One month after it made its official debut, the Mercedes-Benz EQC, the company's first all-electric crossover, showed up for public display at the 2018 Paris Motor Show. Displayed alongside the new-generation GLE Class, the EQC has quite a few technologies to showcase in France.

Mercedes' first venture in this segment, the EQC is pretty much a standard SUV as far as looks go. However, features like the front grille, headlamps, and wheels set it apart from its GLC and GLE siblings. The interior is also unique. Even though it borrows many features from Merc's current design language, it has a unique dash layout, a new touchpad controller, and unique A/C vents. The the real highlights of this electric crossover lie in the technology department.

State-of-the-art Infotainment

Things kick off with the MBUX infotainment system. Introduced earlier this year in the A-Class hatchback, it was revised for the EQC to include EV-specific features. It now displays the range, charge status, and energy flow, and enables you to set up the EQ-optimized navigation system, driving modes, and charging current. It also has a special EQ menu where numerous EV-related features are grouped.

But while infotainment systems with EV-specific features are common in electric cars, the MBUX system stands out thanks to its intelligent voice control with natural language comprehension. Activated by the keyword "Hey Mercedes," it accepts multimedia functions like destination input, phone calls, music selection, writing and hearing messages, and weather forecast, as well as convenience functions like climate control and lighting.

Unlike regular Mercedes models, it also understands EQ-specific questions like "Where is the next charging station?" and "Where can I charge the battery?"

New Electric Drivetrain

Mercedes-Benz developed brand-new drivetrain technology for the EQC too. While it's no big news that it has two electric motors -- many EVs do -- the big deal is that they're configured differently in order to reduce power consumption. Specifically, the front motor was optimized to drive the SUV with the best possible efficiency in the low to medium load range, while the rear motor handles the sportier side.

Located deep into the floor to help save room inside the cabin, the battery has a modular design with two modules with 48 cells each and four clusters with 72 cells each.

Saving Energy and Keeping Passengers Safe

This happens when the vehicle is approaching a change in speed limit or an area where coasting can be enabled to save battery. The system works in conjunction with data from the navigation and traffic sign recognition systems, as well as info from the intelligent safety assistants.

Mercedes-Benz also packed the EV with active safety systems, making it one of the safest crossovers on the road. The Driver Assistance Package, for instance, includes new functions such as predictive speed adjustment when approaching traffic, Active Brake Assist, Pre-Safe, and Pre-Safe Plus.

Further Reading

Read our full review on the 2020 Mercedes-Benz EQC.

Read our full review on the 2016 Mercedes‑Benz "Generation EQ" Concept.