In 2024, all of Mercedes-Benz’s electrical autos (EVs) skilled a notable decline in year-over-year gross sales. The EQS sedan and SUV took the toughest hit, whereas the EQB fared barely higher. To draw new EV customers, Mercedes is ready to introduce an all-new CLA mannequin.
Mercedes-Benz made a daring selection within the design of its electrical automobile lineup, choosing a extra summary aesthetic. Regardless of the standard of those EVs and the celebrated Mercedes model, the EQ fashions have struggled to discover a broad market. In america, gross sales for all three out there fashions dropped considerably in comparison with 2023, with the EQS experiencing the biggest decline.
When combining the gross sales of the EQS sedan and the EQS SUV, the numbers fell from 14,499 items in 2023 to simply 6,963 in 2024, leading to a steep 52% lower. This downturn displays the difficult panorama for electrical automobile gross sales, characterised by heightened competitors and a shift in client choice in the direction of hybrids and plug-in hybrids.
The EQE sedan and SUV additionally underperformed, with a complete of 11,660 items offered, down from 19,104 within the earlier yr—representing a 39% decline. Conversely, the EQB, which is Mercedes’ smallest electrical automobile within the U.S., confronted the least discount at 36%, with gross sales declining from 13,797 items in 2023 to eight,885 in 2024.
In distinction to the struggles confronted by its EVs, Mercedes reported a outstanding 470% enhance in plug-in hybrid electrical automobile (PHEV) gross sales, pushed partially by a broader PHEV providing out there. At the moment, the corporate sells 5 PHEV fashions within the U.S., that includes spectacular electric-only ranges. For instance, the GLC350e boasts an EPA-rated vary of 54 miles due to its sizable 23.3-kilowatt-hour battery and might cost rapidly with DC quick charging capabilities of as much as 60 kW. General, regardless of fewer EV gross sales, the mixed market share of EVs and PHEVs nonetheless accounted for 15% of Mercedes gross sales within the U.S. final yr.
EVs total represented about 8% of complete passenger automobile gross sales within the U.S., nearing 1.3 million autos, a rise from 7.6% the earlier yr, in line with early estimates by Cox Automotive. Whereas these figures might alter barely, they counsel that the electrical automobile market had a greater displaying than initially perceived amidst discussions of slowing gross sales and the rise in hybrid and PHEV curiosity.
Mercedes is gearing as much as unveil its new CLA, which is predicted to be a technological marvel, providing each electrical and hybrid powertrains. The electrical model will function a rear-wheel-drive configuration, with choices for NMC or LFP batteries—applied sciences that the model goals to combine right into a single battery pack sooner or later—and non-compulsory dual-motor all-wheel drive. This mannequin might be primarily based on a brand new, devoted EV platform referred to as MMA, which may even assist at the least two crossover fashions, together with a seven-passenger variant.
Recognizing that the design of its present devoted EV fashions has not resonated nicely with customers, Mercedes plans to present its upcoming electrical autos a extra conventional look, just like its inner combustion engine lineup. The successor to the EQS sedan is anticipated to embody the qualities of a real electrical S-Class, aiming to recapture clients who might have turned to different choices such because the Lucid Air or an S-Class plug-in hybrid because of the present mannequin’s styling.
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