedes-Benz engineers did not take out the heavy artillery by accumulating a lot of energy in a heavy and bulky battery. The latter will be used, in series, on board a future compact vehicle. Probably the EQA sedan expected in 2025. The Vision EQXX concept displays exceptional consumption, placed under the bar of 10 kWh / 100 km. This would be equivalent, for a thermal car, to an appetite of the order of 1 l / 100 km.
In order to enter into this virtuous circle, all of the vehicle’s components have been lightened. Energy management has also been optimized. Finally, it was the engineers and engine manufacturers from F1 – who also worked on the AMG One hypercar – who worked on the mechanics of the EQXX. Mercedes indicates an efficiency from the batteries to the wheels of the order of 95%.
In 2015, at the IAA Frankfurt Motor Show, the manufacturer presented a suitable concept car called Intelligent Aerodynamic Automobile (IAA) and equipped with mobile aerodynamic appendages allowing, depending on the speed, to lower the Cx from 0.25 to 0.19. These were, in a way, the beginnings of the EQXX.
Modest power for the EQXX
The relatively brief technical sheet nevertheless indicates a power of 150 kW (the equivalent of 204 hp), a wheelbase of 2.80 m (2.84 m for a Class C) and a weight of around 1,750 kg. Finally, the energy density of the battery is close to 400 Wh / l. This substantial increase stems, in part, from significant progress in the chemistry of anodes, which have a higher silicon content. The Vision EQXX also benefits from a voltage of 900 V, and it carries as much energy as the Mercedes EQS, ie 100 kWh. On the other hand, its battery pack is half the size and 30% lighter. Count 495 kg, envelope included.
The design secret of the Mercedes EQXX
To go that far without consuming too much electricity, the Mercedes Vision EQXX has a retractable rear diffuser, while the rear track is narrower than the one at the front.
In addition, this prototype sports all the codes of the EQ family with rose gold and a light strip above the grille, like some achievements of the ID range. from Volkswagen. Its headlights, energy efficient, evoke those of the Mercedes EQS. In detail, each optic consists of two star-shaped elements, the larger one housing both the low beam and the high beam behind a bright central lens. This arrangement, paired with the 2D star pattern on the front bumper, offers a preview of what will appear on future models of the brand. A concept car teaser in short. In addition, the multimedia interface that crosses the dashboard is already planned for future production vehicles. We can not wait to see it !
