Mercedes has highlighted the future for its electric-car tech by unveiling the Vision EQXX concept, a one-off machine that delivers more than 1,000km (621 miles) from a full charge and previews an ultra-efficient electric saloon production automobile from Mercedes that will go on sale in 2024.
The German brand says that the Vision EQXX’s range – usually double that of most current premium EVs – doesn’t come from a larger battery, however. Instead, the four-seat family automobile “takes range and efficiency to a whole new level [by] rethinking the fundamentals from the ground up” using lightweight materials and a relatively conventionally sized battery, allowing the Vision EQXX “to go further with less”, according to Mercedes.
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The automobile is powered by a freshly designed battery “that holds almost 100kWh”, as detailed by Mercedes’ official specifications. The battery takes up 50 per cent less volume and is 30 per cent lighter than the pack in the firm’s EQS electric limousine, weighs around 495kg and has been developed in conjunction with the Mercedes-AMG F1 team. With the Vision EQXX Mercedes is targeting efficiency of more than six miles per kWh.
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The EQXX uses a more-than 900v electrical architecture and weighs approximately 1,750kg; the brand has not yet detailed any exact figures for the car, only releasing approximations in most cases.
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Developed extremely quickly thanks to a focus on software and digital engineering, it took just 18 months to go from a clean sheet of paper to ‘on the road’, with the EQXX. Mercedes says the automobile is “the outcome of an ongoing programme that is delivering a blueprint for the future of automotive engineering”.