Mercedes EQXX with efficiency record: e-car achieves 1,202 km on a single charge

Another range and efficiency record for the futuristic Mercedes-Benz EQXX. The concept car made it on a long-distance trip from Stuttgart to Silerstone in the UK with just a single battery charge. That equates to a distance of 1,202 kilometers and an average energy consumption of 8.3 kWh/100 km.

Mercedes EQXX manages 1,202 km on one charge

What good is an enormous battery capacity to an electric car if the vehicle is unable to use it efficiently? Energy efficiency is the focus of the Mercedes EQXX concept car (full name: Mercedes-Benz VISION EQXX). Back in April of this year, the model secured an efficiency record during a test drive from Stuttgart to Cassis, France. That mark could now be topped once again, as the automaker writes.

“The journey continues – even further, even more efficient! Once again, the VISION EQXX has proven that it can easily cover more than 1,000 kilometers on one battery charge; this time under completely different conditions,” says Markus Schäfer, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Chief Technology Officer, responsible for Development and Purchasing.

In a summer road trip piloted the EQXX now from Stuttgart to the British Silverstone, where on 03 July the British Grand Prix 2022 of Formula 1 will be held. The two locations are separated by 1,202 kilometers, which the concept car completed on just one battery charge.

“After a freeway closure and a challenging detour in Pforzheim, the VISION EQXX crossed the French border near Strasbourg and drove at freeway speed through northern France to Calais, passing through the Eurotunnel by train,” writes Mercedes-Benz.

The Mercedes EQXX even made a stop at the manufacturer Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix in Brackley to be received by the Formula 1 and Formula E experts there. They contributed the concept car’s advanced powertrain.

In the end, the car covered 1,202 kilometers and consumed an average of just 8.3 kWh per 100 km, once again significantly beating the record set in April (8.7 kWh/100 km).

Average speed of 83 km/h

The new efficiency test of the Mercedes-Benz VISION EQXX presented the concept car with many different challenges. Among other things, the vehicle had to face temperatures of up to 30 degrees Celsius and increased traffic density around Stuttgart and in the southeast of England.

This was a stress test for the installed thermal management system, which uses air flaps, coolant valves and pumps to ensure that the electric drive unit maintains a highly efficient temperature balance with minimal energy input.

According to the manufacturer, the pure driving time for the route was 14 hours and 30 minutes. Just over eight hours of that time, the air conditioning in the EQXX was active “with minimal negative impact on overall energy consumption”.

On average, the concept car cruised at a speed of 83 km/h, while Formula E driver Nyck de Vries pushed the maximum speed of 140 km/h on the Silverstone circuit – still on the same battery charge used to set off in Stuttgart.

Continued to Goodwood

After more than 1,200 kilometers, the Mercedes EQXX continued on after a charging break to the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed, where Polestar also presented its electric sports car 5. The German automaker sums up the event with satisfaction:

With two successfully completed drives of over 1,000 kilometers on public roads, the VISION EQXX has more than justified its claim to be the most efficient Mercedes ever.

Although the concept car will never be mass-produced in its form, many of the technologies installed will nevertheless be further developed for use in future production vehicles. In any case, the test drive impressively demonstrates the ranges and energy efficiencies that are theoretically possible. Following the Mercedes-Benz DRIVE PILOT System for autonomous driving, the carmaker is once again demonstrating its pioneering role in the field of innovative technologies.