Mercedes-EQ branding may be retired sooner rather than later

Mercedes-Benz may be set to drop the ‘EQ’ prefix from its electric models in the coming year, if a report with German news source German daily Handelsblatt is to be believed.

Reported widely this week, including by business paper Reuters, the decision reportedly comes in response to a new perspective on what the badging represents in the current range – potentially stunting the proliferation of Benz’s EVs in the process.

"With the goal of our parent brand Mercedes-Benz becoming fully electric by the end of the decade, we will adapt the positioning of the vehicles and thus also the use of the brand in line with the times, but it is too early for details on this at the moment," an EQ spokesperson told Handelsblatt.

4

The 2016 Generation EQ concept hinted at the EQC launched later

Previewed in 2016 and launched in 2017, the EQ brand is described as a twist on the familiar term ‘IQ’ (intelligence quotient), intended to mean ‘Electric Intelligence’ – although the initialism ‘EQ’ is already a partner concept to IQ, meaning emotional quotient, or ‘emotional intelligence’.

For Mercedes, the move to change model branding is far from a new concept. In 2016, the brand smartly reorganised all of its SUV models under the GL prefix (except for the iconic G-Class), using the third letter to signify its size – GLA for small, through to GLS for upper large.

The launch of the EQ brand – which really kicked off with the EQC in 2019 – saw Mercedes set its electric models apart under a new banner, with the electric version of the GLA known as the EQA, the electric GLB known as the EQB, and so on.

4

In addition to its regular line of models, the EQ family includes the EQA, EQB, EQC, EQE, EQE SUV, EQS, EQS SUV, and EQV, along with the upcoming EQG.

(Whether Mercedes anticipated needing to tack ‘SUV’ on the end of EQE and EQS to set them apart from their sedan companions is unclear, but it is arguably an inelegant solution.)

In some respects, Benz’s approach has been one of the simpler strategies for identifying electric models. BMW’s EV strategy has promoted a similar method, applying ‘i’ ahead of the model name for electric versions of its regular models, including the iX1 and iX3 SUVs and the new i4 sedan.

4

The 2023 EQE SUV

On the other hand, Volkswagen’s ID brand is entirely disconnected from its conventional models in both naming and design, and the car maker has yet to confirm how it will brand future electric versions of its regular models. Obvious options, of course, would be ID.Golf or Golf.ID.

Other Volkswagen Group stablemates have taken a similar approach, with Audi’s E-Tron and Skoda’s iV lines standing apart from their regular petrol/diesel/hybrid siblings with few common points in either design or branding. Skoda has, however, launched an Octavia iV plug-in hybrid, and Audi offers a three-row Q5 E-Tron in China – although it has nothing in common with the regular Q5 offered in the west.

Whether any of these brands will retire their EV-specific marques after their last traditional badge goes all-electric... remains to be seen.

Will there be a point to an electric-only Golf line-up wearing the ID badge?