Mercedes-Benz EQS “10 years too early” – Wagener

Mercedes-Benz EQS “10 years too early” – Wagener

Automotive history is littered with vehicles deemed ‘ahead of their time’ that were not sales successes. The Edsel, the NSU Ro 80, the Fisker Karma – you name it. We may now have another addition to the list, and the admission comes from the design boss himself.

Mercedes-Benz chief design officer Gorden Wagener has conceded to Autocar that the EQS sedan may have been “10 years too early” for its radical styling to be well-accepted, and that the EV luxo-barge suffered from being compared with the S-Class.

“It’s a very, very progressive car and, of course, it was not originally designed as a chauffeur limousine. That was not the intention. Many people in this class expect a long hood (bonnet) and status from a chauffeur car, and the EQS is different there. It’s a completely different car. Maybe we should have marketed it differently, more like a futuristic CLS, S-Class Coupe or something like that,” he said.

Mercedes-Benz EQS “10 years too early” – Wagener

Born in 2021 (and landing in Malaysia in 2022) as the flagship of Mercedes’ new EV range, the EQS never sold as well as its ICE-powered counterpart, the S-Class. Realising that this could be because of how it looked, the carmaker facelifted the EQS in April 2024 (above), giving it a more traditional-looking grille and a three-pointed-star bonnet ornament.

Which apparently didn’t help much, because Autocar reported only four months later that the EQS would be no more in the next generation. In its stead will be ICE and EV versions of the S-Class. The EV version could get a solid-state battery; expect something like 1,000 km of range.

What are your thoughts? Do you think a luxury sedan should be more conservatively-styled, or are you open to future-forward, avant-garde designs?

2024 Mercedes-Benz EQS facelift

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Jonathan James Tan

While most dream of the future, Jonathan Tan dreams of the past, although he's never been there. Fantasises much too often about cruising down Treacher Road (Jalan Sultan Ismail) in a Triumph Stag that actually works, and hopes this stint here will snap him back to present reality.

 

Comments

  • seancorr on Jul 03, 2025 at 5:49 pm

    None of their EQ models were successful.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 17 Thumb down 1
  • its obvious its a cls

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 2
  • What about we compare it to Tesla Model S,
    Is it 10 years late?

    https://paultan.org/2014/10/10/tesla-model-s-p85d-supercar-baiting-electric-sedan/

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 4
  • t333son on Jul 04, 2025 at 7:12 am

    wrong, it is not 10 years ahead. it failed because the build quality is poor,. sit in any recent Mercs and feel for yourself how cheap the interior feels. the battery fires also gave it a bad reputation . performance is below that of Chinese rivals that are of equivalent or better luxury.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 1
  • cukaboi on Jul 04, 2025 at 8:43 am

    NO. You guys were late to the game, your design doesn’t inspire anything but lame. Nothing special compare to specs of your Chinese rivals at this price point.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 1
  • Mercedes-Benz made a bigger, fatter, longer and more expensive parallel of their own A-Class hatchback. Result? Mercedes-Benz found out their customers are still hatchback-resistant and both A-Class and EQS getting axed by Mercedes-Benz themselves.

    The AMG GT 4-door is outside Mercedes-Benz’s hatchback chopping block because it was handled by their AMG division exclusively.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • Aiya just follow BMW la. I see more and more BMW on the road especially the new G60 5 series so macho like a GT man. At 450k ppl so rich man. The 3 series G20 also everywhere. Not an E class or C class. Dont bring in the China first because the classic class rank is still the German. Even papa from Kampong wish their son balik with a BMW or Merc and currently, not a BYD. China car all look the same my GF cant even differenciate them. When asked, all her friends just said aiya find a bf in a BMW then can lar..they ll auto take off everything for those guy. China car class perception maybe 20 yrs frm now maybe and they need to differenciate not all soap bar look car. U understand?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 6
  • yusrykru on Jul 04, 2025 at 12:17 pm

    bruh, ur eq design is shizz, yes good aerodynamics, but ppl buy with emotion, feeling empty by looking at the design

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
 

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