Mercedes VISION EQXX makes 747-mile road trip from Germany to England on a single charge

July 3, 2022 by admin 33 Comments

The Mercedes-Benz VISION EQXX, a research vehicle designed for maximum efficiency, demonstrated its 1,000 km+ range on a road trip from Stuttgart to Cassis, France in April. Now the test car has cracked the thousand-kilometer mark again, driving 747 miles on a single charge on its way to the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed in Silverstone, England. Starting in Stuttgart, the VISION EQXX cruised across France to Calais, passed through the Eurotunnel, and arrived at Goodwood, where Formula E driver Nyck de Vries took it for a few hot laps on the iconic British race track at its maximum speed of 87 mph.

The goal of the odyssey, which featured highway driving, heavy traffic and temperatures of up to 86° F, was to prove the effectiveness of Mercedes-Benz’s thermal management system and other efficiency technologies in a range of real-life traffic scenarios, and to provide the automaker’s R&D team with data for the ongoing development program. On this trip, the VISION EQXX achieved an average consumption of 8.3 kWh/100 km. (For comparison, a Tesla Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive, which is one of the most efficient production EVs, achieves 14.9 kWh/100 km.)

The research vehicle’s high efficiency has much to do with advanced thermal management. According to Mercedes, “The exceptional efficiency of the electric drive unit means it generates only minimal waste heat. This helps keep the thermal management system extremely small and lightweight. The carefully engineered interaction of aero-shutters, coolant valves and pumps ensures the electric drive unit maintains the most efficient temperature balance at minimum energy cost. It encompasses a combination of innovative air-flow management and a cooling plate installed in the vehicle floor, enabling it to take advantage of the air flowing along the underside of the VISION EQXX. This is the most aerodynamically efficient way of keeping the electric drive unit cool under normal conditions, allowing an increase in range of around two percent in the most aerodynamic mode.”

“The multi-source heat pump in the VISION EQXX proved highly efficient at keeping the cabin temperature cool in the warm summer weather,” Mercedes explains. “During the 14 hours and 30 minutes of driving time, the air conditioning was operational for just over eight hours, yet had a minimal negative impact on overall energy consumption.”

“Yet again, the VISION EQXX has proven that it can easily cover more than 1,000 km on a single battery charge, this time faced with a whole different set of real- world conditions,” said Mercedes-Benz Group Board Member Markus Schäfer. “As Mercedes-Benz strives to go all-electric by 2030 wherever market conditions allow, it is important to show to the world what can be achieved in real terms through a combination of cutting-edge technology, teamwork and determination.”

Source: Mercedes-Benz USA