To date, Mercedes-Benz has invested around €350m (US$376.5m) in the eSprinter, a modular, all-electric, long-wheelbase panel van that has been equipped with the largest battery available, with a usable capacity of 113kWh.
The first variant of the eSprinter will launch in the European market at the end of 2023, with the cab chassis variant and other battery variants following later. Designed using three modules, the front and back modules can be used with all available variants, regardless of the wheelbase and battery sizes for ease of production.
To save space, improve handling and lower the eSprinter’s center of gravity, Mercedes-Benz has situated the integrated high-voltage battery in the front module between the axles. The electrically driven rear axle and an electric motor are in the rear module. The electrically driven rear axle makes cab chassis variants possible in addition to the panel van.
The permanent magnet synchronous motor (PSM) weighs approximately 130kg and benefits from high efficiency and optimized thermal management. The motor can be selected with either a 100kW or 150kW output and can deliver up to 400Nm of torque.
Customers will have three battery options for the eSprinter, depending on their range and payload requirements: 56kWh, 81kWh or 113kWh capacities. Mercedes-Benz has used lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cell chemistry to keep the battery variants free of cobalt and nickel. Active thermal management ensures maximum efficiency.
The eSprinter can charge using alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC). Its onboard charger – which converts the current in the vehicle when charging with alternating current – has a maximum output of 11kW. The new model can be charged with up to 1,151kW at rapid-charging stations, charging from 10% to 80% in approximately 28 minutes for the 56kWh battery and 42 minutes for the 113kWh battery.
The electric range, based on a simulation using the WLTP cycle, will be up to 400km on the highway, and up to 500km based on the WLTP city cycle.
An estimated €50m (US$53.8m) will be invested in each production plant that is to manufacture the vehicle: Charleston in the USA, and Düsseldorf and Ludwigsfelde in Germany. The eSprinter will first launch in the USA and Canada in the second half of 2023.
“With the new eSprinter, we are taking the electric large van segment to a new level,” said Mathias Geisen, head of Mercedes-Benz Vans. “The triad of efficiency, range and load capacity with simultaneous total cost of ownership optimization make the new eSprinter the most versatile Mercedes-Benz e-van ever.”
Mercedes-Benz Vans states that all its new models will be all-electric by 2025.
