Why Is The 1300 Hp Super Sports Car From BYD Slower Than The 775 Hp Porsche?

The Nordschleife in Germany is a legendary venue where a car’s performance is put to the test. After navigating 21 kilometres of challenging turns, drivers can measure their speed against competitors.

The Chinese manufacturer BYD took to the track with the Yangwang U9 electric supercar with 1306 horsepower (960 kW) and four engines. It reached a top speed of 391.94 km/h on the main straight, but it has 150 corners to go, and that’s the key. Yangwang’s U9 best time was 7 minutes and 17.9 seconds (7:17.9), a time that is not bad at all but far from the best.

Compared to other electric vehicles, the Yangwang U9 is ten seconds slower than the 1108-hp Porsche Taycan Turbo GT (7:07.55), a four-door sedan. The biggest difference is when comparing the U9’s time with the best internal combustion cars, and this is where the biggest problem with these electric cars comes into play: mass. The Yangwang U9 weighs 2,475 kilograms empty. That means with all the right fluids and an average-sized driver, it comes up to almost 2.6 tonnes.

This explains exactly why the Porsche 911 GT3 RS (992), with three engines less than the U9 and only 525 horsepower, is much faster: 6:44.84 minutes. The difference is about a thousand kilograms between the two cars (Porsche has 1525 kg), and that is a lot of kilograms. A similar time was achieved by the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ (6:44.97) with almost half the power of the Chinese supercar.

Currently, the record for the fastest production car at the Nürburgring is held by the Mercedes-AMG One with a time of 6:29.090. It’s not exactly a featherweight category, but its radical aerodynamics and Formula 1 hybrid engine make it unstoppable. Mass is the biggest enemy of electric cars, and great knowledge in setting suspensions, brakes, and engines… is another big plus for a manufacturer like Porsche.

• Also See: BYD Takes The Yangwang U9 Supercar To The Nürburgring Race Track