Report: Mercedes Dropping Tesla As Powertrain, Battery Supplier

Mercedes B Class Electric Drive (Credit: Mercedes )

It seems that these days investors are all about singing praise for Tesla Motors, meanwhile other automakers aren’t so in to it. This trend has meant that Toyota and other highly visible companies have ended relationships with the California automaker. The latest to do so is Mercedes, which was sourcing electric powertrains and batteries for the B Class Electric Drive.

This all comes from a German publication called Auto Motor und Sport. The report is hardly a surprise, considering that there’s been news floating around the Mercedes has been considering parting ways with Tesla as the American company cozies up more with BMW. After all, Mercedes can’t be associated with anyone who’s cavorting with the enemy.

For now, it seems that Tesla will continue to give powertrains and batteries to Mercedes. Come the next generation of the B Class Electric Drive, things supposedly will change. That’s several years away, considering that the first generation of the electric car just started production about a year and a half ago.

Just because Mercedes is dropping Tesla doesn’t mean that the second-generation B Class Electric Drive will have inferior technology. In fact, Auto Motor und Sport claims the car’s range will increase from 87 miles on a single charge (about 100 miles with the Range Plus upgrade) to well over 160 miles. Some are even claiming the vehicle will be able to go somewhere between 220 to 300 miles on a charge, which would be pretty impressive.

Before Tesla fans get too down on Mercedes, they need to remember that it was the Germans who at least partly saved Tesla back in the day before the Model S was launched. Also, remember that for right now everything is in the rumor stage, so there’s still the chance that the two companies will continue working together on the B Class Electric Drive and possibly future models.