Electric Mercedes drives from Germany to UK on a single charge in record-breaking journey
Mercedes-Benz Vision EQXX broke its own record using a battery that has the same capacity as the Tesla Model S
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Your support makes all the difference.An electric Mercedes-Benz has beaten its own range record by travelling more than 1,200km (750 miles) on a single charge.
The Vision EQXX drove from Stuttgart in Germany to Silverstone in the UK, completing the record-breaking journey in less than 15 hours.
The electric car achieved the feat with a 100kwh battery pack, which is the same capacity as the battery used in the Tesla Model S.
The Mercedes car was able to achieve roughly twice the range of the Tesla through a combination of advanced aerodynamics, lightweight materials and battery innovations involving the use of state-of-the-art silicon anodes.
It comes just two months after a Mercedes Vision EQXX drove just over 1,000km from Germany to the South of France without stopping to recharge.
Both journies involved real-world traffic conditions, with the latest trip providing additional challenges of high temperatures of up to 30C and stop-and-go motorway traffic around the M25 at rushour.
“Driving this beacon of the future of electric mobility to the place where the Formula 1 story began, and where we’ve seen and contributed to some iconic Formula 1 races is personally very special,” said Mercedes’ Adam Allsopp, who drove the final leg of the 14.5 hours drive to Silverstone on 22 June.
“Completing the journey from Stuttgart to Silverstone on a single charge with even greater efficiency really evidences some great progress in accelerating the technologies underpinning our electrification strategy.”
Mercedes-Benz is aiming to go all-electric by 2030, while the CEO of oil giant Exxon Mobil believes all passenger cars sold in the world will be electric by 2040.
The Vision EQXX is still just a concept car, though innovations with its design and set-up are already making their way into production vehicles.
One such breakthrough is its fixed solar roof, which contains 117 solar cells capable of supplying enough electricity to power the car’s onboard electronics.
Mercedes chairman Ola Källenius described the Vision EQXX as “the most efficient Mercedes ever built”.
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