Mercedes-Benz has reportedly signed off on a new platform for electric cars, with four new electric cars planned–two saloons and two crossovers.
With the Porsche Mission E electric super saloon and the Audi Q6 e-tron electric SUV/crossover already confirmed to be on the way to production, Mercedes-Benz is working hard to make sure it takes a piece of the burgeoning electric car market, as mainstream car makers take aim at Tesla’s head start.
Car Magazine is reporting that Mercedes has signed off on an all new platform for electric vehicle architecture–the EVA platform–which will be used to underpin a quartet of new EVs: two saloon cars and two SUV/Crossover models, Cars UK.
The EVA platform is a development of Mercedes’ rear-drive MRA platform, but with space for a battery pack to fill the floor–just like Tesla–and the option to fit an electric motor to drive the rear wheels as well as an additional motor at the front for four-wheel drive variants, with the rear-wheel drive models getting at least 400 bhp and the four-wheel drive models up to 600 bhp.
Features include adaptive electric suspension, recuperative e-brakes and e-torque vectoring, with styling influenced by the Mercedes Concept aIAA unveiled at Frankfurt a few months ago.
The first new Mercedes EV to arrive will be a saloon pitched between the C-Class and E-Class, followed by an SUV that will be between the GLC and GLE. The saloon car will arrive in 2018.
Following on will be an S-Class-sized saloon car as well as a new super-sized electric SUV, which will be bigger than the GLS.
The new Mercedes EVs will be built at Mercedes’ Bremen plant, with prices expected to start around £70,000 (3.7 billion rials).
