Mercedes-Benz EQS Interior Deep Dive | Screens, sounds and scents galore

Mercedes-Benz is giving us part of the EQS picture today by revealing the interior design and dropping a few intriguing details on the exterior. The headline is what you’re looking at above. That dash, termed the “Hyperscreen” by Mercedes, is the key to this interior. We saw a photo of the dash back at CES, but now Mercedes is showing us what it looks like when integrated into the EQS’ interior.

Beyond the three OLED screens (one 17.7-inch and two 12.3-inch), Mercedes is revealing a number of other innovations and notable items in the EQS interior. We’ll go over them all in their own sections below, but the big items include the interior design in general, new sound experience, fancy air filtration system, and a few exterior details.

Interior design

We’ll start with interior design in general. The new Hyperscreen might grab your attention at first, but it’s not even the standard dash. Unless you choose to option the Hyperscreen, the dash panel looks very similar to the new S-Class. Basically, you can choose to have a big screen for the passenger to mess with, or fill that space with massive swaths of trim (wood, metals and more).

The Hyperscreen forces a decidedly minimalist design for most of the dash, but it’s not without some flair. Every EQS will get the same air vent treatment with a rose gold piece of trim in the upper vents and turbine-shaped side vents. You’ll see a large piece of wood trim graces the center console area where it covers up the cupholders. This center area itself is floating above an open storage area below it — no transmission tunnel means more utility.

The door panels are designed to make the individual elements like the door pull look like they’re floating in space. Mercedes came up with two new seat designs, one for comfort and the other with a sport focus (for the AMG Line interior). Elaborate quilting and stitching is found on these leather seats. The seats even have illuminated piping on them that glows with the other interior ambient lighting. And while we’re on lighting, the EQS represents a new level of attention there for Mercedes. There are Mercedes star-cut elements lasered into the dash trim that is then backlit, giving you the impression of stars on the dash. You’ll notice the new colored piping throughout in the darkened photos, as Mercedes tries its hardest to turn light into a luxury item.

Mercedes didn’t talk about the rear seat, but the photos reveal tablets for rear passengers and all the legroom you’d ever need.

Sound

There’s a lot going on here, and none of it concerns the sound of an engine or exhaust. However, Mercedes believes that even an electric car should be heard. There are three different “soundscapes” that owners will be able to enjoy: Silver Waves, Vivid Flux and Roaring Pulse. Silver Waves is meant to be hardly noticeable, but enjoyable background noise. Vivid Flux is for the EV enthusiast who wants to hear high-tech electronic sounds. And Roaring Pulse (supposedly coming with an OTA update after the car launches) is meant to make you feel like you’re in an AMG or high performance machine. All the sounds are played over the 15-speaker Burmester stereo system — Mercedes allowed us a quick listen over a video call, and they sure do make the car sound different inside than any other EV — Vivid Flux is our current favorite.

The second bit of news as it concerns sounds emanating from the EQS is something called Energizing Nature. On the surface, it looks like the Hyundai/Kia Sounds of Nature on steroids. The natural sounds were composed by acoustic ecologist (what a neat job!) Gordon Hempton. You can choose between Forest Glade, Sounds of the Sea and Summer Rain. Each sound is accompanied by their own interior climate program. For example, Sounds of the Sea is paired with a rhythm of cool and warm air being blown from the vents and a fitting light color.

All nap enthusiasts will also be pleased to learn of a new Power Nap program that you can activate when taking a break on a long drive or waiting for your EQS to charge. It’ll help you fall asleep by moving the seat into a resting position, closing the windows and blinds, activating the ionization of air, adjusting the ambient lighting and finally playing soothing music and displaying a starry sky across the screens. Your EQS will then wake you up after a healthy nap time by activating a pleasing wake-up sound, sending a fragrance into the cabin, subtly activating the massage program and turning the ventilated seats on. Once awake, it automatically raises the seat back up, opens the blinds and readies the car for driving. Does it get any better?

Air filtration

There’s been a renewed focus on filtering out particles through a car’s air filtration system ever since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Mercedes-Benz was surely engineering its new high-tech filtration system before our world turned upside down, but it’s intriguing nonetheless. A new option (first for Mercedes) called “Energizing Air Control Plus” will be available in the EQS that includes an intensive HEPA filter and filtration system. For some context, the new filter is nearly three gallons in volume and takes up a good chunk of space under the front hood. 

Ultimately, Mercedes promises that it’s capable of filtering out sulfur and nitrogen dioxide odors from the car, as well as viruses and other bacteria. That means no more horrid smells on your trip to work past that sulfur-smelling area anymore. The recirculating air feature will also clean the air inside the vehicle to keep it as fresh as can be. You’ll be able to keep track of the particulate levels both inside and outside the vehicle using the screen, and it’ll even recommend that you close the windows in areas with low air quality. In case perfectly clean air is not enough, Mercedes is introducing a new fragrance mode called No.6 Mood Linen that supposedly smells of fig trees, cool air and linen.

Exterior details

We wish Mercedes had shown us the car with no camouflage already, but that’ll require some more patience. Today, it told us how the new “one-bow” design (a single unbroken body line from fender to rear bumper) contributes to it being the most aerodynamic production car in the world. Its coefficient of drag is a minuscule 0.20, which beats every other car on the market today, even the new Tesla Model S that is quoted at 0.208. Its drop shape (the rear end tapering backwards) is what Mercedes called out as one big key to its low drag. One other neat tidbit: There are no shut lines in the hood to give it the cleanest lines possible in front.

Mercedes also told us about its new exterior lighting design. The headlights have a three-dot running light signature that are connected via a light band. The grille itself has a subtle light-up star pattern in it. At the rear, the taillights are meant to look like a 3D helix, inspired by old helical elements in lightbulbs.

This could go on forever, but we’ll wait till we get a more hands-on experience with the Hyperscreen and Mercedes’ updated MBUX to take that one on. It’s already looking more promising than the current MBUX, as it uses a “zero-layer” design to make getting to certain functions easier. Artificial intelligence and an even smarter voice assistant should make it all the better to use, too. Our biggest complaint with the current MBUX system is its complex and difficult-to-use menu structure. This could be the answer we’re looking for.

Related video: