The suspension of the new EQE, with four-link front suspension and multilink rear suspension, is closely related in design to the new S-Class. Rear-axle steering with a steering angle of up to 10° is available as an option for plenty of manoeuvrability in town and agility out of town. Optionally, the EQE is also available with AIRMATIC air suspension with ADS+ adaptive damping system.

The EQE has the proven four-link front suspension. Its multilink rear suspension is designed to integrate the rear-axle steering. The suspension subframe carriers and the elastomeric bearings of the rear axle struts were improved in terms of NVH and driving characteristics by conducting extensive simulations and driving tests.

The optional AIRMATIC air suspension responds particularly sensitively. It combines air suspension bellows with adaptive ADS+ dampers whose characteristics can be fully automatically varied at each individual wheel, in both the compression and rebound stages. While driving, a sophisticated sensor system and algorithms set the dampers according to the quality of the road to ensure that, for example, driving over a bump with just one wheel is not transmitted to the entire axle and the interior. Spring and damper are combined in one strut on the front axle.

This level control is part of AIRMATIC. It keeps the ground clearance constant irrespective of the vehicle load, but also makes changes when needed. By way of example, in the SPORT program the vehicle body is lowered by 20 mm at high speeds above 120 km/h to reduce aerodynamic drag and increase handling stability. If the vehicle drops below 80 km/h, the body level returns to the initial position. Up to 40 km/h the body can be raised by 25 mm at the touch of a button, above 50 km/h it is automatically lowered back to normal level.

As manoeuvrable as a compact car: both axles can do the steering

Thanks to rear-axle steering (optional extra), the EQE feels as manoeuvrable as a compact car in the city. The steering angle at the rear axle is up to ten degrees. The turning circle is reduced from 12.5 to 10.7 metres with rear-axle steering.

The interaction between front-axle and rear-axle steering has been designed to achieve agile response with low steering effort in city and country road driving, but at the same time very high stability. This results in e.g. small side-slip angles and a high level of yaw suppression. At high speeds the focus is more on stability, though without compromising precision and responsiveness. This added value is achieved by integrated actuation of the steering and brakes (ESP®), and considerably improves handling safety as a result.

Depending on the tyres selected, customers can choose between two versions of the optional rear-axle steering with a maximum steering angle of 4.5° and 10°.

DYNAMIC SELECT: the EQE drives the way the driver wants it to drive

The driver can individually modify the characteristics of the powertrain, ESP^®, suspension and steering. The selection is made using a control at the lower end of the central display. The default setting is the COMFORT drive program, with SPORT, ECO and INDIVIDUAL available as alternatives. The selection is acknowledged by acoustic and visual feedback. The desired drive program is shown as the status and depicted in the central display.