It wasn’t too long ago that some folks in the industry thought that the EV revolution would be highlighted by vehicles that had plenty of range, but were slow and didn’t have the charisma needed to stand out in showrooms. That was especially evident in the 1990s with some of the EV concepts that appeared on the show circuit.
But the times are changing, and Mercedes-Benz is eager to show the world that the 2023 Mercedes-AMG EQE goes far beyond being a mere appliance trying to get maximum range. It promises to be a worthy sequel to the flagship EQS, but is it the performance machine that AMG needs? Or is it too out of balance for its own good?
EQE Exterior Styling Lacks Raw Edge
The exterior styling of the Mercedes-AMG EQE is designed to cut through the air efficiently and as a result, it looks like a futuristic egg from some angles. The large front grille panel is reminiscent of what you might see on an ICE-powered E-Class and the headlights themselves also have a slight resemblance to its ICE counterpart.
AMG models also get bigger wheels and tweaked front and rear bumpers. However, the exterior also breaks a cardinal rule of AMG performance and that’s standing out from the rest of the competition. For example, if you look at a gasoline-powered AMG model, they try their best to stand out from rivals by offering a look that’s wild and draws plenty of stares from passersby. The EQE in contrast, blends in too much, and when you combine that with its drab grey paint, The EV blends into the background. That might fly for a normal EV, but in the performance segment, if you don’t stand out, you lose sales.
EQE Interior Packed With Technology
Slip inside the EQE and you’ll find that while the exterior lacks personality, the cabin tries to make up for it by giving occupants a massive amount of technology. Unlike the EQS, the smaller four-door does not get the HyperScreen setup but instead, gets a separate digital instrument cluster and a slightly smaller infotainment system.
The infotainment system itself might not be as flashy as the Hyperscreen unit but it makes up for it by offering a suite of software that’s responsive and features logically placed menus and crisp graphics. The system also gets wireless phone mirroring standard as well as a wireless phone charging pad.
The wood trim that replaces the passenger portion of the screen looks handsome and the front sport seats offer just the right amount of bolstering to help keep occupants firmly in place during hard driving. The back seats are as tight as they look and are best left for small children. Visibility is good up front but the slippery profile requires the driver to pay a cost with rear visibility being awful. The trunk has space for a good load of groceries but leave the art of hauling bulkier items to its SUV counterpart.
AMG Still Trying To Find Its Place In Performance
Performance for all EQE AMG models comes from a pair of electric motors that make a combined system output of 617 horsepower and 701 lb-ft of torque with these figures rising to 677 hp and 738 lb-ft of torque when the overboost is engaged. Mercedes reps say the EQE can make the sprint to 60 mph in 2.8 seconds and our tester certainly proved that it could indeed get up to speed when tasked with stoplight sprints or charging onto the freeway.
That’s not bad for a vehicle that weighs over 5500 lbs but the extra weight rears its ugly head when our tester was tasked with windy sections of tarmac despite the rear-wheel steering doing its part to sharpen the car’s handling behavior. Since there’s no ICE engine here to provide the noise, Mercedes engineers gave the EQE several sound modes that are supposed to make customers feel like they are in a powerful vehicle. However, we recommend leaving it in default mode since the other two sound modes feel like half-baked afterthoughts.
In addition to being a potent straight-line performer, the AMG version of the EQE also delivers a respectable amount of range with our tester getting an estimated 225 miles of range. That’s 40 less than a lesser 350 but as they say, fun comes at a price.
Value Quotient
Pricing for the 2024 Mercedes-AMG EQE starts at $106,900 with our tester arriving with a final as-tested price of over $110,000. That pricing puts the AMG in a tough spot internally since the EQE 500 4Matic also gets more power than the 350 version but manages to start at over $89,000 a significant discount when compared to the range-topping AMG model.
The EQS is also a significant hurdle the AMG has to go over internally in dealerships. While the EQS is bigger and has a higher price tag to match, the model also feels like you’re getting more for your money with engineers putting more tech, performance, and styling into the EQS versus the EQE. However, the EQE sedan does make up some ground when compared against outside rivals from Tesla and Lucid. If we had or say, we would actually go for the EQE due to its stronger service network and some of its interior features.
Carl Malek has been an automotive journalist for over 10 years. First starting out as a freelance photographer before making the transition to writing during college, his work has appeared on numerous automotive forums as well as websites such as Autoshopper.com.
Carl is also a big fan of British vehicles with the bulk of his devotion going to the Morgan Motor Company as well as offerings from Lotus, MG, and Caterham. When he is not writing about automobiles, Carl enjoys spending time with his family and friends in the Metro Detroit area, as well as spending time with his adorable pets.