Source: Yuan Auto

The joys and sorrows of the world are often disconnected from one another.

While Mercedes-Benz Design Director Gordon Wagner was celebrating the unveiling of the new generation of pure electric vehicles, even going so far as to publicly critique the new designs from BMW and Audi, Mercedes-Benz China was facing the challenge of swiftly clearing out the previous generation's offerings—the EQ series of pure electric vehicles.

Recently, a wave of discount sales for Mercedes-Benz's EQ series of pure electric vehicles has swept across social media platforms. Models such as the EQE, EQE SUV, and EQB are listed, with discounted transaction prices often reaching six figures in the comment sections. On September 12, Yuan Auto learned from a Mercedes-Benz 4S store in Guangzhou that the intensity of this discount sale is unprecedented.

01

Is This a Bargain or a Bad Deal?

"A discount of 200,000 yuan."

When Yuan Auto, posing as a potential customer, inquired about the price of the EQE at the aforementioned Mercedes-Benz 4S store, the salesperson promptly offered a cash discount of 200,000 yuan. Based on the guide price of 488,000 yuan (which includes a car price of 478,000 yuan plus a 10,000 yuan optional audio package), this discount amounts to nearly 40% off.

The salesperson informed Yuan Auto that the current discounts for models like the EQE and EQE SUV are larger than ever before. The EQE is essentially out of production, and only existing stock is being sold. If a customer trades in an older Mercedes-Benz model, such as a C-Class, E-Class, or GLC, there is an additional trade-in subsidy available. "There's an event this weekend, and if you can agree on the price, we can still make adjustments," the salesperson added.

It's worth noting that despite the substantial cash discount, the 4S store requires customers to purchase 8,000 yuan worth of accessories and pay a registration service fee in the thousands of yuan. Nevertheless, for a Mercedes-Benz E-Class in the pure electric era, the naked car price (base price) dropping to 288,000 yuan is truly remarkable.

However, extraordinary circumstances often have underlying reasons. If you're considering taking advantage of the discounts on the Mercedes-Benz EQ series, it's advisable to first research the used car market. In terms of residual value, the EQ series may be among the worst-performing Mercedes-Benz models.

Taking the EQE as an example, the 2022 EQE, which has the same official guide price as the current model, has seen many 2-3 year old used cars with mileage under 50,000 kilometers drop in price to below 200,000 yuan. Considering that this is the selling price from used car dealers, the owner's asking price would likely be even lower by 10,000 yuan or more.

In other words, the 3-year residual value rate of the EQE can be as low as around 40%, and generally falls below 50%. From this perspective, buying a brand-new Mercedes-Benz EQE for the sake of a bargain may not offer better value than purchasing a top-quality used car.

After all, spending 300,000 yuan on a brand-new Mercedes-Benz EQE, including various fees from the 4S store, can be expected to depreciate to at least 180,000-190,000 yuan after three years. However, spending less than 200,000 yuan on a used EQE now, the likelihood of its value dropping to below 100,000 yuan after three years is almost negligible.

02

Starting Anew

Don't assume that the poor performance of the Mercedes-Benz EQ series of pure electric vehicles is limited to the domestic market, with the blame solely resting on the fierce competition in China's new energy vehicle market. When viewed globally, its performance is equally unimpressive.

Data reveals that in 2024, global deliveries of Mercedes-Benz pure electric vehicles, primarily the EQ series, reached 185,100 units, marking a year-on-year decrease of 23%. In the first half of 2025, Mercedes-Benz's global sales of pure electric models trailed BMW's pure electric i series by approximately a 50% sales gap.

The poor global performance of the Mercedes-Benz EQ series can be attributed to a range of issues, from design flaws to product quality concerns. As early as 2021, when the flagship model of the EQ series, the EQS, was launched, the market criticized Mercedes-Benz's extreme pursuit of low aerodynamic drag in its exterior design. Generally, it was believed that the car, as the S-Class of the new energy era, failed to match the fuel-powered S-Class in terms of emotional value dimensions such as perception and presence.

At the same time, due to the extreme pursuit of streamlined design, the rear passenger experience of the EQS could not compare to that of the fuel-powered S-Class. These issues are also present in the EQE, which shares a similar design philosophy. Some well-known automotive critics have even commented that the poor rear passenger experience of the EQE should warrant an accelerated discontinuation of the model.

On the other hand, since some models in the EQ series are built on a vehicle architecture that accommodates both fuel and electric powertrains, there are voices in the market questioning whether Mercedes-Benz is still in the "fuel-to-electric conversion" phase, with quality potentially inferior to that of models built on a native pure electric architecture. Additionally, the occasional fire incidents involving EQ series pure electric vehicles since 2023 have heightened consumer concerns about their quality.

Faced with this series of intertwined unfavorable factors, Mercedes-Benz has decided to start anew.

"The new all-electric long-wheelbase CLA represents Mercedes-Benz's latest breakthrough in electrification and marks the beginning of our technology and product offensive in the Chinese market for the coming years," stated Tong Oufu, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Chairman of Mercedes-Benz China, at this year's Shanghai Auto Show. According to him, Mercedes-Benz will launch pure electric vehicles built on a new platform this year to reverse its current situation in the new energy market.

Compared to the EQ series, the new generation of Mercedes-Benz pure electric vehicles, led by the new all-electric long-wheelbase CLA, will place greater emphasis on localization. For instance, in terms of assisted driving, the new all-electric long-wheelbase CLA will adopt an assisted driving solution provided by Chinese supplier Momenta, while more local suppliers will also be involved in areas such as the intelligent cockpit.

Based on the MMA platform, Mercedes-Benz will bid farewell to the EQ series and fully commit to a strategy of "coexisting gasoline and electric models." Following the new all-electric long-wheelbase CLA, classic model series including the GLC, GLB, GLA, and C-Class will all sequentially launch new all-electric versions.

It can be expected that these new generation pure electric Mercedes-Benz models will boast sufficient differentiated selling points. For example, the new CLA, as a pure electric vehicle, will feature a two-speed transmission, enabling a pure electric driving range of over 800 kilometers. However, Mercedes-Benz still needs to consider how to explain to the market the difference between the MMA platform, which accommodates both fuel and electric models, and a simple "fuel-to-electric conversion."

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