Mercedes’ first electric SUV gone after five years

Mercedes’ first mainstream EV, the EQC, is no longer being made and there’s no immediate replacement for it.

The EQC used the GLC as a basis but struggled to compete with the rival electric SUVs that rode on bespoke platforms. So with disappointing and falling sales Mercedes has dropped the EQC from its line-up. 

The EQC was the company’s first attempt at a mainstream EV and its first pure-electric SUV. However, in its rush to meet the market and without a bespoke electric car platform it failed to fire for the general public. 

Range was relatively limited at 400km, partly on account of its 2.5 tonne weight, as was interior space.

So the EQC was soon shaded by newer opposition. There wasn’t much competition when it first launched in 2019. Its main rivals were the Audi e-tron, Jaguar I-Pace and Tesla Model X its main rivals. But BMW’s iX3 and iX arrived in time while new rivals include Macan Electric, Audi Q6 e-tron and Polestar 4. They are all comfortably ahead of the EQC on just about any count. 

Eventually, Mercedes will have a medium electric SUV to sell but that’s roughly a year away. In the meantime, the closest alternative from the company is the EQE SUV, which uses a bespoke EV platform and has the company’s latest technology. It is not much more expensive in price, at least as a base model.

The EQC’s replacement won’t have the same name because Mercedes is dropping the EQ branding for its EVs. The new nomenclature has yet to be revealed.

It’s not just EQC that’s ending either; Mercedes has said it is not developing replacement platforms for EQS and EQE at present because of disappointing sales.