Mercedes-Benz has large plans for its charging community in North America, and shortly sufficient chances are you’ll reap the advantages of that plan if you buy groceries.
The German luxurious automaker at this time introduced a partnership with American mall, outlet heart and retail big Simon Property Group to determine nationwide charging stations. Simon Property Group is the biggest purchasing heart supervisor and developer within the U.S., counting main locations just like the King of Prussia Mall in Philadelphia and Woodbury Widespread in New York amongst its huge portfolio. A team-up with Mercedes would convey public quick charging to a lot of these locations.
Quick chargers can be initially deployed at 55 areas throughout the U.S. and Canada, and they are going to be totally powered by renewable vitality, Mercedes-Benz mentioned in a press launch at this time. The automaker plans to leverage Simon’s experience in “facilities and experiences,” stating that Mercedes-EQ drivers will have the ability to “store, reside, work, and play,” whereas their electrical vehicles juice up.
Relying on the situation, the chargers will ship as much as 400 kilowatts of output. The model did not share the voltage structure and different specs of those upcoming items.
That mentioned, Mercedes-Benz does not need charging to be a boring affair. “We’re constructing the boldness round how charging needs to be used. If executed effectively, charging ought to fade into the background and it is rather more about what you do when you cost,” Mercedes-Benz Excessive Energy Charging North America President and CEO Andrew Cornelia instructed InsideEVs final week.
The method is just like Tesla’s jazzed-up Supercharger station with a retro diner and drive-in theater underneath development within the Hollywood space of Los Angeles.
![Mercedes High Power Charging Stations1](https://cdn.motor1.com/images/static/16x9-tr.png)
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The upcoming Mercedes-Benz chargers can be open to all EVs – together with non-Mercedes-Benz fashions – from day one, mentioned Cornelia, and they’ll assist the normal, present CCS ports and Tesla’s NACS port coming natively to Mercedes’ vehicles in 2025. ChargePoint would be the product and expertise companion, Simon the true property companion, and MN8 the event companion.
The automaker is planning to put in 500 charging hubs in North America within the subsequent 4 to 5 years. It beforehand introduced plans to put in over 2,000 quick charging factors worldwide by the tip of subsequent 12 months and increase to over 10,000 charging factors (2,000 hubs) by 2030, throughout North America, Europe, China, and different key markets. We do not know the precise date when Mercedes-Benz will inaugurate these quick chargers, however we’re instructed will probably be quickly, and the primary one can be in Atlanta.
The automaker is embarking on a multi-front effort to increase its charging presence. On the 2023 Client Electronics Present (CES) in Las Vegas, it introduced a partnership with ChargePoint and renewable vitality firm MN8 to put in over 2,500 solar-powered charging factors (400 hubs) in North America by 2027. In June 2023, it grew to become a part of a seven-carmaker consortium – together with Common Motors, BMW Group, Honda, Hyundai, Stellantis, and Kia – to announce a sprawling charging community throughout city and freeway areas with CCS and NACS compatibility.
Solely time will inform if Mercedes-Benz can ship on these guarantees, and the street could possibly be bumpy if ChargePoint’s reliability issues aren’t addressed quickly. ChargePoint hubs are removed from excellent, as a number of customers have reported. Though, the corporate has not too long ago introduced a multi-million greenback effort to rectify these points. Cornelia echoed the German automaker’s resolve on reliability and high quality. “This is not simply to get cash out the door. This is not simply constructing a community as a result of we’ve got enterprise traders behind us who wish to return on their capital,” he mentioned. “Earlier than we do the rest, we’ve got to hit that mark on high quality.”
To make sure that prospects do not drive into stations with dysfunctional chargers, Mercedes-Benz goals to give attention to “all the pieces from community design, companion choice, and product choice,” in keeping with Cornelia. And the model needs the motion of plugging in to be easy. Cornelia cited the instance of how simple it’s to get into the New York Metropolis subway – by tapping your bank card or NFC-enabled smartphone onto a digital reader which then unlocks the turnstiles. That is the extent of ease Mercedes-Benz is aiming for in its charging expertise.
“It is not about CCS vs NACS, it is about whether or not your grandmother will have the ability to decide the [charging] cable up and plug it into the automotive,” he mentioned.