2023 Mercedes EQS City Edition is a confounding combo, with a scooter
Mercedes-Benz has a division called Urban Mobility Solutions that aims to “make cities more livable with safe, sustainable, efficient and accessible mobility products.” This is done with initiatives like working with city representatives and industries and gathering data from vehicles to note trends. It’s also done, so it seems, with exceedingly intriguing bundles like the 2023 Mercedes-EQS City Edition. The easiest thing to understand is that this is an EQS 580 4Matic sedan that comes in two colorways. Buyers can choose either Twilight Blue Metallic exterior paint with a Neva Grey and Sable Brown Leather interior (pictured), or a Manufaktur Diamond White Metallic exterior with a Macchiato Beige and Space Grey Leather interior. Both are trimmed with AMG wheels outside and Natural Grain Yacht-design Walnut Wood trim inside.
After this, things get interesting. Mercedes will sell just 150 of these, and only in the Los Angeles metro region. Badges beside the side mirrors and on the center console attest to the exclusivity and locale, a “1 of 150” joined by a silhouette of the state of California.
The EQS City Edition is fitted with the Energizing Air Control Plus with HEPA Filtration, normally a $450 option. The three-stage air purifying system scrubs 99 percent of particulate pollution from the cabin, including smog particles and odors. Customers who’d rather brave the raw brown air of the L.A. basin will get, with their EQS purchase, a one-year subscription to an Unagi Model One Voyager electric scooter that would be $69 per month otherwise.
This might help explain the rather low volume. While we can imagine some L.A.-area beach communities where buyers of a $127,000 electric luxury sedan (before options) would also hop a scooter to pop down to the cafe by the marina, the Venn diagram overlap must be miniscule. The customer gets to choose one of five scooter colors, either Cool Mist, Deep Cobalt, Latte, or matte black. The rider can’t weigh more than 220 pounds, though. Because scooter.
But wait, there’s more, starting with a $1,000 credit for Qmerit to install a free ChargePoint Home Flex Charger. Said home charger typically costs $479. The Qmerit discount comes with access to a concierge service to guide homeowners through the installation process. Then, on top of the 30-minute free charging sessions at Electrify America that comes with the EQS for the first two years, the driver enjoys a $250 credit when plugging into ChargePoint stations away from home. This might be the best part of the deal — if this can be called a deal; nationwide charging infrastructure still being so hit-and-miss, more options for free charging would be welcome for most people, although perhaps irrelevant to the buyer of a six-figure EV.
The final gesture is feelgood: For each purchase, Mercedes-Benz USA will make a donation to a Southern California chapter of Safe Kids Worldwide.
Emphasizing the part about “if this can be called a deal,” Mercedes hasn’t said how much the City Edition costs. For those interested, take your helmet and knee pads to the
dealership, plus the willingness to spend at least $130,000, and make a deal.
