Mercedes-Benz isn’t too good to sell electric scooters

Just because Mercedes-Benz is a leader in style, luxury and performance doesn’t mean it’s above entering the market for the least glamorous method of personal transportation. At the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show, Benz announced a partnership with mobility company Micro, and the two unveiled an e-scooter that wears the three-pointed star badge.

Following announcements that Volkswagen, Hyundai and BMW have all entered the electric scooter space, Mercedes-Benz is the next automaker to get in line. In addition to showing the high-class Vision EQS, the Mercedes-Benz Frankfurt stand showed off a range of lifestyle items called the Collection. It included Bluetooth headphones, a toy model of the Mercedes-Benz EQC, accessories for the CLA, and this e-scooter. 

Oddly, Mercedes has not released much information about what seems to be literally named the E-Scooter. It will technically be considered a part of the EQ family, but there are no specs on battery, range, charging, or even how it connects to smartphones. The press release says only that it was “developed in cooperation with the scooter specialist Micro and is specifically designed for the first or last mile.” 

Micro is the same company that worked with Peugeot on a uniquely designed e-scooter, so it seems unlikely this would be a simple badge swap. But based on the two provided photos, the E-Scooter looks somewhat similar to the design of the Micro Merlin X4, which weighs about 24 pounds, can go up to 15 mph, and has a range of up to about 15 miles. 

Mercedes-Benz expects the E-Scooter to release in “early 2020,” but it is unclear which markets it will launch in.  

Here’s Mercedes’ press release:

E-scooters have only been allowed on German roads since June, and it is already hard to conceive of a traffic scene without them. These agile devices are the perfect way to cover short distances quickly and without harming the environment. The new E-Scooter in the Mercedes-Benz EQ brand family was developed in cooperation with the scooter specialist micro, and is specifically designed for the first or last mile, making it the perfect companion for those wanting flexible mobility solutions. Co-branded with micro, the Mercedes star and the EQ logo appear on the handlebar stem as a trademark for Electric Intelligence.