A Chinese car maker has just grabbed the top spot in speed records. The Yangwang U9 Xtreme, an electric supercar from BYD’s luxury brand, hit a top speed of 496.22 km/h on September 14, 2025, at a test track in Papenburg, Germany. This makes it the fastest production car ever built, beating the old record of 490.48 km/h set by the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ back in 2019.
The U9 Xtreme is a track-focused version of the regular Yangwang U9, which went on sale in China last year. It uses four electric motors that together give out 2,978 horsepower—more than double the power of the standard model.
This setup lets it pull hard right from a stop and keep speeding up even at very high rates. It can go from 0 to 100 km/h in just 2 seconds, and it also clocked a lap time of 6 minutes and 59 seconds around the tough Nürburgring track in Germany, the fastest for any electric production car.
To handle such speeds, the car got upgrades like better air flow parts made from light carbon fiber, including a big front splitter and a swan-neck rear wing to push it down on the road. It runs on BYD’s special blade battery that can handle quick power pulls, and it has custom tires from China that can take speeds up to 500 km/h.
The body is lighter by about 100 kg thanks to things like 3D-printed parts from aerospace tech and titanium brakes. All this keeps it stable and safe at crazy speeds.
Only 30 units of the U9 Xtreme will be made, so it’s a rare find for buyers who want the ultimate thrill. Reservations are open now worldwide, but expect a price well over the standard U9’s starting tag of about $236,000—maybe around $300,000 or more. The name “Xtreme” stands for pushing limits and exploring the unknown, which fits Yangwang’s goal of making driving fun and full of new ideas.
Stella Li, BYD’s top executive, shared her pride: “This is a huge win for our team. Yangwang doesn’t accept limits, and that’s how we built a car like the U9 Xtreme.” Just last month, a test version of the U9 hit 472.41 km/h for the fastest electric car record, but now the Xtreme has taken the crown for all production cars.
This win shows how electric cars are changing the game, proving they can outrun even the mightiest gas-powered supercars. If speed is your thing, the Yangwang U9 Xtreme is now the one to beat. Watch the video of its record run—it’s a wild sight!