China's Yangwang U9X Hypercar Tops 500 km/h
The Yangwang U9X, an electric hypercar from Chinese automaker BYD's luxury brand, reached 503.17 km/h in Abu Dhabi, becoming the first production car to pass 500 km/h. The result is recorded as a one-way run record.
The Yangwang U9X, an electric hypercar from the luxury brand of Chinese automaker BYD, reached 503.17 km/h on a closed stretch of highway in Abu Dhabi, becoming the first production car officially to exceed 500 km/h. German racing driver Marc Basseng was at the wheel. The result matters because it marks the arrival of Chinese electric-car makers in the hypercar segment.
Two attempts
The record did not come immediately. In the first attempt the car reached about 490 km/h, short of the intended target. The source also mentions a crash the driver experienced during one of the runs.
Overnight, the engineering team improved the car's aerodynamics, suspension settings and tyre pressure. The next day, on the seven-kilometre Al Dafra highway straight, the U9X reached 503.17 km/h.
How the result is recorded
Both the International Automobile Federation (FIA) and Guinness World Records have logged the achievement as a one-way run record. Land speed records normally require an average of two runs in opposite directions to cancel out the effects of wind and terrain.
Guinness World Records awarded the model two official titles: highest speed for a production car and highest speed for an electric production car in a one-way run.
Previous result
The same model had earlier reached 496.22 km/h at the ATP Papenburg test track in Germany. With the new result, BYD's Yangwang positions Chinese electric-car makers as serious players in the world's hypercar elite.
