Mercedes-Benz plans electric passenger van, factory-upfitted RVs

While Mercedes Vans targets high-profit segments with its future EVs, the automaker is taking the scalpel to costs.

Consolidating future products on a single vehicle architecture reduces complexity and increases economies of scale, Geisen said. VAN.EA can accommodate “applications mid to large, private or commercial, on only one architecture,” he said.

Mercedes is also simplifying its EV portfolio — reducing the number of variants by more than half compared with the current gas-powered range.

The automaker said a leaner lineup and greater factory automation would cut production hours per vehicle by up to 25 percent mid-decade.

Initially, VAN.EA vehicle production is set for Mercedes factories in Jawor, Poland; Vitoria, Spain; and Düsseldorf, Germany.

Geisen declined to say when production will begin at Mercedes’ van assembly plant in North Charleston, S.C.

“You don’t have to wait too long,” the executive teased. “[Charleston] is crucial for us because the U.S. is one of our core growth markets.”

While Europe accounts for 60 percent of Mercedes van worldwide sales, U.S. demand is accelerating.

Mercedes said it sees significant growth potential for premium commercial large vans in the U.S., where the share doubled in the past five years to 16 percent last year.

The U.S. is the second-largest market for Mercedes’ workhorse Sprinter van after Germany. The automaker will debut a Charleston-made electric version of the Sprinter in the U.S. this year.

Geisen added: “The more vehicles we can get out of Charleston, the more economic sense it makes.”