BYD electric car breaks 500-km/h barrier, sets new Guinness production-car speed record

[Financial News] China’s BYD showcased its technological prowess in the global high-performance car market, breaking the 500-km/h barrier with an electric hypercar. Combining electric motors with a maximum output of 3,019 horsepower and a 1,200V ultra-high-voltage system, it surpassed the existing production-car top-speed record. The competition in electric-vehicle performance is expanding beyond driving range and charging speed to extreme power output and vehicle-control technology.
BYD said on the 9th that the U9 Xtreme (U9X), an electric hypercar from its luxury brand Yangwang (YANGWANG), reached 503.17 km/h to break a Guinness World Record.
The record was set on the 1st (local time) at Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed International Road in the Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). It was recognized as a Guinness World Record in two categories—highest speed in a one-way run by a production car and highest speed in a one-way run by an electric production car—and was also recognized by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA).
The U9X beat the previous top speed of 496.22 km/h, set last September at the ATP Papenburg test track in Germany, by about 6.95 km/h. Marc Basseng, a specialist driver in sports cars and endurance racing, took part in the record run.
The attempt took place with a total 10-km stretch of road closed to traffic. The straight used for the top-speed run was 7 km long. Engineers inspected the road surface and adjusted the suspension, aerodynamic settings and tire pressure, among other things, to improve the car’s stability at high speeds.
BYD Vice President Stella Li emphasized, “Even as we celebrated setting a record of 496.22 km/h in Germany last year, our team members were analyzing the data and discussing how to take the U9X to the next level. The 503.17 km/h is a fantastic achievement and a result of pushing the performance limits of pure electric-drive technology even further.”
The U9X’s key feature is its high-performance electric motors, each independently positioned at one of the four wheels. Each motor has a maximum output of 755 PS, for a combined maximum output of 3,019 PS. That is more than twice the 1,287 PS of the previous Yangwang U9.
In particular, it uses a 1,200V ultra-high-voltage platform, an upgrade from the previous 800V system, to boost power delivery and thermal management for high-output driving. Based on BYD’s lithium iron phosphate (LFP) Blade Battery, it achieves a discharge rate of up to 30C and supports output of up to 1,800 kW even when the battery is at 20% charge.
For vehicle control, it uses the e4 platform, which independently adjusts the torque at each wheel more than 100 times per second, and the intelligent body-control system DiSus-X. The technology controls the vehicle’s movements during rapid acceleration and braking, as well as high-speed cornering, to ensure driving stability.
The U9X also recorded a lap time of 6 minutes 59.157 seconds on Germany’s Nürburgring Nordschleife. The company said the run demonstrated its high-speed cornering and braking performance, as well as its top speed.
Marc Basseng, who drove the record run, said, “Unlike a dedicated test track, public roads present a different set of challenges, making the car’s precise movements and stability, as well as confidence in the car, more important than ever. It is all the more special to have set another record in a completely different environment.”
BYD plans to produce just 30 units of the record-setting U9X worldwide. Some customers have already finalized their custom specifications and are coordinating contract and production schedules. BYD’s strategy is to use this achievement to showcase the competitiveness of its core technologies, including electric motors, batteries and vehicle control, in the global high-performance car market.

[email protected] Kim Dong-ho Reporter