Hot Mercedes-AMG EQE 53 guns for Porsche Taycan
And the Tesla Model S. It enters battle with up to 687hp from two electric motors. Oof!
)
Mercedes-AMG has pulled the covers off a performance new electric model called the EQE 53, which lands as a direct rival to heated-up versions of Porsche’s fast-selling Taycan and Tesla’s ever-popular Model S. As the sporty version of Mercedes’s EQE electric car, the AMG model uses two-electric motors (as opposed to the EQE’s one) to produce a peak of 687hp. Six-eight-seven. You know, the sort of power that not long ago would only ever be associated with red-blooded supercars.
But this is 2022, in the decade of an increasingly significant electric revolution, where the EQE 53 comes with an optional AMG Dynamic Plus Package to give it that headline-grabbing power figure. The ‘normal’ version of the EQE 53, without that optional upgrade, isn’t exactly short of muscle, either, with 626hp dispatched by its pair of electric motors. In both variants, there’s one motor powering the front wheels and another powering the back wheels, making the car all-wheel drive.
)
While that setup of twin-motor power is pretty standard for the segment – both the Taycan and Model S are offered with comparable layouts – the EQE 53 gets motors that are developed specifically for the high-powered AMG car. For those unfamiliar with AMG, its cars are the extra (extra) hot sauce of the Mercedes range. And the EQE 53 delivers on the spiciness by all measures, with a 0-62mph sprint time of 3.3 seconds for the AMG Dynamic Plus Package-equipped car and – if you’re in a safe and legal environment to test it – a 149mph top speed.
While the EQE 53 can’t challenge Tesla’s bonkers sub-three-second claimed 0-62mph times (in the very hottest variants), it does align the AMG model with the breadth of the Tesla model’s range. And crucially, it places it right alongside Porsche’s top-end Taycan model. Even the ‘standard’ EQE 53 is liable to give you a decent enough thump in the back under power, achieving the 0-62mph sprint in 4.2 seconds and – if you’re lucky enough to own a runway or race track (high five!) – a 137mph top speed.
That’s all well and good, but this is an electric car, so naturally you’ll want to know how much range it has. Tech lovers will appreciate knowing that the EQE 53 uses a 400v, 90.6kWh battery with 360 individual lithium-ion cells features on both models. Everyone else will probably be happy knowing the car can be charged using a domestic 11kW or 22kW plug as normal, and Mercedes highlights that the car can also use fast chargers of 170kW. That’s decent, but some way off the speed that a Taycan charge with a 270kW.
)
Still, the Mercedes’s rate is strong, and it means when it’s plugged into a rapid charger – like the sort found increasingly at motorway services and on petrol station forecourts – it’s claimed to be capable of adding 112 miles of range to the battery in just 15 minutes. A total claimed range is yet to be revealed, but we’re told by Mercedes to expect something around 310 miles. Again, not class-leading – that honour is held by the Model S Long Range – but it does beat the more comparable Taycan. Which may prove key, especially if you’re weighing up which German EV to go for.
Naturally, we can’t provide a verdict on the car’s ability to stretch that range out and top it up with regenerative tech until we drive one. Nor can we test whether that punchy off-the-line performance gives us a headache yet. Rest assured we’re on the case in organising that; our YouTube channel is where you’ll find the review when we do. But if this new EQE 53 has you tempted by the prospect of a fast electric saloon, cinch’s plentiful supply might be your best port of call. We’ve the biggest range of cars to buy entirely online, you know. And plenty of them are electric.
)
)
More cinch content
