Mercedes Benz B-Class Electric Drive

[TonyWilliams]

Woo Hoo !!! My guess from May 1, 2014 was right:

Mercedes B-Class Electric (TESLA drivetrain) - Page 17

Originally Posted by jomo25
Not according to their dealer's site

2014 B-Class Electric Drive

28 kWh lithium-ion battery stored safely and unobtrusively in rear floor "Energy Space"

Yes, I aware what their website says. My estimates stand, however I offer the very real caveat that they will only offer the "15% more" (according the Mercedes) above 28kWh when you pay extra for it. Sound familiar Model S-40 buyers?

Mercedes B-Class ED battery

36.0kWh total – 100% SOC
33.2kWh usable- 95.0% SOC
28.0kWh usable- 80.0% SOC
1.0kWh unusable- 2.7% SOC

 

[hingisfan]

MB just emailed me and the B-Class Electric will NOT be coming to Canada....BOOOO! Time to start saving up for a Model X I guess.

 

[Vger]

MB just emailed me and the B-Class Electric will NOT be coming to Canada....BOOOO! Time to start saving up for a Model X I guess.

Really too bad. I guess that is an indication that this is still a bit of a compliance car for MB.

 

[mnx]

MB just emailed me and the B-Class Electric will NOT be coming to Canada....BOOOO! Time to start saving up for a Model X I guess.

You could always buy one in the US and import it. It appears almost all new MB's can be imported via the RIV program.

MERCEDES-BENZ

 

[hingisfan]

You could always buy one in the US and import it. It appears almost all new MB's can be imported via the RIV program.

MERCEDES-BENZ

I thought of that, but then I will likely have no one in Canada who could service the drive-train/battery if needed, possibly a warranty issue with MB Canada, plus I would not get the $8,500 EV rebate that I would get if I bought an EV in Ontario. Paying full pop for the MB compared to getting $8,500 off a Tesla makes me want to save up for the Tesla even more.

 

[miimura]

B-Class ED EPA numbers are in.

85 MPGe City
83 MPGe Highway
84 MPGe Combined (400Wh/mi)
87 miles EPA Range (without Range Package "range charge")

So, energy consumption is slightly more than Model S (380Wh/mi), but notably less than RAV4 EV (440Wh/mi), as expected.

 

[ecarfan]

Thanks for posting that info. I find those numbers somewhat disappointing, but not unexpected.

If only Mercedes had put a 40kW battery in that car, it would be more useful.

 

[miimura]

I think both the RAV4 and the B Class would be helped on EPA numbers by putting a heat pump heater instead of a resistive cabin heater.

Remember that the B Class can get about 107 EPA miles (my guess) with the $600 Range Package. It just allows you to charge up more (maybe 34kWh) of the 36kWh battery than normally allowed. Normally, the charge window is only 28kWh.

 

[ecarfan]

Mercedes B-Class Electric (TESLA drivetrain)

The Mercedes doesn't have a heat pump? That's a mistake.

Yes the range package adds range (according to Mercedes but I wish the EPA had tested and confirmed it) but I don't understand the thinking behind that "option". It makes no sense. How does it benefit Mercedes to charge that small amount for that feature? If that was the standard range they could market it as a plus-100 mile range EV and I think that would help sales.

Unfortunately it would still look like a shrunken minivan. No visual appeal.

 

[miimura]

M-B's decision on the Range Package is definitely a head-scratcher. The RAV4 EV simply has a selection on the NAV screen for "Extended Charge" which is essentially the same thing that M-B is doing with their button to enable the extra charge window. However, the Range Package also has some additional insulation and an electrically heated windshield, all of which has some real cost.

As for the appearance, I prefer it to the i3 and Leaf. In my mind, form follows function and making an EV look strange for the sake of being different doesn't fly with me.

 

[ecarfan]

In my mind, form follows function and making an EV look strange for the sake of being different doesn't fly with me.

Completely agree with you on that!

 

[hiroshiy]

I don't understand why it's electron consumption is worse than Model S?? If it's smaller and lighter it must consume less power I thought.

 

[PhilBa]

what do you expect from a company that thinks Electric Drive is a good marketing term. I personally don't want to hear about ED. Though, maybe they could make the extended range button blue...

 

[ggies07]

what do you expect from a company that thinks Electric Drive is a good marketing term. I personally don't want to hear about ED. Though, maybe they could make the extended range button blue...

Hahahaha. Nice!

 

[DrComputer]

Went for a walk today and headed down car row by my house. I wandered into Keyes Mercedes to grab a bottle of water (it was 95 degrees out today) and I saw they had a new B-class in the showroom. I walked up to one of the three sales people that were standing by the front door, whom completely ignored me when I walked in, and asked if I could test drive one. He looked a bit perplexed and asked if I knew it was an electric car. When I told him I knew exactly what is was he then asked why I wanted to drive it. I told him I owned two Teslas and that I like to keep current on all electric vehicles. He said they just arrived a few days ago and admitted that he had never been in an electric car. We walked upstairs and grabbed one of the four cars they had in stock.

I really understand why Tesla is so against the franchised car sales model. Although the salesperson was nice, he knew absolutely nothing about the B-class car or electric cars in general. The entire test drive I educated him on the finer points of the B-class and electric cars.

I had recently driven the BWM i3 and have to say that if I were shopping for an electric car and the choice was between the Mercedes and the BMW I would definitely go with the Mercedes. It is more traditional looking and feeling. The space is more useable and the controls and driving feel are more in-line with a premium class car.

That being said, I doubt any casual car shopper that wanders into a Mercedes dealer (or at least Keyes Mercedes) will never be shown a B-class as a practical option. It's sad since I think it is a great car but seems completely out of place parked next to a $75K E-550 and $120K S550 in the showroom. I guess we can just chalk it up to yet another California compliance car that will be seen by the industry as a "failure" since the dealers will fail to sell them.

 

[ecarfan]

" I guess we can just chalk it up to yet another California compliance car that will be seen by the industry as a "failure"

I think you have that exactly right. Thanks for your post.

 

[Ven Rala]

The traditional auto makers have no idea how to market EVs. A Porsche salesman came to a local EV meetup by request to show the Panamera plugin. He put down Tesla multiple times during his talk (I was not happy about that).

It was nice of him to bring by the car and it was nice, but it is slower than a Model S or any other Panamera, and costs more.

The small but telling feature was that it had a quad exhaust?! it is neither fast or terribly efficient. Traditional Porsche drivers dont want a slower car that they have to learn to plug in. EV enthusiasts dont want to spend $100k on a car that goes 20 miles on electric. The legacy auto makers are setting up EVs to fail.

 

[EarlyAdopter]

The traditional auto makers have no idea how to market EVs. A Porsche salesman came to a local EV meetup by request to show the Panamera plugin. He put down Tesla multiple times during his talk (I was not happy about that).

It was nice of him to bring by the car and it was nice, but it is slower than a Model S or any other Panamera, and costs more.

The small but telling feature was that it had a quad exhaust?! it is neither fast or terribly efficient. Traditional Porsche drivers dont want a slower car that they have to learn to plug in. EV enthusiasts dont want to spend $100k on a car that goes 20 miles on electric. The legacy auto makers are setting up EVs to fail.

A good example where hybrids end up being neither good gasoline cars nor good EVs. Worst of both worlds.

 

[TonyWilliams]

A good example where hybrids end up being neither good gasoline cars nor good EVs. Worst of both worlds.

Last generation hybrid:

 

[ecarfan]

Traditional Porsche drivers dont want a slower car that they have to learn to plug in. EV enthusiasts dont want to spend $100k on a car that goes 20 miles on electric. The legacy auto makers are setting up EVs to fail.

In 2011 Porsche built three BEV Boxsters that got me excited even though their range was only 107 miles (claimed by Porsche, real world range probably much less) with 29kWh battery packs. See Porsche Publicly Debuts its Electric Boxster E, But Its Not For Sale | Car and Driver Blog

But then the company didn't move forward with BEVs. They built the 918 hybrid for over $850K (not a car for the real world) and are just now making hybrid Panameras and Cayennes with tiny EV ranges. They don't seem to believe they can make a long range EV sportscar even though they clearly understand BEV technology. I believe they are simply afraid of cannabalizing their 911 sales and lack the vision and courage to move beyond the ICE business model.

Mercedes seems to be taking a smarter approach by partnering with Tesla and launching a city BEV that could sell in reasonable numbers if they market it properly and educate their sales force. Whether they actually do either of those things remains to be seen.