Compare the2027 Audi A6 e-tronVS 2026 Mercedes EQE Sedan

Both the A6 e-tron and EQE Sedan have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The A6 e-tron has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The EQE Sedan’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Audi A6 e-tron has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The EQE Sedan doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Audi A6 e-tron achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Mercedes EQE Sedan has not been tested.

The Audi A6 e-tron offers an optional Top View Cameras and it also offers an optional rear camera washer to make backing always safe, regardless of road dirt or grime, while the Mercedes EQE Sedan doesn’t offer a camera washer, requiring manual cleaning.

Both the A6 e-tron and the EQE Sedan have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The Audi A6 e-tron has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2026 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test, and a “Good” score in the revised vehicle-to-vehicle crash prevention test. The EQE Sedan has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2026.

The A6 e-tron’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the EQE Sedan’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Audi pays for scheduled maintenance on the A6 e-tron for 3 years and 30,000 miles. Audi will pay for cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Mercedes doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the EQE Sedan.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2026 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 6 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

As tested in Car and Driver the Audi A6 e-tron electric motor is faster than the EQE 320 4MATIC electric motors:

On the EPA test cycle the A6 e-tron gets better mileage than the EQE Sedan:

The A6 e-tron can travel longer on a full charge than the EQE Sedan on a full charge:

The A6 e-tron stops shorter than the EQE Sedan:

The A6 e-tron Prestige handles at .88 G’s, while the EQE 320 4MATIC pulls only .86 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Audi A6 e-tron may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 400 pounds less than the Mercedes EQE Sedan.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the A6 e-tron a Large car, while the EQE Sedan is rated a Mid-size.

A standard locking glovebox keeps your small valuables safer in the A6 e-tron. The EQE Sedan doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The A6 e-tron Premium Plus/Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The EQE Sedan doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The Audi A6/S6/RS 6 outsold the Mercedes EQE Sedan by over four to one during 2025.