Showdown: Electric SUVs Rated By Looks

Audi e-tron, Mercedes EQC, Mustang Mach e, BMW iX, Tesla Model X, Jaguar I-Pace

The SUV market has gone electric-mad. Who would have thought that the perfect place for EVs to exist would be in a market full of buyers that are usually interested in some of the worst gas-guzzling cars available?

That being said, we should be all for it. Sure, there’s still plenty of reasons to hate SUVs – their obnoxious size, being dangerous in crashes for everyone but the occupants, poor driving dynamics – but now, at least, there’s one less reason. Not only does an electric drivetrain make SUVs more environmentally friendly but also tackles the issue of them being susceptible to rollovers thanks to the heavy batteries that are usually placed within the floor of the car.

For now, let’s forget all about their prices, practicality, range, performance and comfort and just focus on how good they look. Of course, we can’t rate all of the electric SUVs right now but of the ones that are considered, here’s how I would rate them from worst-looking to best.

Mercedes-Benz EQC

It’s tough to pick a loser out of all of these beautiful cars but there has to be one. The EQC doesn’t look awful, yet at the same time, if it didn’t have a Mercedes badge on it, would anyone really like how it looks? The rear end looks like a filled nappy due to its low and bulbous rear bumper and the front end looks like Boo Boo Bear from the Yogi Bear film. Still, those rear lights are really cool.

Audi e-tron

Even with there being an e-tron Sportback and a new Audi Q4 e-tron and Q4 Sportback e-tron on the way, the original e-tron still looks the best. It doesn’t mess around with a sloping roof and sticks to the classic SUV formula. It’s big, bold and beautiful. The main criticism being that it somewhat looks a bit too clean and professional and could even be called ‘boring’ when compared to its competition. It may appeal to Audi fans but if you’re not one, the e-tron looks like every other Audi.

BMW iX

Unlike the Audi e-tron, the BMW iX was clearly designed to be exciting. Featuring some pretty crazy wheels, a polarising pair of kidney grilles and the slimmest set of lights ever featured on a production-series BMW, the iX isn’t afraid to be different. However, the problem with polarising looks is that they don’t appeal to everyone and the face of that car can easily be mistaken for an angry robo chipmunk, sent from the future to destroy us.

Mustang Mach-E

It’s a Mustang, so of course, it has to look cool. Luckily, Ford has mostly succeeded in making possibly one of the most sacrilegious creations in recent motoring history look cool. Mustang rear lights, a sloping roofline that doesn’t take things too far and a fake grille design that actually makes sense for an EV. It mixes smooth, soft lines with sharper contours perfectly and the main gripes I’d have with this car is the plastic wheel arches and small wheels that feature on most Mach-Es, it would seem.

Tesla Model X

Active spoiler, gullwing doors, minimalistic design. Need more be said? Also, it’s huge and the Model X’s road presence is undeniable. The minimalistic may be seen as plain to some but for others, more is less. Probably the best-looking of all of Tesla’s designs, the Model X just works and looks just the right amount of ‘odd’ for it to stand out in a good way.

Jaguar I-Pace

With the countless design awards aside, the I-Pace is no doubt the best-looking electric SUV out there at the moment. Just look at that side profile.

The cliff edge boot, bonnet airflow vent, the pointed cat ears, all of it makes for a perfect combination of design elements. The front looks like Jaguar’s C-X75 supercar concept and the backside isn’t too dissimilar to the beautiful F-Type’s rear. Stunning from pretty much every angle, the stars seemed to have aligned and created the perfect SUV!

Let us know which order you would place these cars, in the comments.

If you enjoyed this, you may also like: ‘F-Type SVR: Supercar Killer No One’s Talking About’