Following the 2023 announcement of the BYD Yangwang U9, discussion of this electric hypercar covered a lot of ground, including its high-performance suspension and ability to drive smoothly on only three wheels. (Do I want to see Vin Diesel do something absurd in one of these in a future Fast/Furious movie? I do, yes.) Now, there’s another milestone a version of the Yangwang U9 can claim: it’s officially the world’s fastest production car.
At the testing track in Papenburg, Germany — the same place where a 2023 record for driving in reverse was set — the Yangwang U9 Xtreme reached a speed of 308.4 miles per hour. This isn’t the first Yangwang U9 to make its mark on the testing circuit: last month, the Yangwang U9 Track Edition achieved a speed of 293 miles per hour, also at the testing facility in Papenburg.
“This record was only possible because the U9 Xtreme simply has incredible performance,” Marc Basseng, the driver who took this hypercar through its paces, said in a statement. “Technically, something like this is not possible with a combustion engine. Thanks to the electric motor, the car is quiet, there are no load changes, and that allows me to focus even more on the track.”
BYD’s announcement of the hypercar’s record-setting speed also explained how the Xtreme — previously the “Track/Special Edition” — differs from previous versions of the Yangwang U9. These changes include an upgrade to the aforementioned suspension and a more powerful powertrain.
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Two similar facilities are in the worksThe Yangwang U9 Xtreme is a production model, albeit a very limited-edition one; according to the automaker, there will be “no more than 30” made. In an article on the new record for Autoblog, Marnus Moolman pointed out that this is “a one-way run,” and thus won’t qualify as a record, which are calculated by averaging two distinct runs on the track. Still, eclipsing 308 miles per hour is a stunning accomplishment, however you want to categorize it.
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