With the fully electric VLE, Mercedes is offering a multi-purpose vehicle that can be easily converted thanks to a new seating system.
Stately appearance: The new electric Mercedes VLE. Factory
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How do we call him? Minivan? There’s nothing mini about a car that’s 5.3 meters long. Just a van? Rather. MPV? Yes, that describes the new all-electric Mercedes VLE best.
Some vehicle classes have fallen victim to the SUV boom, including the mini-van. The older ones still remember the times Opel Zafira or VW Touran, which were the logical choice for families in the late 1990s/early 2000s. Shorter than 4.5 meters, seven seats (two were fully retractable) and, above all, thanks to the structure with an interior that offered significantly more space than many of today’s SUVs, which are half a meter longer.
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Mercedes currently has several vans on offer: There is the Vito, there is the V-Class and now there is the fully electric VLE, the successor to the EQV. You can have it as a car for a large family, as a classy passenger transporter with business class seats, you can make it into an emergency sleeping place and you can also adapt it for a bike or canoe trip.
The conversions usually involve the laborious removal of seats, which then have to be refitted again with even more laborious effort. That’s why I want to make this observation right away: Removing, and especially installing, the seats has never been as easy as in the VLE.
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You lift the seat (weighs between 25 and 30 kilograms, depending on the design) from the rail and push it into the garage without much effort thanks to small rollers. To reinstall it, simply place it on the rail and move it until you hear it click into place. That’s it.
The VLE offers space for up to eight people, and then there is still 795 liters of cargo space. If all seats are removed, up to 4078 liters are available. To put it more clearly: That’s enough to transport two pallets of beer.
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When we first got to know the VLE, it made the most sense as a six-seater (with four individual seats at the back). This configuration offers the greatest flexibility. In winter there is space for six people, and thanks to the free space in the middle there is still enough space for skis. If you convert it into a four-seater, you have a lot of trunk space, or you attach two passenger seats on one side and then you can fit two mountain bikes on the other side.
Although the VLE has the same space as a delivery van, you are sitting in a classy limousine. At the front, three screens are lined up behind a large glass surface; there is the instrument display (10.3 inches), the 14-inch central display and another 14-inch display for the front passenger, who can stream videos or play games on it.
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At the rear, a 31-inch TV screen with 8k resolution can be mounted from the roof lining if desired. There is a split-screen function for left and right passengers and an eight-megapixel camera for video conferencing.
With such equipment, the range is actually secondary. Nevertheless: According to WLP, the VLE (from 276 hp) can travel just over 700 kilometers with a 115 kWh battery. Thanks to 800 volt technology and 300 kW charging speed, you can recharge up to 355 kilometers in 15 minutes.
The price of the Mercedes VLE starts at 87,006 euros, followed by an entry-level model for 75,384 euros.
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