MERCEDES-BENZ EQE 350+

Fresh-faced electric equivalent of the E-Class makes British debut

- RICHARD LANE

TESTED 1.8.22, BEDFORDSHIRE ON SALE NOW

How highly you rate the new EQE is likely to depend on what it is that you want from your midranking Mercedes-Benz saloon.

Traditionally, the role has been sharply defined and played dependably well by the E-Class.

The hallmarks are space, comfort and best-in-class isolation, all in an elegant but understated design and one with handling that, if not outright engaging, feels quietly thoroughbred. All in, a class act.

So to the EQE, which in terms of both style and technology is much the shrunk-down EQS, and is tested here for the first time on British roads.

What is there for the E-Class owner who wants to go electric? Probably not an overwhelming sense of value for money. The entry-level, rear-driven EQE 300 offers roughly the same performance as the E200 but in like-for-like trim costs almost £30,000 more than its £45,000 petrol-engined peer. Mercedes claims the EQE and E-Class achieve similar profit margins, and it's not hard to see why.