Strong on Luxury, Meh on Tech

The VLE’s interior is such a thing of beauty that we’ve given it its own review, which you can find here. We’ll give you the highlights, particularly as they concern the driver, who faces three crisp, colorful screens: a 10.25-inch display for the driver and dual 14-inch screens for the center position and the passenger. There’s also a huge head-up display. The VLE runs Mercedes’ latest MB.OS operating system, which is kind of straightforward most of the time. But it also has a great voice recognition system, and when we couldn’t figure out how to turn on the HUD, we simply asked for help: “Hey, Mercedes, turn on the head-up display.” Presto, it worked.

As for the rest of the interior, Mercedes will offer a plethora of seating arrangements for the second and third rows, including power-reclining seats with footrests and an epic 31-inch screen that can be used for movies, games, or videoconferences. (Check out our interior review for more.) We sampled all options and combinations and can report that they are all comfortable, roomy, and nicely trimmed. That’s one of the details we love about the VLE: All three rows are finished and trimmed to the same high degree.

Can We Compromise and Call It a Grand Minivan?

The VLE is expected to arrive in the U.S. in the second half of 2027 as a 2028 model, and it’s likely your first opportunity to ride in one will occur when traveling to or from an airport. No doubt livery companies will fall all over this thing, especially in cities that have a good EV charging infrastructure.

That’s fine, but we think the VLE makes one hell of a good—brace yourselves, Mercedes denizens, we’re going to say it—minivan. With its comfortable seating, huge windows, smooth ride, massive sunroof, comfortable environs, and (we hope) reasonably long range, the VLE makes one heck of an adventure vehicle, and we thought how nice it would be to settle in with a couple other couples and go see the sights.

We don’t yet know pricing, and our best guess is somewhere in the $80,000 to $100,000 range depending on specifications, which is a lot for modern American families. For those who can afford it, the VLE is the vehicle that could make minivans “A Thing” again—whether or not Mercedes admits that’s what the VLE is. We can’t wait to see the U.S.-bound iteration.

Der neue elektrische Mercedes-Benz VLE / Press Test Drive Bilbao, Spain (Mercedes-Benz VLE 300 elektrisch

2028 Mercedes-Benz VLE400 Specifications
BASE PRICE	$85,000 (MT est)
LAYOUT	Front- and rear-motor, AWD, 6-7-pass, 4-door van
MOTORS	272 hp electric front + 141 hp electric rear, 416 hp/420 lb-ft combined (est)
TRANSMISSION	1-speed direct drive
CURB WEIGHT	6,150 lb (est)
WHEELBASE	138.5 in
L x W x H	215.9 x 78.7 x 74.1-76.6 in
0–60 MPH	6.4 sec (MT est)
EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON	Not yet tested
EPA RANGE, COMB	320 mi (est)
ON SALE	Late 2027