Jonathan Gitlin
A few months ago, we tested Mercedes-Benz’s EQE SUV, the latest mid-sized electric car from the German automaker. It was a solid performance – not exactly thrilling but comfortable and equipped with one of the best infotainment systems in the industry. Now it’s got the AMG treatment, taken care of by Mercedes’ in-house tuning division. There are some subtle styling tweaks, suspension upgrades and new AMG-specific electric motors that boost power to 677 PS (505 kW). But did Affalterbach’s makeover manage to inject more excitement into the EQE SUV recipe?
You can tell in a few different ways that you are looking at the Mercedes-AMG EQE SUV and not the regular Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV. The black front panel is new, with chrome vertical moldings reminiscent of the radiator grilles on air-breathing AMGs. The front bumper is sportier and gloss black accents have been used instead of chrome, as well as on the aerodynamic parts such as the various air vents and diffusers.
Jonathan Gitlin
There’s an AMG badge on the hood instead of the usual three-pointed star, and the highlight of the AMG treatment, at least for me, was the black 21-inch AMG alloy wheels, which are wrapped in EV-specific Michelin Pilot Sports tires. But overall, the adjustments are subtle and unlikely to be noticed by a casual observer.
If you were to dismantle an AMG EQE SUV, on the front and rear axles, you would find slightly different permanently-excited electric motors than the ones that propel the regular EQE SUV, with new windings and fins. Modified inverters and higher current translate to higher motor speed, and there’s also more cooling – including a liquid-cooled rotor shaft – to allow repeated hard acceleration without running into thermal issues. There is also a standard heat pump.
Power and torque peak at 677 hp and 738 lb-ft (1,000 Nm), although only in “race start” mode – effectively launch control – with the boost function active. Without the boost, power is limited to 617 hp (460 kW) at race start and sport+; sport mode gives you 555 hp (414 kW), comfort limits this to 493 hp (368 kW), and if you need the slippery road setting, the AMG EQE SUV limits you to just 308 hp (230 kW) – 50 percent assets .
Jonathan Gitlin
The battery consists of 360 lithium-ion pouch cells, with an AMG-specific wiring harness and power management software. It has a usable capacity of 90.6 kWh and can charge up to 170 kW DC fast charging. However, charging times and an EPA range won’t be available until the car arrives in the US in Q3 2023. Driving on a mix of minor roads and then the freeway from San Diego to Santa Monica, I averaged about 2.5 miles/kWh (24.9 kWh/100 km).
More work has been done on the suspension. The AMG EQE SUV features new adaptive dampers, wheel carriers, suspension linkages and electro-mechanical roll bars that can be disconnected for comfort or stiffened to improve handling depending on the mood. As you’d expect, the suspension is firmer in sport and sport+, which also lowers the ride by 0.6 inches (15mm). (This also happens in Comfort if you’re going over 75 mph/121 km/h.) Mercedes has also chosen to fit rear-wheel steering as standard for US AMG EQE SUVs; this can steer up to 9 degrees, turning with the direction of the front wheels above 37 mph (60 km/h) for greater stability, and in the opposite direction of the fronts below that threshold to increase maneuverability.
On California roads and highways, the AMG EQE SUV’s ride felt noticeably stiffer than the regular EQE SUV, especially over expansion joints. There was also a fair bit of road noise, although in sport and sport+ modes the powertrain makes growling noises reminding you you’re driving something with a lot of grit. And it has enough oomph in those modes – easy enough to pin you as a passenger to the back of your seat when the driver gives full throttle. In a race start with the boost, you can expect to hit 60 mph in about 3.4 seconds.
