Electric vanlife coming? 2024 Mercedes eSprinter impresses in 300 mile range, efficiency tests
The upcoming refresh of the Mercedes eSprinter electric van has been tested with impressive results on both range and efficiency. In fact, they’re almost too impressive to be believed.
The test was conducted by TÜV Süd, an independent testing agency, on a real-world route through the mountains in Southern Germany – from Stuttgart to Munich and back again. The drive happened in mid-October, before winter cold or inclement weather set in – rain and snow can both lower efficiency for all vehicles by increasing rolling resistance.
On the trip, the eSprinter traveled 475km (295 miles) with an additional 20km (12 miles) left in the battery at the end of the trip. This worked out to an efficiency of 21.9kWh per 100km, equivalent to 2.8 miles/kWh, or about 350Wh/mi.
This is extremely high efficiency for a high-roof van, keeping in mind that the most efficient EV passenger cars are rated at around 4 miles/kWh by the EPA and other electric trucks (like Rivian and the F-150) are rated at around 2 miles/kWh.
Doing the math suggests a capacity of 108kWh – less than the rumored 120kWh. So we suspect a “usable” capacity in the range of 110kWh, though it’s possible that the nominal capacity will be 115-120kWh and Mercedes will restrict some of it from use to protect longevity.
Regardless, if this test is to be believed, the new eSprinter will offer more than double the range of the previous eSprinter and much higher efficiency, to boot.
Mercedes already sells the eSprinter in Europe, but the 2024 model is getting a big refresh. The current version has two smaller battery options – 41kWh and 55kWh, good for 115km and 150km (71 and 93 miles) of range, respectively.
This makes the van useful for local last-mile or across-town delivery applications, which many of these vehicles are used for, but restricts it from longer or more difficult routes.
The 2024 model will get larger battery options covering a wider spread, rumored at 60/80/120kWh. The larger gap between the smallest and largest batteries will mean that purchasers can get a van more suited to their specific needs so that customers who only need to do local deliveries don’t need to waste money and weight on extra batteries. One of those needs could be overlanding – or “vanlife” – which is increasingly popular and would be much easier to do with the 2024 model’s larger battery options.
But we won’t find out exactly what specs and options will be until February when the van is officially unveiled by Mercedes. Production is scheduled to start in the second half of 2023, suggesting an availability of late 2023 or early 2024. In the US, these vans will be assembled in Charleston, South Carolina, crucially enabling it to qualify for the new EV tax credit from the Inflation Reduction Act.
Electrek’s Take
In fact, the increase in efficiency is so high that it’s hard to believe. The current eSprinter is rated at 1.6mi/kWh, and this test showed the 2024 model with an almost 50% increase in efficiency.
Frankly, we don’t know how this is possible, especially with a larger and, thus, presumably heavier battery.
It could be that Mercedes is holding back less battery capacity, giving more usable capacity to drivers, and that they also improved powertrain efficiency somehow. But with a roughly similar body, the van should have similar aerodynamic qualities, which is the main cause of energy loss while driving.
We don’t have any information on the driving style used, except that this was the normal route from Stuttgart to Munich in mixed conditions, including highways and mountain roads (with approximately 600m/2,000ft of ascent/descent).
So while this test was conducted by an independent agency, presumably using something similar to the WLTP protocol, it could be that they were actively attempting to drive efficiently and stretch the range of the vehicle. Presumably, the van was also unloaded, which would help with efficiency as well.
If we combine all of these dynamics – reducing battery holdback, improvements in powertrain efficiency, lack of payload, and most of all an efficient driving style – then it starts to become more believable, but that’s still a wild increase, nearly 50% from generation to generation.
So the old phrase applies: “Your mileage may vary.” This makes for another good lesson on EV efficiency – range is not set in stone; it depends heavily on many factors, not the least of which is driving style. If you find your EV’s range disappointing, one of the best places to look is your foot. Lay off it a little bit and you’ll go farther.
And while these test results are quite impressive and show that EV efficiency can, in fact, be higher in the real world than ratings suggest (depending on driving conditions), we’ll caution to wait until the van comes out before people get too excited about this. And Mercedes, in particular, might want to be careful about setting expectations high and potentially disappointing buyers, as other companies have received pushback when they’ve done the same.
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On today’s fleet-focused episode of Quick Charge, we talk about a hot topic in today’s trucking industry called, “the messy middle,” explore some of the ways legacy truck brands are working to reduce fuel consumption and increase freight efficiency. PLUS: we’ve got ReVolt Motors’ CEO and founder Gus Gardner on-hand to tell us why he thinks his solution is better.
You know, for some people.
We’ve also got a look at the Kenworth Supertruck 2 concept truck, revisit the Revoy hybrid tandem trailer, and even plug a great article by CCJ’s Jeff Seger, who is asking some great questions over there. All this and more – enjoy!
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Thanks to Trump’s repeated executive order attacks on US clean energy policy, nearly $8 billion in investments and 16 new large-scale factories and other projects were cancelled, closed, or downsized in Q1 2025.
The $7.9 billion in investments withdrawn since January are more than three times the total investments cancelled over the previous 30 months, according to nonpartisan policy group E2’s latest Clean Economy Works monthly update.
However, companies continue to invest in the US renewable sector. Businesses in March announced 10 projects worth more than $1.6 billion for new solar, EV, and grid and transmission equipment factories across six states. That includes Tesla’s plan to invest $200 million in a battery factory near Houston that’s expected to create at least 1,500 new jobs. Combined, the projects are expected to create at least 5,000 new permanent jobs if completed.
Michael Timberlake of E2 said, “Clean energy companies still want to invest in America, but uncertainty over Trump administration policies and the future of critical clean energy tax credits are taking a clear toll. If this self-inflicted and unnecessary market uncertainty continues, we’ll almost certainly see more projects paused, more construction halted, and more job opportunities disappear.”
March’s 10 new projects bring the overall number of major clean energy projects tracked by E2 to 390 across 42 states and Puerto Rico. Companies have said they plan to invest more than $133 billion in these projects and hire 122,000 permanent workers.
Since Congress passed federal clean energy tax credits in August 2022, 34 clean energy projects have been cancelled, downsized, or shut down altogether, wiping out more than 15,000 jobs and scrapping $10 billion in planned investment, according to E2 and Atlas Public Policy.
However, in just the first three months of 2025, after Trump started rolling back clean energy policies, 13 projects were scrapped or scaled back, totaling more than $5 billion. That includes Bosch pulling the plug on its $200 million hydrogen fuel cell plant in South Carolina and Freyr Battery canceling its $2.5 billion battery factory in Georgia.
Republican-led districts have reaped the biggest rewards from Biden’s clean energy tax credits, but they’re also taking the biggest hits under Trump. So far, more than $6 billion in projects and over 10,000 jobs have been wiped out in GOP districts alone.
And the stakes are high. Through March, Republican districts have claimed 62% of all clean energy project announcements, 71% of the jobs, and a staggering 83% of the total investment.
A full map and list of announcements can be seen on E2’s website here. E2 says it will incorporate cancellation data in the coming weeks.
Read more: FREYR kills plans to build a $2.6 billion battery factory in Georgia
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Tesla has reportedly delayed the launch of its new “affordable EV,” which is believed to be a stripped-down Model Y, in the United States.
Last year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk made a pivotal decision that altered the automaker’s direction for the next few years.
The CEO canceled Tesla’s plan to build a cheaper new “$25,000 vehicle” on its next-generation “unboxed” vehicle platform to focus solely on the Robotaxi, utilizing the latest technology, and instead, Tesla plans to build more affordable EVs, though more expensive than previously announced, on its existing Model Y platform.
Musk has believed that Tesla is on the verge of solving self-driving technology for the last few years, and because of that, he believes that a $25,000 EV wouldn’t make sense, as self-driving ride-hailing fleets would take over the lower end of the car market.
However, he has been consistently wrong about Tesla solving self-driving, which he first said would happen in 2019.
In the meantime, Tesla’s sales have been decreasing and the automaker had to throttle down production at all its manufacturing facilities.
That’s why, instead of building new, more affordable EVs on new production lines, Musk decided to greenlight new vehicles built on the same production lines as Model 3 and Model Y – increasing the utilization rate of its existing manufacturing lines.
Those vehicles have been described as “stripped-down Model Ys” with fewer features and cheaper materials, which Tesla said would launch in “the first half of 2025.”
Reuters is now reporting that Tesla is seeing a delay of “at least months” in launching the first new “lower-cost Model Y” in the US:
Tesla has promised affordable vehicles beginning in the first half of the year, offering a potential boost to flagging sales. Global production of the lower-cost Model Y, internally codenamed E41, is expected to begin in the United States, the sources said, but it would be at least months later than Tesla’s public plan, they added, offering a range of revised targets from the third quarter to early next year.
Along with the delay, the report also claims that Tesla aims to produce 250,000 units of the new model in the US by 2026. This would match Tesla’s currently reduced production capacity at Gigafactory Texas and Fremont factory.
The report follows other recent reports coming from China that also claimed Tesla’s new “affordable EVs” are “stripped-down Model Ys.”
The Chinese report references the new version of the Model 3 that Tesla launched in Mexico last year. It’s a regular Model 3, but Tesla removed some features, like the second-row screen, ambient lighting strip, and it uses fabric interior material rather than Tesla’s usual vegan leather.
The new Reuters report also said that Tesla planned to follow the stripped-down Model Y with a similar Model 3.
In China, the new vehicle was expected to come in the second half of 2025, and Tesla was waiting to see the impact of the updated Model Y, which launched earlier this year.
Electrek’s Take
These reports lend weight to what we have been saying for a year now: Tesla’s “more affordable EVs” will essentially be stripped-down versions of the Model Y and Model 3.
While they will enable Tesla to utilize its currently underutilized factories more efficiently, they will also cannibalize its existing Model 3 and Y lineup and significantly reduce its already dwindling gross margins.
I think Musk will sell the move as being good in the long term because it will allow Tesla to deploy more vehicles, which will later generate more revenue through the purchase of the “Full Self-Driving” (FSD) package.
However, that has been his argument for years, and it has yet to pan out as FSD still requires driver supervision and likely will for years to come, resulting in an extremely low take-rate for the $8,000 package.
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