The Mercedes-EQ EQE 350+ is supposed to be the benchmark medium sized electric luxury sedan of 2023, but it just feels like a smaller EQS

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SINGAPORE

For better or worse, the Mercedes-Benz star continues to sell very well in Singapore despite 2022 being the year of record-breaking COE prices and continuing supply chain disruptions. The automaker’s all-electric sub-brand, Mercedes-EQ, has already had a busy year with the launch of the headline-grabbing EQS sedan, EQB SUV and EQV MPV, and it is following through into 2023 with the upcoming EQS SUV as well.

But the car seen here is the Mercedes-EQ EQE 350+, which, as you might have guessed from its name, is kind of the electric equivalent of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan. It’s not, however, simply a ‘normal’ Mercedes-Benz modified to take electric motors and batteries. The Mercedes-EQ range is on a completely different development path and the only similarity between the EQE and E-Class is the overall size, as both are the medium luxury sedans of their respective model lines.

Visually, it’s very similar to the larger Mercedes-EQ EQS, with the curvy, sloping front and rear ends. Without the need for a large engine and its related accessories, the cabin occupies a lot more of the car’s overall footprint. The bonnet and tail is actually quite short in proportion to the car’s overall length, but you can hardly tell that because the overall shape is still very well balanced. 

Mercedes has managed to really make the car’s outline work, as the EQE, like its larger EQS sibling, is one of the most aerodynamically efficient series production sedans that you can now buy.  There’s no ‘intake grille’ on the nose, though the black panel with Mercedes-Benz stars within gives the illusion of there being one from afar.

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The benefit of a more aerodynamic car is of course less air resistance, which ultimately results in more battery efficiency and longer ranges. 

The test sample has a white leather cabin, which won’t be the ideal choice for long term use unless you really clean the upholstery weekly. Yet it’s a pretty example of what a lighter coloured interior can look, away from all the drab blacks and dark browns that we usually see.

The similarity to the EQS extends even to the dashboard, which can be trimmed in a range of materials that you choose from the car’s options list and ringed with customisable ambient lighting. What cannot be fitted to the EQE 350+ is the huge hyperscreen panel that’s essentially a series of touchscreens spanning the whole dashboard. It can be found as standard equipment in the Mercedes-AMG EQS 53, as well as the AMG EQE 43.

However the expansive centre screen of the EQE, like those of other current-generation Mercedes cars, is already one of the biggest in the business and operates in the same way. That extends to the swipe style controls on the steering wheel spokes, which is still a love-it or hate-it affair. The point is, would you rather be firmly pressing buttons or gently caressing a small touch pad like stroking a little kitten to adjust stuff?

Overall cabin size is great though the rear headroom is slightly compromised by the sloping roof. This compromise extends to the sightly narrow boot space, but at least the rear bench splits and folds forwards to lengthen the cargo area.

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Passenger legroom is good however, and you get aircon vents in the second row, which is practically a must these days as even bread-and-butter cars like the Hyundai Avante have them. 

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