From 2024, Mercedes-Benz will no longer refer to its electric vehicles as EQ.
Most Mercedes-Benz cars will be entirely electrified in the coming years, eliminating the necessity for a distinct line of EQ models.
Mercedes-Benz will no longer use the designation "EQ" for its next generation of electric vehicles, which are slated to join the market in 2024.
According to Handelsblatt, the designation is no longer essential because Mercedes' range is increasingly dominated by electric cars. The carmaker has previously said that all of its models would be available in electrified form by 2025.
The next generation of Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles will not have the EQ moniker.
Vehicles using combustion engines will be banned in most markets beginning in 2023.
Currently, the brand provides seven all-electric versions.
Mercedes-Benz sells seven totally electric cars worldwide: the EQE, EQE SUV, EQS SUV, EQC, EQA, and EQB. Mercedes-Benz sells the EQB SUV, EQC, and EQS sedan in India. Over the following two years, the brand's worldwide portfolio will be expanded with an electric version of the robust G-Class 4x4 and a long-distance compact sedan based on the EQXX concept, bringing the electric offering to about the same level as the established combustion cars.
The name "EQ" is currently also used for light hybrid and plug-in hybrid models: "EQ Boost" refers to the electric motor assisting the combustion engine, while "EQ Power" refers to direct propulsion by the electric motor.
Mercedes intends to phase out combustion engines in the majority of markets beginning in 2030. The newly introduced C-Class is expected to be marketed until 2028, while the new combustion-engine E-Class will make its global premiere this year, and its SUV siblings, the GLC and GLE, will be fitted with a combustion engine again in the following generation.
Mercedes-Benz told our sister magazine Autocar UK that the Mercedes EQ brand adheres to the strategic pillars ""Lead in Electric": "With the EQ models, we are addressing consumers who are especially drawn to the progressive and inventive potential of e-mobility.
We will modify the placement of the cars and hence the usage of the name to suit our times, with the objective of having our parent brand Mercedes-Benz entirely electrified by the end of the decade, but it is too early to provide details."
Mercedes-Benz introduced the EQ brand in 2016 as a new sub-brand for its battery electric vehicles. The first model under the EQ brand is anticipated to be released in 2019, but according to a fresh rumor from Handelsblatt, the name may have already been scrapped.
Mercedes will discontinue the EQ brand and revert to the standard naming structure beginning in 2024, according to the German daily. According to one of the report's sources, when Mercedes ceases making combustion engine automobiles, it will no longer require a separate sub-brand for its BEVs.
According to the report, the decision to discontinue the EQ sub-brand has already been taken, and it is just a matter of time until this occurs, to which the manufacturer has yet to reply.
Another source informed the Handelsblatt newspaper that if BEV sales outnumber those of gasoline and diesel cars, Mercedes may discontinue its vehicle brand. The electric G-Class, which will debut in 2024 alongside the automaker's new MMA design, might be one of the first cars to embrace the EQ trend.
Mercedes created this chassis especially for BEVs, although it will also support gasoline and diesel engines if needed. Mercedes refuses to comment on the speculation, according to the Handelsblatt daily.
Although the EQ brand will be phased out of future Mercedes vehicles, the business will not forsake the moniker entirely. The manufacturer aims to utilize the name as a technology brand for electric car accessories and services such as wall boxes, charging services, and more.
Mercedes-Benz stated last week at CES that it wants to invest $1 billion on a North American electric car charging network, which might be the ideal recipient of the EQ moniker.
According to Handelsblatt, the adjustment should make it easier for buyers to traverse Mercedes' extensive product lineup. Customers recognize names like the C-Class, E-Class, and S-Class, however names like the EQE SUV and EQS SUV aren't as strong when it comes to the electric counterparts of the popular GLE and GLS.
Mercedes has invested much in the brand, but its demise is imminent as the EQ transitions from a minor sub-brand to the center of the manufacturer's product line.