If the Tesla Model Y we tested can be considered the £50,000 EV of the moment for those who like a keener-performing family car, this Mercedes EQB 300 takes a very different and more sedate route towards wooing its customer.
In a rapidly developing family EV market, there’s plenty of room for both philosophies (more powerful versions of the EQB already exist for those who want a quicker car, with others expected). While most testers agreed that the EQB 300 had all the accelerative haste that a seven-seat family car really needs, however, most also agreed that it was the Mercedes’ more laid-back, dialled-down and comfort-oriented appeal that they would sooner live with on a daily basis than the Tesla’s stiffer, noisier and more urgent temperament.
Launching neatly but with useful urgency from rest on a dry day at the track, the EQB 300 4Matic needed a little under eight seconds to hit 60mph from rest, making it slower than most twin-motor EVs, but not slow in outright terms. The car split single-motor versions of the Kia EV6 and Polestar 2 we have tested of late, and also proved quicker than a single-motor Skoda Enyaq iV.
On the road, as well as feeling ever keen to respond to demands for power, it had a surfeit of power when getting up to urban speeds and beyond, and felt assured getting onto motorways and overtaking around the national speed limit. Less exciting than effortless, it had everyday performance requirements covered with just a little change.
