Realities
BYD plans to make its Yangwang U9 Extreme live up to its name by trying to break past 310 mph during a high-speed run. In the previous article, we quoted top brand executives saying another high-speed run is planned, with the front-runner venue set to be in Dubai sometime this November.
The likely Dubai speed run will be heavily documented and publicized, which means BYD will be preparing the U9 Extreme behind the scenes with additional tests. Sadly, it seems one test has gone very wrong, with video and photos of a U9 Extreme crashing at high speed now exposed online.
In Pursuit Of Speed
CarNewsChina just published a report and video showing the BYD Yangwang U9 Extreme in a crash. It was wrecked during what appears to be a high-speed test run. What’s interesting is that the video appears to have been released to the public. The video also seems professionally produced, leading us to believe official sources may have released it. In the video, we see snippets of what happened, focusing on the crash on a closed-off, high-speed banked oval track.
The video begins with the U9 Extreme losing traction and grip before violently slamming into the barrier. It doesn’t indicate how fast the driver was going, but based on the footage and damage, he was probably traveling at a decent pace before crashing. The damage stripped the car of its recognizable parts, leaving only the chassis shell.
Incredibly, the cabin remained intact, allowing the driver to be retrieved from the car immediately. Furthermore, the video also shows that after a battery of health checks and tests, the driver walked away injury-free, a testament to how safe the U9 Extreme’s build is.
Car News China
Laws of Science
While the news of this accident is both good and bad, the reality is that traveling at those speeds brings science into question. The faster the car, the more it needs to handle the laws of physics and science that push back at high speed. It’ll need the right aerodynamics, but most importantly, the right tires to put all that power down at those speeds without breaking or losing traction.
Does the U9 Extreme have the right equipment to breach past the 310 mph mark? We have yet to see, and it should be interesting to see the brand continue its planned run in Dubai.
About the author
Pablo Salapantan
News Editor