When you think about it, having to hunch down to move through a limousine is undignified. Mercedes will work to protect the dignity of America’s chauffeured class with a new, luxurious, all-electric midsize van that it hopes will succeed where the Metris couldn’t.
The vehicle will be based on the Van.EA platform, which is set to start production in 2026. Although manufacturing will begin in Spain, Mercedes’ plant near North Charleston, South Carolina, is expected to start making vehicles based on it soon thereafter.
“You don’t have to wait too long,” Mathias Geisen, the head of Mercedes-Benz’s van division, told Autonews. The factory is “crucial for us because the U.S. is one of our core growth markets.”
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Although Europe remains Mercedes’ biggest market for vans, accounting for 60 percent of sales worldwide, demand in the U.S. is growing. The nation is the second-largest by volume for the Sprinter, behind only the company’s home market, Germany.
The Van.EA platform will be able to support midsize and large vans for both private and commercial clients. Last spring, Mercedes promised that in addition to camper vans, it will also offer a midsize van for passengers.
The automaker claimed that it is aiming for a range of 311 miles (500 km) with the VAN.EA-P platform, which is being designed for VIP shuttles, wealthy families, and for people who want a mobile office. Passenger vans will launch will level 2 automated driving (hands off the wheel, eyes on the road), and that a level 3 automated system (hands off the wheel, eyes off the road), will be ready by the end of the decade.
The luxurious van that is bound for the U.S. is expected to fill a gap in the market that the Metris, which was discontinued last year, struggled to find success in. Unfortunately, no name, product details, or timeline have yet been announced for the vehicle. When the new luxury van goes into production in South Carolina, it will be built alongside the all-electric eSprinter that went on sale in February.
