Mercedes unveils news Vision EQXX concept, its most efficient car ever
Mercedes has pulled the covers off its new Vision EQXX concept, which boasts a range of more than 640-miles.
The fully-electric saloon concept was unveiled at the Consumers Electronics Show (CES), where the manufacturer outlined its plans to challenge the new era of luxury, long-range electric vehicles.
The Vision EQXX has been labelled as the most efficient Mercedes ever built, and will offer a range of 648-miles (1,000km) off a single charge, whilst also boasting an energy consumption of less than 10 kilowatt hours (kWh) per 100 km.
Whilst it remains a concept for the time being, Mercedes has confirmed that a model will be ready for testing within a few months.
“The Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX is how we imagine the future of electric cars,” said Ola Källenius, chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG.
“Just one-and-a-half years ago, we started this project leading to the most efficient Mercedes-Benz ever built – with an outstanding energy consumption of less than 10 kWh per 100 kilometres. It has a range of more than 1,000 kilometres2 on a single charge using a battery that would fit even into a compact vehicle.
“The Vision EQXX is an advanced car in so many dimensions – and it even looks stunning and futuristic. With that, it underlines where our entire company is headed: We will build the world’s most desirable electric cars.”
The process of designing the Vision EQXX consisted of “ripping up the engineering rulebook,” according to Mercedes, as the brand aimed to create its most efficient vehicle ever.
In order to achieve that, Mercedes developed a completely new battery pack with just under 100 kWh of usable energy. The Vision EQXX uses less than 10 kWh of electrical energy to travel 100 km. That equates to traveling 6 miles on 1 kWh of electrical energy. Translated into fossil-fuel consumption, it works out to around 282mpg.
“In effect, we fitted the energy of the EQS into the vehicle dimensions of a compact car,” says Adam Allsopp, advanced technology director from HPP. “The battery has almost the same amount of energy but is half the size and 30% lighter. The battery management system and power electronics have been designed with an absolute focus on reducing losses. In achieving this efficiency milestone, we learnt a lot that will flow into future development programmes.”
The Vision EQXX also draws additional energy from 117 solar cells on the roof. It was developed in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE – Europe’s largest solar energy research institute. The net result of reducing the energy drain on the high-voltage system is an increase in range. On a single day and under ideal conditions, this can add up to 25 km of range on long-distance journeys.
The solar energy is stored in a lightweight lithium-iron-phosphate battery, which supplies a climate blower, the lights, the infotainment system and other ancillaries. Mercedes-Benz and its partners are working towards using solar power to charge the high-voltage system, too.
