Mercedes-Benz ends PHEV development to focus on EVs

Monday, 13 September 2021

Meet Mercedes-AMG's first ever plug-in hybrid. The electrified V8-powered GT 63 S E-Performance.

Well, that was quick. Mercedes-Benz has reportedly stopped developing new versions of plug-in hybrid powertrains in favour of fully electrifying its vehicles.

During the Munich Motor Show, Markus Schafer, Daimler board member responsible for research and development, told Germany’s Handelsblatt newspaper that “no further new developments are planned” with regard to plug-in hyrids.

“The investments have been made, to that extent, we are using them.”

The mighty plug-in hybrid powertrain in the new Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E-Performance seems to already be a dying breed.

That means the current crop of PHEV powertrains, including the A 250 e hatchback, the just-announced Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E-Performance and the upcoming C-Class range, will be the last from Mercedes. We could see the powertrains go into to more models in the near future, however.

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The standard C-Class will have at least one plug-in hybrid variant, alongside the spicy AMG C 63.

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According to Schafer, the complexity of having two drive units in one vehicle is an inherent flaw, calling it a “cost burden for the vehicle.”

We know that the new Mercedes-AMG C 63 will be a plug-in hybrid four-cylinder, but it seems that any hopes of a plug-in version of the Mercedes-AMG ‘53’ straight-six engine have been dashed.

Plug-in hybrid powertrains have been viewed as a stop-gap technology, sitting between combustion and full electric.

Back in 2019, Mercedes confirmed it will stop developing new combustion engines, with a proposed end date of 2039. However, that may be brought forward, as Schafer told Handelsblatt in March 2021that “we are preparing for an earlier changeover.”

“In terms of products, there is no longer any rational reason to opt for a combustion engine in the near future”.

Meanwhile, industry supplier ZF, which makes chassis components and transmissions for various carmakers, sees a future for plug-in hybrids well into the next decade.

CEO Wolf-Henning Scheider also told Handelsblatt that PHEVs will 'play an important role in the electrification of individual mobility in many parts of the world well beyond 2030.” He also assumes range will increase to more than 100km per charge.