YangWang U9 Xtreme Hits Absurd Top Speed for New Production Record
The electric Chinese hypercar set the world record for the highest top speed from a production car during a recent outing at the ATP Papenburg oval track in Germany.
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The YangWang U9 Xtreme has hit an absurd top speed to become the fastest production car in the world.
The electric hypercar is built by Chinese automaker BYD, and it just posted a record top speed of 308.4 mph.
BYD brought the YangWang to the ATP Papenburg oval track in Germany to set the record.
It’s pretty clear at this point that electric powertrains allow for huge power numbers and crazy fast acceleration figures. Of the 120 cars we tested at Car and Driver in the first half of 2025, the top two slots were taken by 1000-plus-hp EVs, with the third-place slot held by the equally insane 1064-hp Chevrolet Corvette ZR1.
Beating a Bugatti
The YangWang U9 Xtreme (formerly the YangWang U9 Track Edition) just blew the whole competition out of the water. Forget about acceleration for a moment, the U9 Xtreme just hit a top speed of 308.4 mph, making it not only the fastest electric car on the planet, but the fastest car. Period.
A matter of weeks after demolishing the top-speed record for production EVs, the YangWang headed back to the ATP Papenburg oval track in Germany for another go. It was once again driven by German racer Marc Basseng, who piloted the hypercar beyond the previous record-holding Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+, which managed 304.8 back in 2019.
Yangwang
Built by BYD, the U9 Xtreme sports an insane quad-motor powertrain. Each of the four motors produces a peak of 744 horsepower, combining for a total output of over 2959 horsepower. According to BYD, the U9 Xtreme runs on a 1200-volt system. The standard U9 features an 800-volt architecture, which helps provide more power to the motors. The result means more heat generation—67 percent more than the standard car—and necessitates higher-density battery cells than the normal U9. Other changes to achieve the speed include dropping the wheel size from 21 to 20 inches, narrowing the front track, and adding wider, semi-slick track tires at the front of the car.
One small caveat that doesn’t lessen the impressiveness of the feat is that while the U9 Xtreme does classify as a production model, it barely does. That’s because BYD is planning to limit production of the top-speed version of the U9 to no more than 30 units.
Headshot of Jack Fitzgerald
Jack Fitzgerald
Associate News Editor
Jack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1.
After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf.
