A claimed brake horsepower figure of 986bhp is already enough to make any car stand out, but this car manages to go a few steps further and has a trick that we could only expect from the likes of Tarzan-the wonder car. The Chinese automaker BYD’s new suspension system is so clever that it can make a car bounce, do a crab walk, and run on only 3 wheels. BYD through its luxury brand Yangwang has launched the U9, an electric hypercar with 986bhp capable of hitting the 0 to 100 mark in under two seconds.
The Yangwang U9 is underpinned by BYD's new e4 platform, which it shares with and SUV dubbed the U8. The e4 platform is skateboard architecture that makes use of 4 independent electric motors which are capable of real time torque vectoring. In the U9 this setup will make 986bhp. There's no official word on the U9's torque figure yet, but it might be upwards of the 1000Nm mark because BYD says that the e4 platform is capable of handling a peak torque figure of 1200Nm. What we know is that the U9 will be able to sprint from 0 to 100kmph in 2 seconds flat, which will make it one of the quickest supercars ever made. It also has a claimed driving range of 700km. The e4 platform is also capable of negative torque vectoring, which can be utilised to slow the car.
Expectedly, the car’s stand-out feature is the DiSus suspension system, the system is made up of three different components. There’s DiSus-C, which adjusts the damping by controlling the damper solenoid valve. DiSus-A, which employs air shocks that can be adjusted by up to 150mm, offers 12 different height modes, including adjusting to the EV’s speed. And DiSus-P, which can control the oil intake of the damper, damping adjustment valve, and stiffness adjustment valve. Additionally, it has an adjustable travel of up to 200mm and can lift all four wheels simultaneously or each wheel independently. It can also provide an instant 200% increase in stiffness to achieve better handling.
According to BYD, the DiSus system went through over 30 months and 1 crore kilometers of endurance testing and will be offered in other cars as time progresses, one of which is an all-electric off-roader called U8 which is supposedly capable of driving at up to 120kmph even if it has a flat tire.
The design is rather pleasing for an EV. At the front, you see two massive C-shaped headlights and a splitter to benefit performance. Moving to the side, you will see an air intake and a fair bit of carbonfibre. At the back is where this becomes a proper hypercar, a massive GT3-style rear wing is there and is connected to the central fin and the vented rear windscreen. A horizontal dot matrix LED tail lights and exaggerated diffusers is also trying hard to steal the show.
After operating for over 8 years in India selling commercial vehicles, BYD launched their first electric car—the e6 in India back in November of 2021 and will launch the Seal in India later this year. While much hasn’t been revealed about the hypercar, we expect to know more at the upcoming Shanghai motor show next week. The Yangwang U9 electric supercar will launch on the Chinese car market late this year.