[Taboleo] 'My Home Sofa' SUV on the Road... Mercedes-Benz EQB

'Family Car' with Elegance
Spacious Interior...Excellent Design
'Regenerative Braking' Control Available
Max Driving Range and Semi-Autonomous Driving Disappoint

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Gyumin] One weekend afternoon, I am heading to the outskirts of Seoul with a child attending kindergarten. The Gangbyeonbuk-ro is crowded with vehicles. We keep stopping and going. An angry driver honks the horn due to cars cutting in. However, the child in the back seat is sleeping. In the front seat, we speak in hushed tones so as not to wake the child. When we arrive at the destination, the child wakes up and asks if we have already arrived. It is the picture of a harmonious family that anyone can imagine.

Photo by Oh Gyumin

You can have conversations in the car that you couldn’t have before. Sometimes, you just want to rest quietly. To play more excitedly at the destination. A car where you can briefly rest like on your home sofa on the road. The Mercedes-Benz compact electric sports utility vehicle (SUV) EQB 300.

Until Mercedes-Benz released the large electric vehicle EQS SUV late last month, the EQB was the largest electric SUV they offered. If you want an SUV that is neither too big nor too small, the EQB might be perfect. If you are looking for a quiet SUV, an electric vehicle is ideal. Last year, Mercedes-Benz sold 5,006 electric vehicles in South Korea. Among them, SUVs accounted for 2,234 units, nearly half.

Mercedes-Benz EQB 300 Interior [Photo by Oh Gyumin moh011@]

What are its advantages?

The quietness stood out. When you first press the start button, apart from the Hi-pass voice alert saying “No card inserted,” there is no sound at all. When shifting gears and pressing the accelerator pedal, you hear the spaceship sound from an SF movie. It’s not a sound but a visual cue that the vehicle has started moving. It was the same while driving. Since I usually listen to music loudly, I set the volume to the level I used in internal combustion engine vehicles, and it was almost painful to my ears. When opening the sunroof, the difference was even more pronounced. While driving on Seoul’s Gangbyeonbuk-ro, opening the sunroof made the sounds of other vehicles much louder. It was that quiet with minimal wind noise.

(Left) Trunk view when the rear seats are folded down. (Right) The rear seat space was enough to fit two to two and a half fists, sufficient for an elementary school child to sit comfortably. Photo by Oh Gyumin moh011@

The space was sufficient. When sitting in the back seat, the space between the knees and the driver’s seat was about two and a half fists. It seems possible to comfortably seat an elementary school child. The trunk can hold up to 1,710 liters of cargo when the rear seats are folded down. Even without folding all seats, you can fold them in a 4:2:4 split.

The design is also excellent. Mercedes-Benz’s signature interior ambient lighting adds a sense of luxury. While inheriting the design of the Mercedes-Benz internal combustion engine compact SUV GLB model, there are differences. The front view is different. The existing GLB lights up only around the headlights at night. The EQB has a line connecting the two headlights. This design, called a fiber optic strip, is a unique design feature of Mercedes-Benz electric vehicles. The head-up display (HUD) is also useful. On the left, you can see average energy consumption, in the center, driving speed and driving assistance indicators appear, and on the right, you can see the speed limit of the current road.

I heard the back seat of electric cars causes severe motion sickness. Is it okay?

Of course, there is a slight jolting feeling that first-time electric vehicle riders experience. This is due to regenerative braking. When you take your foot off the accelerator pedal, it feels like stronger braking is applied. This is because kinetic energy is converted into electrical energy to charge the battery. For those who do not get motion sickness, it is not a big problem. Unlike recently released electric vehicles that reach 100 km/h from a standstill in under 5 seconds, the EQB takes about 8 seconds. This means less abrupt acceleration.

What is seen in the red circle displayed on the steering wheel is the paddle shift. The regenerative braking level can be changed while driving.
[Photo by Oh Gyumin moh011@]

Also, the regenerative braking level can be flexibly adjusted depending on the situation, considering passengers. It can be adjusted with paddle shifters behind the steering wheel. The EQB has four regenerative braking levels: D-, D, D+, and D Auto. D is the default, and D- has the strongest regenerative braking. In D+, acceleration is smooth, allowing driving similar to an internal combustion engine vehicle. When traffic is heavy, D- is suitable; for moderately congested sections, D; and when the road is clear, D+ is best for energy efficiency and reducing jolts.

Are there any drawbacks?

The driving range on a single charge is disappointing. It can drive up to 313 km, which may not be suitable for many who drive long distances. If the charging environment is poor, it is not recommended. The semi-autonomous driving was also disappointing. It was fine that the vehicle stops in an emergency if the driver does not hold the steering wheel within 45 seconds. However, on sharp curves, there was a risk of collision if the driver did not intervene. On less sharp curves, the vehicle sometimes swayed back and forth trying to stay in the lane, like a robot vacuum cleaner.

Screen when Android Auto is running. The left blank space does not obstruct the view due to the steering wheel. However, the reason for the blank space on the right is unclear.
[Photo by Oh Gyumin moh011@]

When running Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, the right 10.25-inch display screen shows with blank spaces. Of course, the left blank space may be covered by the steering wheel, so it seems intentionally left empty. However, the reason for the right blank space was unclear. The visibility of the built-in navigation was also disappointing.

The Mercedes-Benz EQB 300 Head-Up Display (HUD) consists of three different screens.
[Photo by Oh Gyumin moh011@]

How about charging speed and price?

Charging 15 kWh increased the battery level from 50% to 71%.
Photo by Oh Gyumin moh011@

When the battery level was at 50%, I tried fast charging 15 kWh. It took about 20 minutes. After that, the battery level was 71%. The EQB’s charging port is a DC Combo type, widely used in South Korea. The base model starts at 76 million KRW. If you receive last year’s electric vehicle subsidy (Seoul standard) of 3.72 million KRW, you can purchase it in the low 70 million KRW range. However, this year, the subsidy amount is expected to decrease, so you should consider a price range from the mid-70 million KRW to 80 million KRW.