I drove Mercedes-Benz's $141,000 Tesla rival. I loved its luxurious interior and extra-long range, but it's not perfect.

• I drove Mercedes-Benz's challenger to the Tesla Model S.
• The six-figure EQS delivers awe-inspiring range, flashy technology, and a cushy interior fit for royalty.

Mercedes-Benz has seen Elon Musk's success. And it's had enough.

The German brand recently launched the EQS, a luxurious electric sedan that takes direct aim at Tesla's long-running Model S. I recently drove a $141,000 EQS 580, the top dog of the EQS lineup. And while I loved its palatial interior and extra-long range, it has a few shortcomings too.

Pro: Super luxurious interior

Shut yourself inside the EQS and you're instantly insulated from the chaotic outside world. Its cushy seats, high-end finishes, ambient lighting, and solid build quality meld to create a classy interior that makes a guy wonder: Is Goldman hiring?

You don't need to lift a finger in the EQS, which basically doubles as your personal butler. Ask it to activate your massaging seat, and it obliges dutifully.

Pro: A comfortable, silky-smooth ride

Even cheap electric cars are pretty quiet and smooth to drive as compared to typical gas vehicles. But the EQS is a cut above. It glides down the road like a hovercraft, totally unbothered by bumps and cracks in the pavement.

Con: Weird, mushy brakes

Like all EVs, the EQS slows itself down when you lift off the accelerator using regenerative braking, a process which captures energy from a car's motors and feeds it to its battery pack. But Mercedes didn't quite nail the interplay between the regen and the brake pedal.

Stopping the car, particularly on short notice, can be nerve-racking, as you often need to stomp harder and farther than you expect.

Pro: Rear-wheel steering

The EQS is a big car, but it doesn't act like one. That's thanks to a built-in rear-wheel steering system that helps it make sharper turns.

It's actually so effective that it caught me completely off guard the first time I experienced it zipping around a parking lot. With the optionally upgraded rear-wheel-steering package, my EQS 580 swerved into parking spots like a Fiat.

Pro: Range fit for road trips

If you're spending $100,000 and up on an electric car, it had better deliver what EV buyers want most: range. The all-wheel-drive EQS 580 provides a generous 340 miles of range, as estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency. The rear-wheel-drive EQS 450+ promises up to 350. (That base model costs a little over $100,000.)

Pro: Lots of flashy technology, if you're into that

The EQS is a tech wonderland, featuring not one, not two, but three separate screens up front if you select the optional "Hyperscreen" add-on. Bump that to four if you count the head-up display, which projects important driving info like speed and turn-by-turn directions onto the windshield. It's five including the tablet rear passengers get as part of the "Executive Rear Seating" package.

When you approach a turn, a forward-facing camera view pops up with a blue arrow indicating where to turn or which exit to take. And on the highway, Mercedes' advanced cruise control feature swiftly changes lanes when you flick the turn signal.

There's even a fingerprint reader that customers can use to access their preferred driving settings.

Con: Lots of distracting technology, if you're not as into that

The more tech-averse may find all these colorful screens — and the lack of regular buttons — a bit too much to handle.

Con: No front trunk

The EQS has plenty of space in back, but if you're buying an electric car with the hope of having a front trunk too, look elsewhere. Competitors like the Tesla Model S and Porsche Taycan put some extra storage space up front where an engine would normally be.

But in the Mercedes, your junk will have to go in the trunk.