You won’t ever see this vehicle driving around your local street or freeway. But the Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX is an electric vehicle that has been developed to push the envelope further than any car before. The EQXX is a design study that engineers and designers at Mercedes-Benz worked to develop the most efficient electric vehicle they could. Needless to say, the results are intriguing.

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What Is The Mercedes-Benz EQXX?

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX Architecture

The Mercedes-Benz EQXX lies somewhere in the middle of being a concept and a production vehicle. This spaceship-like car is a four-door coupe that looks to pave the way for the EQ branded luxury electric vehicles from Mercedes-Benz. The EQXX is a design study and an engineering project to build the most ambitious battery electric road car yet.

Mercedes-Benz believes that performance will not dictate the evolution of the electric vehicle, but efficiency will. In the same way, we judge current combustion-powered road cars by their miles-per-gallon, we would be judging EVs by miles-per-kWh in the near future.

So, the EQXX has been designed and developed to be the most efficient electric vehicle yet.

Mercedes-Benz EQXX: The Tear Drop Design

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX Rear

The EQXX is a compact 4-door coupe model that looks more like a spaceship than a car. While it looks like a large vehicle, it actually isn’t. It has a wheelbase that's comparable to the current C-Class sedan, but it takes a new styling that is far more attractive and sleeker than the questionably styled EQS electric S-Class.

The EQXX features a new face, unlike any other Mercedes before it. The front-end design is flush, and it features an LED light bar like most modern EVs. The sleek, contoured headlamps have also been designed to look like the 3-pointed star. Additionally, the Mercedes badge is placed on top of the hood, rather than on the grille, because naturally there isn’t one. Along the sides, the car gets flush door handles and 20-inch lightweight magnesium alloy wheels with a flush wheel cover.

To give it the teardrop aerodynamically efficient shape, the EQXX gets a long-tail design that puts the McLaren 675LT to shame. We reckon the best viewing angle of the EQXX is from the rear.

Mercedes-Benz EQXX: The Efficiency Goals

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX Solar Roof

The ambitious target for the Mercedes-Benz engineers for the EQXX was to make it efficient above anything else. It uses a 100 kWh battery, 8 kWh less than the top of the range EQS. However, the battery is 30% lighter, having shaved a staggering 1,058 lbs.

To achieve that, Mercedes employed the team working on the F1 engine-powered AMG One hybrid hypercar. The battery uses a heavier dose of silicone on certain components that help the battery cells store more energy. As it requires fewer cells to carry the same energy, the battery pack in the EQXX is also half the size of the 108 kWh pack found in the EQS. It is the same size as the battery used in the small Mercedes EQA. While the EQA uses a 420v system, the EQXX uses a 900v system. That would allow it to charge even faster. Mercedes-Benz claims it could be compatible with 300kW DC charging.

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Mercedes-Benz EQXX: Results Of The Hard Work

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX Wind Tunnel

Thanks to the sleek aerodynamic design with a drag coefficient of just 0.18cd, the EQXX is even more slippery than the EQS. Due to the extensive use of carbon fiber in the body, the EQXX weighs 3,800lbs. The EQS weighs over 5,000lbs. The active rear diffuser also helps stabilize the EQXX at high speed.

Because of the light weight and low drag design, the EQXX has an advertised range of 620 miles, thus reaching the magic number of 1,000 km on a single charge. For reference, it boasts 215 miles more than the Tesla Model S and 165 miles over the EQS. Focused on efficiency and not performance, the EQXX uses a potent 204hp electric motor. However, to save energy for its main batteries, the roof of the EQXX is lined with 117 solar panels. They would help power ancillary components like the climate control, electronics and the massive 8K full width, but highly efficient infotainment system. Should the roof get adequate sunlight, Mercedes-Benz claims the solar panels can add 15 miles of range to the EQXX per day.

Mercedes-Benz EQXX: Vision Of The Future

Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX Interior

Sure, the interior is vegan with faux leather, synthetic silk door pulls, bamboo fiber carpets, and recycled PET bottle plastic panels. But the insulation inside does use some chicken bones, so think of that as you will.

The EQXX is not going to be a car you will find on the road, as it won't be going into production. The vehicle is a designs study that will allow them to draw inspiration for future model styling. While engineers can use the technology for future EVs from the brand making them more efficient for the masses. In the future battle of efficiency, Mercedes-Benz seems to have the upper hand over others with the development of the Vision EQXX.