2025 Mercedes EQS Gets New Grille and Hood Ornament to Please the Purists
It also gets a bigger standard battery so EV skeptics have one less thing to worry about.
When Mercedes launched its first all-electric luxury sedan, the EQS, it took a big swing with the design. The EQS's jellybean shape and painted-on grille were meant to keep it as aerodynamic and slippery as possible. However, its big, black plastic panel of a grille was never well-received among customers, which is why the brand recently announced that it would ditch the look. And now it has, as the 2025 Mercedes EQS gets an old-school grille design and, more usefully, a bigger battery.
By “new grille,” Mercedes means it painted a different design on the panel. Now, instead of piano black or a subtle starburst pattern, it sort of replicates the classic Mercedes grille. It's still painted on, as three-dimensional shapes could have adverse affects on the EQS's drag coefficients. It still looks kind of cheap even though I understand why Mercedes does it. That said, the automaker also brought back the standing star hood emblem, which seems counterintuitive with its aerodynamic goals. And while it's cool to see a nod to Mercedes' history on its most technologically advanced electric car, I don't think the standing star looks quite right on it, especially in profile. All EQS models now get the AMG Line front grille as standard, to make it look sportier and less jellybean-like.
Mercedes also bumped the EQS's usable battery capacity across the board. Now, rather than the 2024 model's 108-kilowatt-hour usable battery, all 2025 models have 118 kWh of available juice. Mercedes didn't provide any new range figures for the bigger battery but it will increase thanks to the additional capacity and the newly updated regenerative braking software. The new EQS's regenerative braking decelerates harder—up to 3 m/s²—therefore recovering more energy, and the brake pedal feel is said to be improved.
There aren't many changes inside, as the EQS still comes with the same "Hyperscreen" three-screen dashboard combo, the same steering wheel, and nightclub-like ambient lighting. EQS Pinnacle Trim models with the Executive Interior Package allow the rear passenger-side occupant to move and tilt the empty front passenger seat forward for more legroom, while reclining their own seat up to 38 degrees. All rear passengers in such-equipped EQS models get seat heating, neck and shoulder heating, and "pneumatic adjustment of the rear seat depth." I’m pretty sure that translates to “lumbar” in everyday English.
For the most part, the 2025 Mercedes EQS is the same car as it was before, just with a new face and bigger battery. While the new grille is still just a panel with some lines drawn on it, it does look better than before and the standing star emblem will lend some old-world luxury vibes to the ultra-modern Mercedes. Overall, I’d call it a win.
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