The world record is right in front of us! The Yangwang U9 Xtreme+ has achieved a top speed of 496.22 km/h on the test track. What does this number mean?
As we mentioned before, the Bugatti Chiron's 2019 record of 490.48 km/h - the fastest production car ever - has now been surpassed.
This means from today onwards, the number one spot in the global automotive speed rankings flies the Chinese flag!
At 472.41 km/h, I mentioned 0.386 Mach - the first time a Chinese car deserved to be honored with "sonic speed" units.
This time, it's 0.4 Mach!
Showcasing Chinese supercar strength through the world's ultimate speed!
I know what most people's first reaction to this number is.
Actually, top speed is the closest thing to climbing Mount Everest in the automotive industry. Having a lot of horsepower is just the first step; there are a whole host of more difficult challenges.
Over the past few decades, only a handful of supercar brands have stood atop this mountain: Bugatti, Koenigsegg... Behind these brands lies decades, even centuries, of technical expertise built by generations of European and American engineers.
To understand the U9 Xtreme+, let's break down these challenges.
First challenge: Aerodynamics.
We all know that power requirements increase with the square of air resistance.
Beyond 200 km/h, air resistance becomes like a wall. The Yangwang U9 Xtreme+ takes an extreme approach.
The body isn't just low-slung; it can dynamically adjust its posture through the "Yunhua-X" active suspension system, which dynamically reduces ground clearance with speed to minimize frontal area.
This "chassis musculature" pulls the body into optimal position - dynamically, adjusting every single second.
Second challenge: Power and cooling.
Top speed isn't a few seconds of burst; it requires sustained full power over a 10+ kilometer acceleration run.
The Yangwang U9's quad-motor system delivers over 3000 Ps with motor speeds reaching 30,000 rpm, achieving a power-to-weight ratio exceeding 1200 Ps/ton!
The numbers are impressive, but cooling is even more challenging.
U9 employs a "3D cooling" solution: motor oil cooling + double-layer cold plate water cooling, increasing cooling system capacity by 133%. For the battery, there's an incredible 30C discharge rate!
What does that mean?
It means it can instantly release over ten times the power of conventional performance cars!
But to reach this peak power, you must control internal resistance and temperature rise - otherwise, just a few seconds could destroy the battery cells.
Third challenge: Braking system.
To reach speeds over 400 km/h, you don't just need to go fast - you need to be able to "stop."
The Yangwang U9 features a "titanium alloy calipers + carbon ceramic brake discs" combination. The components are incredibly lightweight with a more linear brake feel. Combined with electronic braking algorithms, regenerative braking and mechanical braking share the "enormous kinetic energy" - a first for electric vehicles, truly integrating "motor regeneration" and "carbon ceramic brakes" in track scenarios.
Fourth challenge: Tires.
This might be the most vulnerable link in the entire system.
At over 400 km/h, the centrifugal force on tires is equivalent to several tons pulling at the rubber.
Even the slightest irregularity could cause an immediate blowout. The Yangwang U9 and Giti jointly developed semi-slick tires using aramid fibers (found in bulletproof vests) to withstand speeds over 500 km/h - do you understand? Today's achievement still isn't the limit. Its true potential is in the 500+ km/h range!
These tires also feature asymmetric tread patterns for both wet conditions and cornering, developed through tens of thousands of kilometers of testing and countless destroyed tires!
As the saying goes: "One general achieves success through the deaths of ten thousand soldiers!"
Fifth challenge: Battery safety and energy management.
Top speed challenges are where electric vehicles face the most skepticism: Will the battery overheat? Can power be sustained? The U9 Xtreme+ uses track-optimized blade batteries. The LFP (lithium iron phosphate) chemistry provides an inherently safe foundation, enhanced by a dual-layer cooling structure, delivering industry-leading energy release and heat dissipation efficiency.
So this record isn't the victory of a single component, but of systems engineering.
Power, battery, cooling, braking, tires, aerodynamics - every element must be pushed to the limit and complement each other. Nothing can be missing.
That's why "top speed" - this Mount Everest of automotive achievement - is so truly difficult to conquer.
What makes the Yangwang U9 Xtreme+ special is that it's not purely a "lab car," but an evolution of the production U9.
Behind it lies BYD's twenty years of electrification expertise: from LFP batteries to blade batteries, from the e-4WD architecture to the Yun Nian suspension. These production-oriented technologies were pushed to their limits in this extreme scenario - a completely different approach from Bugatti's path of limited handcrafted vehicles.
