Two electric SUVs from German prestige brands have just gone on sale in Australia, Mercedes-Benz EQC,
and the Audi e-tron. Can the Audi run rings around its rival or will the three-pointed star
outshine the opposition? It's time to run the circuit tester over these two cars to find out.
The Benz has been in Australia for a few months, but the e-tron
is fresh off the boat. And both these cars are identifiably products of each respective brand.
Neither will be mistaken for a conventional SUV in the range, however,
not up close at least. Both are handsome cars and certainly aren't as visually quirky as some EVs.
Two asynchronous electric motors are installed in each car,
one for the front axle and one for the rear. Total output and power to weight ratio favour the Benz
and it certainly feels demonstrably quicker on the road than the Audi.
From the driving position, you don't need the big badge on the steering wheel boss to tell you
that the EQC is a Mercedes-Benz. There's a typical seat adjustment switchgear on the door card,
the infotainment touchpad, and glossy piano-black lacquer giving the game away.
The aggressive contouring of the seats in the Benz will not be to everyone's liking.
They're snug and supportive at least, but they're not the sort of seats you just sink into.
And the driving position doesn't quite work with the footrest too low and far from the driver
relative to the accelerator and brake pedals.
The e-tron is identifiable as an Audi by the familiar Drive Select and engine
start buttons. But much of the fascia and centre console will be all new to consumers.
The front seats are quite well-shaped but not as uncompromising as those in the Benz.
And the footrest is where it should be too, a head-up display would be nice, however,
especially as the Benz has it. With a lower cowl height, the Audi provides a slightly
better field of vision to the front. The unusual drive selector has its Park button right where
your left thumb would unlock the transmission selector in a standard car. Grab the handle to
shift from reverse to drive in a hurry, and you might find you've selected Park instead.
And working out how to disable the parking brakes auto hold facility requires a quick
read of the owner's manual in the Audi's glove box. Well, both cars have their ergonomic quirks,
buyers will likely find themselves more at home in the Audi than in the Benz.
Little touches like the clip to hold a smartphone in place for wireless recharging and the sliding
lid for the centre console are features the Benz can't match. The centre console also features
an additional storage bin under the folding armrest and slots for an SD card and SIM card.
Style is a very personal preference. Although both these cars are at the
top of their form for interior presentation, but for seat shape and overall ergonomics,
chalk this up as a win for the Audi. The shorter wheelbase of the Benz results in
slightly reduced legroom for rear seat occupants of average height. Headroom and legroom in the
rear of the Benz is adequate but feels just a bit claustrophobic back here. The passengers in
the rear are well served by adjustable climate control vents, and USB-C type recharging ports.
There's a sense of added spaciousness in the back of the Audi, the whole cabin
feels lighter and airier than the Benz. Like the Benz, the Audi has adjustable
climate control vents and two recharging ports but of the more common USB-A type.
Slightly smaller dimensions limit the available volume for luggage in the Benz.
There's no denying that the Audi wins this one hands down. With luggage capacity close
to one-third larger than the Benz, the Audi has the room for an inflatable compact spare tire.
The Benz delivers strong performance in a straight line.
And that's not surprising given it produces apparent torque levels similar to an old-fashioned
V8 and it channels the whole lot through an all-wheel-drive system for maximum traction.
So you wanna be pretty sure when you take on this zero-emissions vehicle in the off-street drags.
But when it comes to cornering, it's a bit of a Boulevard cruiser.
It rides generally well, but its dynamic ability is hampered by weight and chassis tune.
What the Audi lacks in straight-line performance it more than makes up in cornering and without
compromising ride comfort either. Even in its softest settings, the underpinnings feel more at
one with the road. And the Audi copes better with harder impacts, such as speed humps, for instance.
Despite the Audi's larger external dimensions, its battery holds just 71-kilowatt hours versus
80 for the Mercedes. That is one of the factors contributing to the shorter range of the Audi.
It's a really tough choice between these two. The Audi is very practical,
and it's a nice drive as well. But the Mercedes Benz offers the five-year warranty,
longer range, better performance, and all that visual pizzazz we've come to
expect from Mercedes-Benz. So for the sake of this exercise, the Mercedes-Benz EQC 400 is the winner.