Key Points in This Review
- The new Mercedes-EQ EQE320+ SUV is a product of model-line reorganization for 2026.
- There are significant differences between the single- and dual-motor versions.
- The EQE320+ SUV’s price has been substantially reduced versus its predecessor.
Well now, this is exciting: the base trim of a luxury electric vehicle. It’s not often we spoiled automotive journalists get our hands on an EV that isn’t a loaded-up top-spec trim with quintuple motors, a billion horsepower and genuine diamonds set into the head restraints. A week with the single-motor 2026 Mercedes-EQ EQE320+ SUV was a rare glimpse into how the 99% must live. Oh, to dream!
I’m just goofin’, of course. The base price of the 2026 EQE SUV is $66,300, which is nearly $3,000 more than a no-option, gas-powered GLE350 — and this being a Mercedes, those options hang heavy on its rounded haunches. Thanks to line items like a head-up display ($1,100), rear-axle steering ($1,300), AMG-style wheels ($1,100) and an AMG Line exterior appearance package ($2,200), this “base” 320+ came with an $81,920 as-tested price.
Related: Mercedes-Benz Restarts Production of EQE, EQS EVs
Let’s cut the chaff right off the bat: Dropping those wheels, that appearance package and rear steering saves a solid $4,600, though I’d retain the $1,900 air suspension thanks to its clear day-to-day benefit. A well-optioned commuter EQE SUV should fall within the mid-$75,000 range, which isn’t outrageous cash for either the class or the vehicle itself.
Ignoring its 617-horsepower AMG variant, the EQE SUV is available in the U.S. only in its 320 grade with a choice of single or dual motors. Odd? Well, this universal EQE is the result of model-line pruning meant to return breathing room to the larger, more expensive EQS SUV, which the automaker significantly cut the price of for the 2026 model year. After that came price and trim cuts for the EQE SUV, eliminating the priciest EQE500 4Matic and remixing the EQE350 4Matic and EQE350+ into the new EQE320 twins.
Should I Get the Single- or Dual-Motor EQE320 SUV?
- Takeaway: It depends on your needs, but sticking with the single-motor variant is probably best.
Compared directly with the 2025 350 models, Merc has cut $10,450 from the 320 4Matic’s starting price, and it cut a whopping $12,950 from the single-motor model’s price tag. This is especially enticing given the 2026 320+ is mostly unchanged from the pricier 2025 350+. Now your only choice is between powertrain configurations — and that’s a choice you must make wisely, really considering your needs; there’s a surprisingly significant difference between the two versions, and it doesn’t favor the one you’d probably expect.
This single-motor EQE SUV is rear-wheel drive, with a stout 315 hp and 416 pounds-feet of torque, and it’s powered by a 96-kilowatt-hour battery pack. Its 0-60 mph run takes a cheeky 5.9 seconds, according to Mercedes, and driving range is an EPA-rated 270 miles. The all-wheel-drive dual-motor EQE SUV, meanwhile, keeps the 315 hp but its torque increases to 564 pounds-feet — but don’t spec it just yet. Its 0-60 mph time swells to a still-sprightly 6.2 seconds, and its range drops to 253 miles thanks both to hauling an additional 144 pounds and its modestly smaller 90.5-kWh battery pack.
That’s right: Unless you genuinely need AWD for your climate, I’d highly recommend sticking with the single-motor version for better range, performance and an extra $2,500 in your pocket. In Los Angeles, for example, I have little need for AWD, and the rear-motor 320+ is perfectly suited to this glitzy, glammy, EV-lovin’ city.
I’m still not the biggest fan of Mercedes’ EQ styling language, but design is subjective, and the EQE SUV’s greatest crime is not hideousness, but anonymity. And as Mercedes is in the midst of rethinking its EV strategy, this body-by-beluga might not be long for this world: The all-new 2027 GLC With EQ Technology is essentially an EQC SUV, and it wears duds similar to Mercedes’ gas-powered GLC.
Can You Get the Hyperscreen in the EQE SUV?
- Takeaway: Absolutely, but its standard 12.8-inch center infotainment touchscreen is more than enough.
That all-new GLE With EQ Technology is on the horizon, but for now, this is what we got. And what we’ve got is very much in line with what we’ve known and mostly enjoyed in other EQ products, presenting here as a car a more average consumer might reasonably buy, as opposed to something like the Mercedes-Maybach EQS680 SUV.
I do expect the majority of EQE SUV buyers to splurge for the $4,950 56-inch Hyperscreen display, an option conspicuously absent on my test car. And who can blame them? It was such a struggle to operate with just the standard 12.8-inch center infotainment display and 12.3-inch digital driver display — a piddling 25 inches of digital real estate. More snark, of course: That standard center touchscreen was more than fitting for my needs and this SUV’s interior space, and it allowed for the specification of somewhat sharp, somewhat gauche dash trim with backlit, laser-etched tri-pointed stars.
The fit, finish and presentation of the rest of the cockpit was in line with what you’d expect of an E-Class or GLE. I still highly dislike the use of gloss-black trim, though, which is used on the 320’s center console.
More on Mercedes-Benz From Cars.com:
- 2027 Mercedes-Benz GLC With EQ Technology: Hitting a Stride
- How Do the 2027 BMW iX3 and 2027 Mercedes-Benz GLC With EQ Technology Compare?
- Electric Cars With the Longest Range
- What Automakers Offer App Subscriptions and How Much Do They Cost?
- Research Mercedes-Benz Here
How Does the EQE320+ SUV Drive?
- Takeaway: It drives and rides as you’d expect an all-electric Mercedes to perform.
In day-to-day driving, the single-motor 320+ offers more performance than you’ll ever reasonably need — especially useful if you plan to drag around more than just one passenger at a time. The brake blend between its physical brakes and pure regenerative resistance is well tuned, and the brake pedal demonstrates none of the odd feedback and variable pressure quirks I’ve encountered in a number of other EQs. The togglable regen offers one-pedal driving in its maximum setting.
Steering is quick — bordering on too quick — thanks in no small part to that optional rear-wheel steering, and ride quality from the air suspension was comfortable enough for what most folks expect of a Mercedes-Benz SUV. I stayed in the Comfort drive mode most of the time thanks to the Sport mode’s notable stiffness and propensity for annoying ride resonance over craggier surfaces.
The EQE320+ is a fine luxury mid-size EV, offering a chunk more for less than both its sibling and its predecessors. If you can’t wait for the forthcoming 2027 GLC With EQ Technology (or it’s a size too small), take advantage of the 2026 Mercedes-EQ EQE320+ SUV’s sharp discounts. And leave that extra motor on the factory shelf — you probably don’t need it.
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