Mercedes-Benz VISION EQXX Research Car Co-Drive: Record-Setting EV Range

Lightweighting overall was very important to the engineers, who utilized AI-assisted topology optimization software to design many of the body's parts. The process removes material where it's not needed for structural strength, resulting often in organic, even skeletal-looking shapes. These parts are prototyped using 3D printing but then fabricated at production scale using casting. In particular, the aluminum-cast BIONEQXX rear floor replaces several heavier parts with a single, large piece that's 20% lighter.

A lighter car helps especially to consume less energy on uphill climbs, like the nine-mile uphill portion of the VISION EQXX's epic drive in Switzerland, which had incline grades of up to 5%. Of course, that was eventually followed by a long downhill stretch coming out of the Swiss Alps.

The VISON EQXX can regenerate energy for the battery during any braking and on any level of downhill gradient. So the mechanical brakes are rarely needed at all except for complete stops. That allowed the engineers to employ aluminum brake discs for the first time, which saves weight compared to steel brakes and also prevents the brakes from rusting.

Even the car's solar roof saves weight by not incorporating any glass in the 117-cell solar array. This sends power to the 12-volt battery, which supplies the infotainment/navigation system and lights. Supplementing the main battery pack's energy with the solar roof can increase the car's range by more than 2% according to Mercedes-Benz, which amounted to about 25 km (16 miles) during the 1,008 km ride.