2028 Mercedes C-CLASS Electric.

While the illustration above is pretty terrible, it tries to show us what the upcoming Mercedes C-Class Electric compact EV sedan could look like.

It closely resembles the teaser we saw a while back. And seems likely very close to the final production version we’ll see unveiled in a few months. After the frankly ghastly-looking new Mercedes GLC EV, Mercedes’s next electric model will be an electric C-Class. A car that, until recently, was expected to be called the EQC Sedan. It will almost certainly share much of its interior with the SUV we just saw. Including that controversial “Chinese car-looking” door-to-door screen. A screen that displays redundant information to everyone inside the car. Like a giant clock, animated graphics, or even a slideshow of your kids’ photos on the passenger side. None of which feels remotely essential, let alone luxurious. And of course, it will feature the same ghastly, vulgar, and oversized illuminated grille that Mercedes now seems determined to force onto everything.

It increasingly feels like Mercedes was caught completely off guard by the lukewarm reception of its EQ series. Personally, I do like the EQS sedan. It’s a bit odd, yes, but it at least feels intentional and distinctive. The smaller EQE, however, simply doesn’t look the part for such an expensive car. It lacks presence and proportion. As for the SUVs, they are almost entirely devoid of personality. Adding chrome strips, glowing outlines, and Mercedes stars everywhere feels like the wrong, and laziest way to fix that.

What makes this more frustrating is that this smaller sedan was planned for years as the entry point to the EQ lineup. The EQC was meant to be subtle, elegant, and approachable. Instead, it appears Mercedes made a last-minute decision to slap on that new illuminated grille in an attempt to “Mercedes-ify” the design. That grille doesn’t really work on the SUV, and it will almost certainly look even worse on a smaller sedan where proportions matter even more.

All of this is actually quite amazing to watch unfold. It will be genuinely interesting to see how long it takes for a company like Mercedes to recover from such a sustained series of poor and misguided design decisions.