When Mercedes-Benz announced a few years ago that the brand was going aggressively toward electric vehicles, it wasn’t kidding — which is to be expected, since German automakers aren’t known for their cheerful sense of humor. Their world is serious business. To that point, the Mercedes-Benz EQE lineup consists only of fully electric cars. While the automaker still builds fossil fuel bodies for the high-performance AMG range and sells hybrids across the marque, the EQEs are luxury-only cars that offer reliable range and expected Mercedes-Benz amenities.
In the 2026 EQE SUV, the Mercedes-Benz Synchronous Electric Motor has a power of 35 kW. The 90.5 kWh lithium-ion traction battery has a range of approximately 253-300 miles, depending on driving conditions and performance requirements. Thanks to a 170-kilowatt DC fast charger, the EQE SUV will go from 10 percent to 80 percent in just over 30 minutes, as tested. These numbers can vary in a world of heavily used (and potentially abused) public chargers if the owner doesn’t have a built-in fast charging unit in the garage. If plugged into a powerful 220-volt household outlet with a 9.6-kilowatt SUV charger, the vehicle will charge up to as close to 100 percent as the battery allows in about 11.5 hours. This means that without a fast charger installed at home, the owner can still turn off the EQE, plug it into a standard 220V outlet overnight, and emerge the next morning with usable range.
As tested, the 4MATIC all-wheel drive system manages 315 horsepower with 0-60 mph acceleration in 6.2 seconds. In an era of electric cars characterized by instant torque and blissfully fast acceleration, these numbers seem a bit disappointing. It remains endlessly reassuring to drive and perfectly balanced in characteristic Mercedes-Benz style. However, buyers will have to upgrade to the sportier AMG EQE SUV version, with 677 horsepower and 0-60 in 3.4 seconds, if they want the extra oomph. Of course, replacing an electric motor with a turbocharged V6 or throaty V8 robs the driving experience of the aural pleasure of driving a Mercedes. This is just the reality of an ever more electrified world that is wringing some of the emotion and sensuality out of life.
At least there’s the technological wizardry of the EQE range to enjoy. In addition to the electric everything (which has to be managed more closely in an electric car for obvious reasons of battery consumption), the SUV still has the MBUX multimedia system and a 12.8-inch vertical display, with an additional 12.3-inch driver display. In an impressive addition, a fingerprint scanner for MBUX profile authentication keeps hackers safe. It’s a shame that full massaging seats would put pressure on the battery and shorten the all-important range again, so there’s only heat – and then only in the front seats.
Full voice activation will work with the on-board MB Intelligent system or with linked Apple CarPlay. There is a mobile Internet hotspot on board, and MBUX EQ navigation services provide electrical intelligence (to monitor the vehicle’s capabilities and available power) and active range monitoring. This same system will also track the driver and direct them to a charging station if range becomes an issue.
While the unwavering engineering of this EQE is on-brand, providing the reliable performance needed to prove its bona fide in Stuttgart, the design stumps. It lives in a world divided between “full-size hatchback” and “not quite a sedan.” These lines do not confirm “Ich bin ein Mercedes!” In the eyes of the motoring public, they might opt for a more gentle apology that the car doesn’t better resemble its premium relatives. The world will have to forgive at least half of the hatchback’s blurry images of the EQE SUV. No segment in the automotive world has expanded its visual cues more over the past decade than SUVs – especially in small and medium-sized versions. With station wagons on the verge of extinction and sedans falling behind, many full-size mass-lacking SUVs are trying to settle into bloated hatchback form. The EQE SUV can’t quite manage that and ends up stuck somewhere in its own aesthetic limbo.
There’s a possibility that some internal marketing research behind the scenes has determined that EV buyers aren’t the aggressive type, making the more serious, even tougher, look of the traditional Benz lineage too harsh for Captain Planet. It takes us back to the early hybrid days of the Prius, a car that Toyota made intentionally ugly so that its owners and drivers could announce to the world that they hated cars while still needing them. Driving a toaster on four wheels means they can get around with the right carbon offset for regret. While the EQE SUV is a long throw from the disgusting Prius lineage, it’s still sorely lacking in flash and attitude. It’s doubtful that any Mercedes-Benz driver would be driven by such climate guilt, and there are urban lifestyles that ensure the EQE range will serve as comfortable and reliable transportation, but not easy to afford. Clean, safe, comfortable and fun, an SUV allows its driver to sit in the front seat without worrying about how it looks.
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