The Mercedes-Benz EQC takes on the Spanish desert to test the durability of its battery pack under extreme heat.
We’ve known about the impending Mercedes-Benz EQC for awhile now, but it seems the car is nearly ready for production. Normally, we have to speculate with spy photos, as they’re published beyond the manufacturer’s control. We see the car in prototype form before we’re “supposed” to see it. Well, that’s not the case here, as Mercedes officially released these photos of the EQC to the world today.
Part of the testing prior to the car’s actual launch is the round of endurance trials. The EQC managed to prevail over arctic conditions at -35 degrees Celsius (-31 degrees Fahrenheit). Now, it’s time to take on the other extreme: scorching desert heat. For that, Mercedes-Benz is taking their new electric crossover to the Iberian peninsula in Spain. In the Tabernas Desert, they’re coming to grips with exactly how the car will perform under conditions up to 50 degrees Celsius, or 122 degrees Fahrenheit. Mercedes-Benz is taking 200 EQC prototypes to the Spanish desert as part of their development testing to test items like battery cooling and air conditioning in hot conditions. The company is also testing to see where fine dust – another desert party piece – will end up that may be problematic in the production EQC.
More testing is coming up
Before coming to market, Mercedes will also test the EQC in Finland, Sweden, Italy, Dubai, South Africa, the United States and China. The GLC-based crossover is the first under Mercedes’ new “EQ” sub-brand. We don’t know exact performance specs for the Mercedes-Benz EQC just yet, nor do we know exactly when it’s going on sale. However, from the looks of the current prototype, it appears we may be drawing close to the company’s first electric vehicle hitting the market. In fact, we suspect the car will emerge sometime next year.
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