In a nutshell: Mercedes-Benz has unveiled a new concept electric vehicle that looks to make range anxiety a permanent fixture of the past with more than 620 miles of range from a single charge. The secret sauce, you ask? Efficiency and an obsession with weight reduction.
Mercedes a year-and-a-half ago set out to create its most efficient vehicle ever. The result is the Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX, a concept EV boasting a range of more than 620 miles on a single charge. Energy consumption checks in at more than six miles per kWh from a battery small enough to fit into a compact vehicle.
The German automaker said it achieved this feat by rethinking the fundamentals from the ground up. Engineers utilized advanced digital tools to reduce weight and lower waste by removing excess materials "assisted" by 3D printing.
Mercedes is also employing ultra-low-rolling-resistance tires with optimized aerodynamic geometry mounted on lightweight magnesium wheels, aluminum alloy brake discs and ultra-thin solar roof panels to further shed weight and extend range. All told, the four-door EV tips the scales at 3,858 pounds. For comparison, a Tesla Model S Plaid weighs 4,766 pounds.
Max power output is rated around 150 kW although unfortunately, Mercedes didn't cite any acceleration or top speed figures. We do know, however, that the vehicle has a slippery drag coefficient of cd 0.17, lower than the cd 0.18 to 0.2 of a typical football.
The Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX is little more than a concept at this point. Even if it doesn't make it to showroom floors in the current iteration, surely the automaker will borrow some of its clever engineering for other products that will eventually see the light of day.