'HEY, MERCEDES'

In a world where gadgets have now acquired wheels and motors, one such means of personal mobility takes excess to the next level. We drove “the future of clean and sustainable luxury mobility” in Hyderabad. All three tonnes of it

- Jim Gorde

Brand value cannot be underestimated. Which is why this Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV has a huge three-pointed star badge on the bonnet and a huge one front and center on the grille, which is surrounded by 246 more, albeit much smaller, three-pointed stars, no less. Then there are the lower air-dam plastic covers where fog-lamps would otherwise be with even more little three-pointed stars. Right, then. Hey, Mercedes! What else can it be?

Hot on the heels of the Mercedes-Maybach EQS 680 SUV flagship electric vehicle (EV) from the iconic marque comes this more accessible version with "-Benz" nomenclature. Yes, prevailing sentiment—and, perhaps, logic—has meant that the fourth suffix "Mercedes-EQ" was unceremoniously axed. The Mercedes-Benz EQS 580 4MATIC SUV, then, is an electric automobile which, like the 680, uses two motors, one each front and rear, for a more subdued total of 400 kW or 544 hp equivalent, with a prodigious AMG G 63-rivalling 858 Nm of torque.

It also packs a 122-kWh battery pack, which is good for an indicated 800-kilometer range. But that also means it has an AMG G 63-eclipsing weight of 2,770 kilograms. That's a whole lot of sustainability, yes. It does have some recycled material used for some trim elements, responsibly sourced material for the upholstery, and some, surely reclaimed, open-pore wood elements to make sure everybody in the green brigade is happy.