A YangWang U9 Recently Went 243 MPH — What It Says About BYD – CleanTechnica

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While many of us were focused on the election, BYD announced that the YangWang U9 went 391.94 km/h (243 mph). Auto-translate under subtitles helps.

This was not a one-off. No track-only equipment (other than a roll cage, for safety reasons), rockets, or gimmicks. It was a street-legal car using street tires, which likely led them to stop when they did.

Overall, supercar top speed tests are not very meaningful. Few buyers will ever push these limits. But this does tell you something about BYD.

As the engineer in the video mentioned, the test provides a wealth of data to make further vehicle improvements. The U9 could become even more capable as the second-generation Blade battery rolls out. BYD is making updates at a rapid rate and is clearly implementing continuous improvement.

When BYD launched the U9, the company claimed that it would have just a 309 km/h (192 mph) top speed. Going 50 mph faster is not a rounding error. Aerodynamic drag goes up exponentially with speed. BYD takes an “underpromise and overdeliver” approach, unlike some other automakers.

As it was still accelerating in the video when the driver lifted off, they likely have enough data to support a faster theoretical top speed claim. They could have touted a higher level of performance based on hypotheticals or even faked a video to make it look like the vehicle performs better. But BYD took an honest approach, showed the actual results, and indicated that they are working on going faster in the future.

And it is a real vehicle, produced and delivered before the test was conducted. This is not just a promise that people put deposits on, only to still be waiting almost a decade later while the automaker considers it not a priority. Or something so delayed that the automaker gives up and calls it “pointless.”

Lately, we have seen many people persuaded by lofty promises of future greatness, often accompanied by a heavy dose of dishonesty. BYD is taking a different approach, delivering a multitude of products before many people are even aware they are being developed. This approach hasn’t done as much for BYD’s share price compared to companies making big promises. But BYD’s rapid growth has left many feeling blindsided.

We’ll see which approach comes out ahead in the end.

By Larry Evans