Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV Long Term Review: Exemplary. Full Stop.

There are a lot of standout features in this EQS SUV. But you would expect nothing less, wouldn’t you – considering that this is a luxury Mercedes-Benz EV? Well, I suppose, but there are some that are worth pointing out all the same.

The first is that the EQS 580 SUV looks and feels truly premium. The deep bottle green metallic paint certainly adds to the luxury quotient, as does the light design, front and rear, accentuated by light bars at both ends. All told, it’s got some serious street presence and feels every bit the Rs 1.4 crore SUV (ex-showroom). In truth, it actually feels like it should set you back even more...

The second is its 10-degrees of rear-wheel steering, which is double what a typical four-wheel steering system offers. The end result is that it’s incredibly manoeuvrable in the city and around tight parking lots. It means that this 5.1-metre SUV simply shrinks around you and never feels large or lumbering. Nor does it feel particularly heavy, despite weighing 2.8 tonnes, for the simple reason that it produces the equivalent of 544bhp and 858Nm of torque, which propels it rather swiftly to 100km/h from rest in just 4.7 seconds.

The third standout feature is range, which is exemplary. The biggest question mark in EV ownership is range anxiety – an issue that simply isn’t a concern in this instance. It has a claimed range of 809km thanks to a 122kWh battery pack, which means that even in real world conditions you get somewhere north of 650km on a single charge. It had some other pretty special touches too, such as a hyperscreen for a dashboard, insanely well-built turbine-esque AC vents, a Burmester 3D surround system, a ridiculous range of ambient lighting options and screens for all passengers. But it does miss out on one very important feature, and that’s blinds on the rear windows – which is a big miss!

My only recommendation, after living with the EQS for a while, and attempting to work on my laptop while very comfortably ensconced in the back seat, is to set the driving mode to Eco if it’s your chauffeur who’s ferrying you around – because the acceleration is so urgent that even when the driver is being gentle, you can feel the immediate surge of forward momentum.

The only thing that an ICE vehicle does better than the EQS is ride quality – because the EQS needs to control its weight, the ride isn’t quite as plush as an equivalent internal combustion powered S-Class or GLS. It’s extremely capable but missing some of that ultimate compliance. But ride height isn’t an issue, and there are simply no deal breakers with this car – just as long as you ask your dealer to fit some aftermarket rear window shades. The fact is that this is an EV that I’m very much going to miss having in the garage...