In September 2025, a Chinese car brand most Western drivers had never heard of did something no production Bugatti, Koenigsegg or Rimac had ever officially done: it went faster than 300 mph on a public test track. The car was the Yangwang U9 Xtreme, a battery-electric hypercar built by BYD's luxury performance sub-brand, and the run — 496.22 km/h, independently timed at Germany's ATP Automotive Testing Papenburg facility — instantly made it the fastest verified production car on the planet, electric or otherwise.

This guide covers what the U9 Xtreme and the standard U9 it's based on actually are, what's independently verified about the speed record versus what's still marketing claim, how the car's strangest party trick — a suspension system that lets it jump — actually works, and where, if anywhere, you could realistically buy one.

Quick Specifications

Spec Yangwang U9 (Standard) Yangwang U9 Xtreme
Motors 4× 240 kW PMSM, one per wheel 4× upgraded 555 kW motors
Total power 960 kW / 1,287 hp 2,220 kW / 2,978–3,019 hp
Voltage architecture 800V 1,200V (first in a series-production car)
0–100 km/h 2.36 s ~1.9 s (estimated, unpublished)
Top speed 309.19 km/h 496.22 km/h, independently timed at ATP Papenburg
Nürburgring lap 7:17.9 (uncertified, Nov 2024) 6:59.157 — first EV under 7 minutes
Battery 80 kWh Blade LFP 80 kWh Blade LFP
CLTC range 450–465 km Not officially published (estimated 380–420 km)
Starting price ¥1.68–1.8 million (~$233,000–$253,000) Not publicly disclosed; limited to 30 units
Availability China, since August 2024 30-unit limited run; no confirmed international retail sale

Figures sourced from BYD/Yangwang's own launch materials and independent outlets covering the ATP Papenburg speed run and Nürburgring lap, as cited throughout. CLTC range is a Chinese test cycle and would likely read lower under WLTP or EPA testing.

What Is the Yangwang U9?

Yangwang is BYD's halo performance brand, launched in 2023 to sit above the mainstream BYD badge and compete directly with six- and seven-figure combustion hypercars. The U9 is Yangwang's two-seat electric supercar, first unveiled in February 2024 at 1.68 million yuan (roughly $233,000) and delivered to Chinese customers from that summer. It uses BYD's own "e4" platform — four independently controlled electric motors, one per wheel — paired with the company's DiSus-X active suspension system.

The Xtreme, sometimes written U9X or "U9 Extreme Edition," is a heavily reworked, 30-unit version built specifically to chase outright speed records. It swaps in more powerful motors, a new 1,200V electrical architecture — a first for any series-production car — and extensive aerodynamic and cooling changes most standard U9 owners will never see on their car.

The Speed Record: What's Actually Verified

On 14 September 2025, Yangwang's factory driver Marc Basseng took a U9 Xtreme to 496.22 km/h (308.4 mph) on the high-speed oval at ATP Automotive Testing Papenburg in Germany — a real, independently operated proving ground, not a Yangwang-owned facility. That run beat the previous production-car top-speed benchmark held by the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ (304.8 mph, set in 2019) and the Rimac Nevera R's electric-car record of roughly 268 mph.

It's worth being precise about the record's status, since coverage has been inconsistent on this point: the run was timed and verified by ATP's own equipment at the facility, and BYD released full onboard footage and telemetry from the attempt. However, at the time of writing, no independent adjudication from Guinness World Records or the FIA had been publicly confirmed for this specific run, unlike some previous production-car speed records that went through that additional certification step. That doesn't make the 496.22 km/h figure false — the telemetry and third-party facility involvement are real — but readers should know it hasn't cleared every certification hurdle that a Guinness or FIA-recognized record normally would.

Nürburgring: The First Sub-7-Minute EV Lap

Separately from the top-speed run, the U9 Xtreme also lapped the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 6:59.157, making it the first electric car ever recorded under the 7-minute mark at the circuit — a benchmark long associated with the fastest combustion hypercars. The standard U9 had already posted an uncertified lap of roughly 7:17.9 in late 2024, meaning the Xtreme's hardware and software changes were worth close to 19 seconds around one of the world's most demanding circuits.

DiSus-X: The Suspension That Lets It Jump

Beyond outright speed, the U9's most viral feature is its DiSus-X suspension, part of a six-tier family of BYD suspension systems ranging from comfort-focused DiSus-C up to the track-focused DiSus-X used here. The system pairs intelligent hydraulic body control with a LiDAR-based "preview" sensor that reads the road ahead and reacts in roughly 40 milliseconds — fast enough, BYD says, to lift a wheel individually to absorb a pothole, stabilize the car through a tire blowout, or, in a widely shared 2025 promotional video, hop the entire car over a shallow water-filled crater and a strip of road spikes while driving itself.

It's worth separating spectacle from substance here: independent coverage of that demonstration video noted the car's actual jump height was modest — around 35 mm — despite promotional captions suggesting a much larger leap. The underlying capability (rapid, per-wheel suspension travel of up to 75 mm, with more than a ton of near-instant lifting force) is real and independently described by BYD's own engineers, but the "jumping over obstacles" clips are a controlled demonstration of that hardware, not a everyday feature drivers should expect to rely on.

Price and Availability

China: The standard U9 has been on sale since 2024, with pricing that's crept up slightly over time from its original 1.68 million yuan launch price to a listed 1.8 million yuan (~$252,000) as of late 2025, likely reflecting configuration and market changes rather than a formal price increase.

The Xtreme: Yangwang has not publicly disclosed a retail price for the 30-unit Xtreme edition. Industry estimates reviewed for this piece place it anywhere from $400,000 to $700,000, but — and this is worth stressing — any source quoting an exact figure without citing an official Yangwang announcement is guessing; the only Yangwang-confirmed price point remains the standard U9's roughly $252,000 figure.

Outside China: The standard U9 has appeared at international motor shows (including GIIAS in Indonesia), but it is not yet sold at retail through an official dealer network outside China. Yangwang's sibling model, the U8 luxury SUV, has a confirmed European launch plan from BYD leadership targeting around 2027; no equivalent public timeline for an international U9 launch had been announced at the time of writing.

How It Compares

Against the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+, the U9 Xtreme is roughly 4 mph faster in a straight line and costs a small fraction of the Bugatti's price even at the higher end of industry price estimates — but the Chiron's record went through full independent certification, a distinction worth remembering when the two cars come up in the same conversation. Against the Rimac Nevera R, the other serious all-electric speed contender, the U9 Xtreme's 496 km/h comfortably outpaces the Nevera's roughly 431 km/h claim, and the U9's Nürburgring time is also quicker. The standard U9, at around a quarter of a million dollars, undercuts most of its combustion-powered hypercar rivals — Ferraris, Lamborghinis and McLarens in the same performance bracket — by a wide margin, which is a large part of why BYD has marketed it directly against them.

Pros and Cons

Advantages:

  • A genuinely independently-timed 496.22 km/h run, beating every combustion and electric production-car speed figure that came before it
  • First electric car under 7 minutes at the Nürburgring Nordschleife (6:59.157)
  • Real, engineer-explained suspension technology (DiSus-X) behind the viral jumping demonstrations, not pure marketing fiction
  • Standard U9 pricing that undercuts most rival hypercars by a wide margin
  • 1,200V electrical architecture is a genuine industry first for a series-production car

Disadvantages:

  • The 496.22 km/h record has not been publicly confirmed by Guinness World Records or the FIA, unlike some rival manufacturers' certified records
  • Xtreme edition price is undisclosed and limited to 30 units — effectively unobtainable for most buyers
  • No official retail availability outside China for either version at the time of writing
  • CLTC range figures don't translate directly to WLTP or EPA equivalents, and no Xtreme-specific range figure has been officially published
  • As with any Yangwang product, no long-term reliability or resale-value data exists yet given how recently the brand launched

Who Should Care About the Yangwang U9?

Realistically, almost nobody reading this will be cross-shopping a U9 Xtreme — 30 units, no published price, no confirmed export plan. Where the car matters is as a signal: a Chinese brand most of the West had never heard of two years ago has now out-accelerated, out-cornered and out-run some of Europe's most storied hypercar names, using a suspension and drivetrain architecture developed entirely in-house. For anyone tracking where the performance-car industry is heading, that's the real story — the standard U9's relatively attainable price only reinforces it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Yangwang U9 Xtreme officially the world's fastest car?

It's the fastest production car independently timed to date, at 496.22 km/h, verified at a third-party facility. It has not, however, received public confirmation from Guinness World Records or the FIA, so calling it the "official" record holder overstates its certification status slightly.

Can I buy a Yangwang U9 outside China?

Not through an official dealer network at the time of writing. The standard U9 has been shown at international auto shows, and sibling brand models have announced European plans for around 2027, but no confirmed international retail launch exists yet for the U9 specifically.

How does the U9's jumping suspension actually work?

DiSus-X combines intelligent hydraulic body control with a LiDAR sensor that reads the road roughly 40 milliseconds ahead, letting each wheel's suspension react individually — including lifting with over a ton of force to clear an obstacle. The dramatic "jump" demonstrations use this real hardware, though the actual height cleared in public videos has been modest.

How much does the Yangwang U9 cost?

The standard U9 is priced around 1.68–1.8 million yuan (roughly $233,000–$253,000) in China. The 30-unit Xtreme edition's price has not been officially disclosed; published estimates range widely and should be treated as informed guesses, not confirmed figures.

Is the Yangwang U9 faster than a Bugatti?

Yes, in top speed: 496.22 km/h versus the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+'s certified 304.8 mph (490.5 km/h) record from 2019. The Bugatti's record went through full independent certification, while the U9's has not yet received the same level of formal adjudication.

Final Verdict

The Yangwang U9 Xtreme is a legitimate engineering achievement — a 1,200V electric hypercar that has been independently timed faster than any Bugatti, Koenigsegg or Rimac has ever gone, backed by a sub-7-minute Nürburgring lap and a suspension system with real, explainable technology behind its viral party tricks. The gaps that remain are about paperwork and access, not performance: no Guinness or FIA sign-off yet, no disclosed Xtreme price, and no way for almost anyone outside a shortlist of 30 buyers — or outside China entirely, for the standard car — to actually own one right now.

For enthusiasts, the takeaway isn't "go buy one." It's that the balance of power in the hypercar world has visibly shifted, and a two-year-old brand from Shenzhen is now a name that Molsheim and Maranello have to take seriously.

Watch: Yangwang U9 Xtreme's 496.22 km/h Record Run

Sources

  • Yangwang official record-run footage — youtube.com/watch?v=t5Ojlq7yxXw
  • Carsales.com.au — YangWang U9 Xtreme 496 km/h coverage
  • Carscoops — U9 Xtreme record analysis and certification status
  • Supercarblondie — onboard footage release and DiSus-X jump demonstration coverage
  • BatmanGarage.com — detailed U9 and U9 Xtreme specification breakdown
  • BYD Accessories Store / official BYD Businesswire release — U9 launch pricing and DiSus-X technical description
  • Zecar, Grassroots Motorsports, Dupont Registry — independent record-run reporting
  • Fox News, Carscoops — DiSus-X jump demonstration analysis
  • Katadata OTO — DiSus-X technical explanation from BYD Indonesia's Head of Product
  • Yahoo Autos/DPA — BYD/Yangwang European expansion plans