It’s been a classic problem – until now.  You might be prompted to purchase an EV out of concern about the environment and the world we’re leaving for future generations.  However, until quite recently, if you were in the process of bringing up the next generation, you didn’t have many (or any) options, as most early EVs were small hatchbacks that just weren’t suited for a growing family. They also weren’t suited for work anywhere else that you needed the ability to transport six passengers and/or have something that works well with a wheelchair.

However, this problem has now been solved by the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV, a five-door MPV that’s a seven-seater EV. The 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV is technically a van but with a touch of sophistication in the exterior styling that makes it rather dignified, including the tinted windows and touches of chrome.  Although one could think of many contexts where the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV would be a very useful vehicle, I can’t help thinking that it could work well as a hearse, and I don’t mean that in a morbid way or as an insult.  Despite being tall, it’s able to fit into most underground carparks, with the 18-inch alloy wheels and the roof rails taking it to 1.96 cm.  This is quite important, as the designers at Mercedes have thought things out carefully, with the seat design permitting all sorts of ways to customize them, as the seats (trimmed in black leather, of course) tilt and slide, and can even be taken out completely without the need for a toolbox – and put back in “conference layout” so the middle and rear seats face each other. This ease of customisation in the rear seats also means that the EQV is suitable for those who need to take a wheelchair.

The point of difference that makes the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV attractive (apart from its versatility) is the electric motor, meaning that this people-carrier could qualify for various governmental schemes and incentives (this will vary depending on the price you pay and which state you live in).  The powerplant inside the EQV is a 150 kW electrical motor with a 90 kW-h battery.  This can be juiced up with a Type 2 charger. It charges in 10 hours from 0% to 100% with a 11 kW AC charger, for which you’ll need a proper wall box – I strongly recommend getting one of these as an accessory to your 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV so you can make the most of overnight at-home charging. Fast charging takes 45 minutes for 10–80% topping up at 110 kW DC. Once fully charged and under ideal conditions, the battery has a nominal range of around 400 km.  The standard navigation system has been set up so you can find the nearest charging station easily, and the information on the remaining range in the battery (adapted to your current level of consumption and driving style) can interact with the map.  On the road, the engine, which has a torque of 365 Nm, has been speed-limited so the top speed is 140 km/h – more than enough for any people-carrier!

The battery has been carefully located in the floor of the vehicle to keep it super-safe and to keep the centre of gravity low for better handling – no top-heavy vans here, thank you.  The batteries of EVs weigh quite a lot, so the designers have carefully made the weight into an asset.

The safety of the passengers and the driver have also been considered carefully, with a suite of features installed to protect you.  These include brake assistance, hill start assistance, the lane keeping function (with a sensory warning if you start drifting), blind spot assistance for when you change lanes on purpose, active distance assistance that helps you keep a safe following distance in heavy traffic, crosswind assistance (which is always important in a van, even if it’s not very high-sided), and the Attention Assistance safety feature that Mercedes includes in all its recent offerings.  Attention Assistance will detect when you’re getting sleepy and/or distracted (it uses cameras for this) and will warn and alert you if it thinks you are.  However, should the worst happen, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV has plenty of airbags for everybody, as well as state-of-the art seatbelts.

Getting a big MPV in and out of a parking space in busy mall carpark can be tricky, even if you’re eligible to use the disability parking spaces.  To help you with these manoeuvres, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV has got parking sensors and 360° cameras for when you need to get your 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV in and out of a parking space. However, if you aren’t the best at parallel parking (or angle parking), you can make the most of Mercedes’ clever active parking assistance features, which assesses the suitability of a park, and can help you with both angle and parallel parking.

Inside the cabin, the EQV continues to deliver in terms of comfort and convenience.  The Burmester sound system plays nicely with the multimedia system, and the infotainment system is compatible with Android Auto and Apple Car Play.  The information is displayed on a 10¼-inch display, and a touchpad and steering-wheel-mounted controls are also there to make things easy for you.  The dual-zone automatic climate control features pre-entry heating, meaning that you won’t have to get into a chilly car ever again.

In summary, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV is a versatile, comfortable and practical MPV that can allow you to enjoy the latest in safety as well as the low-emission motoring of an EV.  Given the ease of being able to customize the seating arrangement, this vehicle would be very high on my list of suitable vehicles for wheelchair users.

The current 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV models include:

• 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV

For any more information on the new 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQV or, for that matter, any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181.  If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of Mercedes-Benz dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!