Mercedes-Benz sales nose-dive after EV explodes in parking lot

Mercedes-Benz faced a significant decline in EV sales in Korea after an explosion incident, with EQE registrations plunging 89 percent.

Mercedes EVs get a free checkup at a service center in Seoul on Aug. 14. [YONHAP]

Mercedes-Benz suffered a steep EV sales slide in August hit hard by Koreans' growing reluctance to buy electric vehicles after a recent Mercedes EV explosion in an underground parking lot.

A total of 39 Mercedes EQE EVs were newly registered in Korea in August, down 89 percent compared to the same month a year ago, according to data from the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (Kaida).

CCTV footage shows a Mercedes-Benz EV exploding at an underground parking lot in Incheon on Aug. 1. [YONHAP]

The EQE is the model that burst into flames in an underground garage in an apartment complex in Incheon on Aug. 1. The incident damaged as many as 880 vehicles parked in the garage and inflicted weeklong electricity or water supply outages on some 1,600 households.

Sales of EQS EVs nose-dived 82.4 percent during the same period in terms of units, while only 43 EQA EVs were sold in August, down 57 percent on year.

That's a sharp on-year fall as the number of newly registered EVs from imported brands declined by 34.8 percent to 1,907 units in August. Tesla was excluded from the data.

The German luxury brand's overall sales also dropped 19.8 percent on year to 5,286 units, placing in the No. 2 spot after BMW. BMW sales were down 6.7 percent on year to 6,304.

That comes despite Mercedes having sold more petrol-engine cars in August. The Mercedes E-Class topped the list of the best-selling cars from the imported brand in August, with a total of 2,237 units sold.

Fire authorities conduct a joint investigation into burned battery modules from a Mercedes EQE EV that burst into flames in an underground parking lot in an apartment complex in Incheon on Aug. 18. [NEWS1]

Domestic brands were also hit hard by the recent falling demand for EVs among Korean consumers. Hyundai Motor sold only 1,222 Ioniq 5s last month, down 30.7 percent on year. Electrified G80 sales plummeted 91 percent while the GV60 was down 48.4 percent.

Kia's EV6 sales fell 36.8 percent to 599 units last month while the EV9 sank 77.5 percent to 92. KG Mobility's EVX sales dropped 51.5 percent.

Meanwhile, a group of Mercedes EV owners have filed complaints to the Korea Consumer Agency, arguing that they'd given false information about EVs and battery brands when they purchased Mercedes cars.

The consumers argue that they were deceived by Mercedes that their EVs were topped with batteries from Contemporary Amperex Technology when purchasing cars. It was disclosed that Mercedes used batteries from the lesser-known Farasis Energy in all EQE EV models and part of EQS models.

Some 250 owners gathered in a KakaoTalk open chat room and formed an emergency committee on Tuesday.

“We have this determination to launch collective legal action against Mercedes if the automaker does not show any proper response,” a Mercedes EV owner and member of the committee told the Korea JoongAng Daily.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]