BYD’s entry into the luxury EV market is heating up. The new Yangwang U9, BYD’s new electric supercar, hit a top speed of over 375 km/h (233 mph), topping its own performance benchmark. Check out the video of it below.
BYD launched Yangwang, its high-end luxury brand, last January. The brand’s first vehicle, the U8 off-roader, is a rugged SUV rival to the Mercedes G-Class and Range Rover/ Defender models.
Yangwang launched the U8 last September, with deliveries in China following in December. The U8 starts at around $150,000 (1,098,000 RMB) and will make its way overseas to key markets like Europe.
In February, BYD’s luxury brand launched its first electric supercar, the Yangwang U9. With four electric motors, the U9 packs nearly 1,300 hp (960 kW) and 1,200 lb-ft (1,680 Nm) of torque for a 0 to 60 mph sprint in 2.36 seconds.
To put this into perspective, the Ferrari SF90 and Buggati Chiron hit 0 to 60 mph in around 2.5 seconds. The new 2025 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid takes 2.9 seconds.
With starting prices at around $233,400 (1,680,000 yuan), the U9 is also less than half the cost of the Ferrari and Buggati models.
BYD’s electric supercar flexes its impressive speed
The Yangwang U9 can also dance and shake with BYD’s Disus X full active body control system. At 4,966 mm long, 2,029 mm wide, and 1,295 mm tall, you can picture BYD’s electric supercar as about the same size as a Lamborghini Aventador (4,943 mm L, 2,098 mm W, 1,136 mm H).
After showcasing the U9’s speed performance on the track, BYD’s electric supercar topped its own performance benchmark.
The U9 hit a top speed of 375.12 km/h, Yangwang’s sales boss, Hu Xiaoqing, announced on Weibo this week. Hu shared a video of the U9 driving at breakneck speeds on the track, topping out at 375.12 km/h, or about 233 mph.
The impressive performance topped the 300 km/h (186 mph) mark in the Yangwang U9’s regulatory filing.
BYD’s luxury brand announced it had begun building U9 models just a few weeks ago. Ahead of deliveries slated for later this month, U9s are already arriving at dealerships.
The U9 is impressive inside and out. BYD claims it has the “smartest supercar cockpit” with DiLink and DiPilot. It also includes a 10.25″ driver display and 12.3″ infotainment screen. Some models include another 10.25″ passenger screen.
Top comment by Grant
These supercars are such low volume luxuries that I'll never really care who makes them. But at least they are going all electric. I'll be interested to see how the U9 does on a track.
With an 80 kWh BYD Blade battery, the electric supercar gets up to 280 miles (450 km) CLTC range. It can also fast charge (30% to 80%) in 10 minutes, according to BYD.
The U9 was already spotted racing around the Nurburgring earlier this summer. Is BYD’s electric supercar out to steal the record?
Update: 8/19/24: BYD said it’s time for “China’s supercars to get serious” as it prepares for the first U9 customer deliveries (read more here).
Source: CnEVPost, Yangwang
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