2028 Mercedes-Benz VLE Interior Review: Everyone Flies First Class

Whether configured as an executive shuttle or a family trickster, the VLE’s cabin prioritizes comfort, flexibility, and luxury.

If any vehicle proves that what’s inside matters more than what’s outside, it’s Mercedes-Benz’s upcoming electric van, the VLE. Vans are all about interior space, and the VLE is designed to make that space as flexible and luxurious as possible. Mercedes, meanwhile, is trying to avoid the term “minivan,” instead referring to the VLE as a “grand limousine.” In Germany, limousine means sedan, so think Town Car rather than stretched Escalade. Per Mercedes’ plans, proper (American) limousining will be the role of the bigger VLS van, while the VLE fulfills the dual role of executive shuttle and—Mercedes hopes—soccer shuttle for well-to-do families.

Everyone’s Crazy ’Bout a Sharp Dressed VanIt should come as no surprise given its dual intended roles that Mercedes has done up the VLE’s interior in fine Benzo form. Open a door, any door (the rears are power sliders, natch), and you’ll find yourself on the threshold of a cocoon made from leather, metal, and textured wood accents. We always look for a bit of cheating, a little cheap plastic slipped in where it presumably wouldn’t be noticed, but we could find no such gaps in this new electric van. The VLE drips class the way old cars drip oil. And it had better; while Mercedes hasn’t announced pricing, we expect it to start in the $80,000–$100,000 range.