Tesla look out, here come the Germans
Mercedes-Benz will unveil its first all-electric plug-in car at the Paris Motor Show in September, it’s been rumoured.
Daimler AG’s Board of Management member Thomas Weber told Reuters in June that a vehicle has been in the works to compete against the American EV leaders Tesla.
“The structure is ready, the teams are working and the initial results from road tests are coming in quick succession,” Weber said.
The prototype will have a 500-km range which puts it in the same league as a Tesla Model S, but details of the final production vehicle are not confirmed.
Weber also revealed to the press in Stuttgart that they were estimating to sell 100,000 units a year by the end of the decade.
Last week’s Mercedes e-Truck unveil had Daimler trucks’ chief Wolfgang Bernhard saying the timing wasn’t right for the German automaker when Tesla sprung onto the scene.
“When Tesla started coming up many years ago we decided at the time, and I believe correctly, that the technology wasn’t quite ready. Now we believe the time has come to earn money in e-mobility over the next five to 10 years,” he said.
Sources speaking to Bloomberg say the vehicles will be built in Daimler’s Bremen, Germany factory, and multiple models are in the works, although a definite number is not confirmed.
