You know you're not sliding into just any electric car when your head settles into a fluffy white pillow on the headrest of the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV.
Why it matters: Electric vehicles (EVs) are still out of reach for many, but luckily that's beginning to change as more affordable models hit the market.
- Still, the EQS SUV — starting at $104,400 — takes EV ownership to a whole new level of opulence.
What you're missing: The first SUV in Mercedes' growing EV lineup includes features you're not likely to encounter in your next vehicle:
- Scents and sounds that relax or stimulate you.
- AI-enabled birthday reminders and to-do lists — plus a prompt to call a friend at the usual time.
- A "power nap" mode that reclines the seat, darkens the cabin and plays sleep-inducing music while you're parked at a charging station or rest area.
Details: I tested the 2023 EQS 450 4-MATIC SUV, the mid-level model with a starting price of $107,400 and a driving range of 305 miles.
- A long list of premium options — including a $2,000 augmented reality head-up display and an advanced display called an MBUX Hyperscreen, for $7,230 — brought the total retail price to $129,285.
- The car's intelligent navigation system plans the fastest and most convenient route — including charging stops — by predicting the energy demand and adapting to traffic jams or a change in driving style.
Just added: Faster acceleration through an optional software upgrade that adds 80 horsepower (to 435 hp), for $90 a month (or a one-time fee of $2,950).
The dazzling Hyperscreen, extending the full width of the car, dominates the interior.
- The system uses artificial intelligence to adapt to drivers' preferences and anticipate their wishes, proactively displaying the right functions at the right time and offering personalized suggestions for infotainment, comfort and other features.
- Wood trim with aluminum inlays surrounds the sumptuous white stitched leather upholstery (including those plush headrest pillows).
How it smells: The EQS SUV has its own specially composed fragrance: No.6 MOOD mimosa, "an earthy fragrance with a touch of sensuality" that unfolds in three phases, from fruity to woody.
What's different is how the EQS makes you feel.
- The Mercedes' "Energizing Comfort" program uses preset combinations of ambient lighting, climate controls, fragrances, massage seat modes and sounds to create mood-based themes like "Vitality" or "Refresh."
- It offers calming nature themes like "Forest Glade," "Summer Rain" and "Sounds of the Sea;" the latter combines the sound of seagulls and surf with blasts of HEPA-filtered air from the air conditioning system.
- Say "I am stressed," and the car automatically triggers the Joy program. "I'm tired" starts the Vitality program.
The car must have detected that I needed to perk up on a recent trip with my daughter because a message on the Hyperscreen suggested I activate Vitality.
- I agreed by pushing a button — and soon crimson-colored graphics swirled across the Hyperscreen while instrumental music pulsed from the Burmester speakers.
- Honestly, the screen was a little distracting, and my daughter turned it off so we could keep talking.
- Later, however, I actually felt calmer as I drove alone using "Forest Glade," featuring the sounds of birds, rustling leaves and a gentle breeze accompanied by warm music and a subtle fragrance.
The bottom line: The rich are different, and so are their electric cars.
