- The Mercedes In-Drive system applies the brakes to the electric car
- In-Drive is a friction-based braking system
- Mercedes has the In-Drive in active testing, but did not provide a production timeline
Mercedes-Benz is rethinking how the braking system works, and where it's located, for future EVs.
In Germany last week, Mercedes-Benz engineers showed Green Car Reports one of the latest innovations called In-Drive. It's a system that moves the entire braking system from inside the wheels to inside the EV's electric motor housing.
The automaker did not commit to when the system might go into production, but said the feature is already being tested.
Mercedes-Benz In-Drive brake system
It is referred to internally as “future brake,” the In-Drive system is still a friction-based brake system consisting of a water-cooled brake disk that is not exposed to air. Mercedes engineers say they are still experimenting with different fluids. They want more water in the unit to get rid of the heat, but they don't want the heat pump to help. Fully furnished, i The brake discs are located on both sides of the electric motor.
Mechanical braking in EVs is only required about 2% of the time and 98% of braking situations can be handled by regenerative braking, according to Mercedes engineers.
The new brake regeneration system on the 2026 CLA-Class, which will be the first EV on the automaker's next-generation MMA platform, is capable of recovering up to 200 kw, according to Mercedes. The current EQS—a very heavy vehicle—can recover up to 290kw, says a Mercedes engineer.
Mercedes-Benz In-Drive brake system
The Mercedes team said that In-Drive is designed to be a system that is perfect for your lifetime 15 years and 186,400 miles (300,000 km), assuming it will only be stuck 2% of the time. Today's brakes only cover a small percentage of the brake disc, however In-Drive system pads cover all the surface area of the disk, resulting in less power consumption.
I Braking system in Drive it can be installed on the front axle without an electric motor, but the system will still sit in the middle of the car and the axle rather than on the wheels like today's brakes.
Moving the brakes outboard shifts the weight around the vehicle and creates a less fixed weight, which will result in better handling.
By fully locking the brakes there is no brake dust particulate and the wheels are able to lock up so they can fly.
Mercedes-Benz paid for travel and lodging and some German pretzels for Green Car Reports to bring you this report in person.