Due to slow sales, the Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive will be phased out by the end of this year, according to Automotive News. Another reason this luxury electric hatch is going away is for Benz to shift its focus to the EQ sub-brand of electric vehicles currently in its concept phase. Petrol and diesel variants of the B-Class will continue production, but won’t come to the U.S.
If you didn’t know Mercedes-Benz sold an electric car, you’re not alone. The company only sold 3,651 of the B-Class Electric Drive since it came out in late 2013. It was technically available nationwide, but not every dealer has them.
"Due to our strategic focus on [connectivity, autonomous driving, sharing and electric drive systems] for the mobility of the future, we are planning the step-by-step electrification of our portfolio," Mercedes-Benz USA spokesman Rob Moran wrote in an email to Automotive News. "Moreover, we are evaluating the production of our new generation of electric vehicles at all of our locations of Mercedes-Benz Cars."
What we know so far about the EQ sub-brand is that it’s a big part of Daimler AG’s $11 billion investment in electric cars. Daimler wants to bring 10 EVs to market by 2022, several of which will fly the EQ flag. The concept we’ve seen is a crossover unveiled at the Paris Motor Show last year. It was very concepty and we’re looking forward to seeing a more production-ready version of the electric crossover and the rest of their lineup. According to Mercedes-Benz, EQ stands for “Electric Intelligence”. Like “IQ”, but the “I” is an “E”? We’re not sure.
Welcome to the future.