GREATER RANGE

As a result, potential maximum range of EQS 450+ will be up to 575 miles (925 kilometers). Yes, that is measured in the Driving Miss Daisy calibration mode, but that’s enough to easily transit from Los Angeles to the Bay area with charge to spare. Use a calibration that allows greater acceleration, and just plan on a pleasant late lunch stopover at Harris Ranch off Interstate 5 in our Big Valley. Or my old friend in Atlanta, a retired Navy skipper, could drive 150 miles from Atlanta to attend the Masters tournament in Augusta, and drive back without charging. He hasn’t missed a Masters in decades and he’s more of an SL guy, but this would be a fine way to travel on Interstate 20.

With DC fast charging, meaning the heavy-duty good stuff that’s harder to find outside coastal California, the Mercedes 800-volt system can add about 186 miles of range in 10 minutes or so (everything with EV charging and range comes with minor over-under predictive caveats). That’s little more than the time required to fill an empty gas tank. In my native Southern California, that means a greatly depleted battery in San Diego can drink up enough energy in perhaps 8 or 9 minutes to safely return 110 miles north to Greater Los Angeles, where an overnight charge at home ensures 100 percent range when leaving the gates the following morning.

At the more common 400-volt charging stations the battery virtually divides into two parts to efficiently charge at up to 175 kW. For the same San Diego-LA excursion mentioned above, gaining that 186 miles of range will require only a slightly longer stop.

ENHANED RECUPERATIVE BRAKING

To gain a bit of juice on the go, Mercedes has also noodled the recuperative braking system, which uses the electric motors to help recharge the batteries when slowing down, when under deceleration. Doing this without mucking up the feel and action of the car under braking is the critical factor, and can only be proven when an EQS is driven later this year. Most EVs have three settings: one so mild you hardly notice; one that delivers useful recharge but you’re aware of the action; and a third that turns the throttle into a Wah-Wah pedal, allowing one to drive the car without touching the brake pedal except for the final moment when reaching a stop sign. I almost always opt for mild recuperative braking, and under some circumstances the midrange setting. Working the Wah-Wah pedal usually requires intense concentration to achieve a smooth trip.

STEER-BY-WIRE

For those who love technology, two new features will engage. First, EQS will be the first German production car with fly-by-wire steering. We’ve seen this in California EVs, but not from the Germans. Considering just how thorough Mercedes engineering is, well, it must be pretty good. Details will come when the cars arrive in the U.S.

AIR SUSPENSION

Mercedes EQS air suspension now employs a cloud-based damper (shock absorber) regulation that can soften the damping to better cope with potholes, speed bumps and other road irregularities. Because the Mercedes “cloud” harvests and interprets data from other Mercedes cars whose owners have agreed to feed data from their cars, the intelligent suspension control can automatically adjust damping before the vehicle reaches a speed bump, a deep rain gutter at a 4-way intersection, or a rough patch. Mercedes is offering something similar on the new Maybach S-class. Once in the wild in the hands of journalists and owners, we shall understand efficacy.

Mercedes-Benz Operating System (MB.OS) embues the new EQS with high IQ. MB.OS integrates and controls nearly every electrical aspect of the vehicle and enables over-the-air (OTA) updates of the entire vehicle software, including powertrain and other dynamic systems. End result should be a car that improves over time.

Though it might at first seem a minor issue, EQS has standard “Ultra Wide” high-beam headlights that are up to 50 percent more efficient than the previous design. The new light system also introduces the partial high-beam function on the EQS in the U.S. For those of us who awake before dawn to charge up a completely unlit mountain road, even before the cyclists arrive, such lightning systems are a Godsend that give deer and potbellied little creatures of the wild early warning to clear off the pavement.

It’s A Mercedes

Back to the main thesis: A Mercedes EV is first and foremost a Mercedes. EQS has the interior room of an S-class allied with considerable performance. Even in the entry-level 450+ form, it’s a daily driver limo. When the more potent variants arrive with bigger electric motors, there will be no questioning the sport-limo moniker. I am a longtime fan of big V8 and V12 cars, with or without hybrid electric augmentation. But the upper reaches of the EQS lineup will be populated with near-silent rocket sleds. Electric acceleration just can’t be beat, much as that disheartens my ancient sports car and hot rod friends.

Oh, and if you want a one-off individualized sport-limo, EQS can be sent through the MANUFAKTUR toy shop with a choice of over 100 jewel and earth tone paint colors, and also a wide selection of hides and wood veneers. Mercedes calls it MANUFAKTUR Made to Measure. Electric motors or not, the end result will be a Mercedes-Benz.