The EQC is the first Mercedes-Benz fully electric vehicle that is available in the Australian Market. The main competitors are Audi e-tron, BMW iX, Tesla Model X, and Jaguar I-Pace. Mercedes-Benz is putting strong effort in the EV development that there will be 7 EVs sold by Mercedes in 2023, including the EQA, the compact SUV, and EQS, the electric limousine.Mercedes-Benz The EQC is made from the platform of GLC and about 15% of the mechanical parts are shared, including the steering and suspension. We can feel that Mercedes-Benz has spent a lot of efforts to ensure that the EQC is not too confronting, as this is the first serious production of EV. You can feel that the EQC is different from GLC, but you can also feel that they share a lot in common.
The key specifications of the EQC are summarized as follows:
- 80kWh battery pack allowing for a claimed 353km driving range (WLTP)
- Strong powertrain from motors on each axle, producing 300kW and 760Nm
- 4kW on board charger and compatible to up to 110kW DC fast charging see Mercedes charging station
- Type 2 and CCS2 adaptivity
- 0-100km/h in just 5.1 seconds
Compared the driving range with the major rivals, the EQC is not well performed. The EQC is claimed to offer a range of 353km under WLTP test, while the Tesla Model X offers between 375km and 505km depending on variants, Jaguar I-Pace offers 470km and Audi offers 436km. This makes the EQC less favorable in terms of driving range, but the driving range is well enough for the daily commuting, considering the average weekly driving distances of Australian drivers. In addition to that, many EV owner will have a second fuel-fed car for long-distance traveling. They usually use the EV to travel in the urban area or for the school run.
Image by SleepyCats from Pixabay
Charging is always one of the major concerns when you own an EV. Owners of Mercedes-Benz EQC will use a dedicated Mercedes-Benz car charger for overnight charging. This home charger will allow the EQC to charge at the maximum rate, 40km per hour of charging. The EQC portable charger will give you confidence to take a road trip with EQC. It can slowly charge the car using a standard Australian household power outlet. This is a practical solution for emergency situation that there is no public charging station around.
To maximize the chance of using public charging station, the Mercedes-Benz public charging bundle can unlock 99% of the charging infrastructure (1% for Tesla charger). It contains a Mercedes-Benz charging cable that you can simply plug into the public charger to charge your EQC. This is a 22kW cable that can allow you to charge at the maximum rate even if you purchased a Tesla Model S in the future. The bundle also contains an adapter that allows you to charge at charging station with tethered Type 1 cable.
The EQC is capable to utilize the fast DC charging (up to 110kW). You can charge from 10% to 80% of capacity in just 40 minutes using a 110kW DC charger. For more common 50kW charger, you can add 100km of driving range in about 30 minutes. Considering the expanding fast DC charging network, travelling by the EQC will be more and more feasible.
For more information, please visit EVSE Mercedes information page.
