Yangwang U9
The Yangwang U9 is BYD’s electric hypercar, and by some distance the fastest production car China has ever built. It uses the same four independent motor layout as the U8, but tuned purely for outright performance, producing a combined 1,300 hp and 1,680 Nm of torque, enough for 0 to 62 mph in just 2.36 seconds and a top speed of 243 mph, a figure that puts it in company with the fastest hypercars from Bugatti and Koenigsegg.
Beyond straight-line speed, the U9’s party piece is its piloted suspension, capable of genuinely lifting and lowering individual wheels in sequence to make the car appear to “dance,” a level of active chassis control not offered by any conventional supercar maker. An even more extreme limited-run version, the U9 Xtreme, has since set records at Germany’s Nürburgring circuit, with just 30 units built worldwide. The standard car uses an 800V electrical architecture supporting up to 500 kW DC charging, enough for a 30 to 80% top-up in around 10 minutes.
The Yangwang U9 starts from 1,680,000 yuan in China, around £183,000 converted. It has not launched in the UK, with BYD targeting a UK entry for the wider Yangwang brand in 2027, though its striking design is already familiar to some British enthusiasts after appearances at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
