Car and Driver: Mind Your Vs and Qs: Mercedes Trademarks EQ Designation for Its EVs

Audi has its e-trons and BMW has its i models, and now it appears that Mercedes-Benz will use the EQ prefix for its sub-brand of electrified vehicles—at least that’s the indication from the company’s recent trademark applications.

As reported by Britain’s Auto Express, Mercedes parent company Daimler has applied to trademark EQA through EQX (EQY and EQZ evidently failing to make the cut), all to be sold under the MEQ umbrella. We imagine a naming strategy similar to that of the SUVs (GLA, GLC, GLE, GLS), in which the first two letters here indicate electric propulsion, and the third denotes the model: i.e., EQA would be a pint-size electric Benz, while EQS would be an S-class equivalent.

We could see the first EQ-branded Benz next month, at the Paris auto show. That’s where Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said the company will debut the first vehicle in its electric sub-brand. That car is expected to be a competitor to the Tesla Model S—although it may come in the form of a crossover—with a range in the neighborhood of 300 miles.

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Daimler currently fields two EVs, the Smart Fortwo Electric Drive and the Mercedes-Benz B250e. If they end up under the MEQ umbrella, he B-class could become the EQB, and the Smart perhaps the EQA.

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