A BYD EV just set the world record for a production car, topping 496km/h

Chinese car manufacturer BYD has built the fastest production car on the planet after its Yangwang U9 Xtreme hypercar hit a top speed of 496.22km/h.

The record, at the ATP Automotive Testing Papenburg test track in Germany on September 14, beats the 490.484km/h top speed for a petrol-powered car – the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ – the only other car in the world to top 300mph.

While the Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut has a theoretical top speed of 499km/h, the car still hasn’t got the right tyres to try and hit that speed.

It also beats the 472.41 km/h EV record set last month at the same track by Yangwang, BYD’s high-end sub-brand, with an earlier version of its U9 Track Edition supercar.

The Yangwang U9X

The souped-up new version, the U9X, takes the existing technical architecture of the U9 currently on sale in China at a cost of around A$230,000 – there’s talk of it possibly making its way to Australia one day.

The U9X has an upgraded powertrain with 1200V ultra-high-voltage electrics (compared with 800V for the existing U9, already double a typical EV), and a lithium iron phosphate battery with a discharge rate of 30C (a typical battery discharges at between 0.5C and 1C, with intermittent bursts of 2C to 10C). The battery discharge power is the secret sauce for speed.

Then add four ultra-high-speed motors operating at up to 30,000rpm, producing a combined 3000PS (2929 horsepower), semi-slick tyres, and revised suspension for circuit driving. The car also delivered a rare sub-7-minute lap time on the 12.3km circuit.

Yangwang plans to build up to 30 U9 Xtremes for consumer sale, predicted to cost around A$410,000 – less than a 10th of the price of the record-breaking Bugatti Chiron in 2022, which had a A$6 million+ price tag. (They also built 30.)

The U9X driver was Marc Basseng, a German track specialist with a long history in sports-car racing and endurance motorsport. He set last month’s 472km/h record and was also behind the wheel for the previous 2024 global EV speed record of 412km/h in a Rimac Nevera.

“This record was only possible because the U9 Xtreme simply has incredible performance,” he said.

“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.”