NIO EP9 breaks own record as fastest EV at Nurburgring, sets new mark as quickest road-legal car

What electric vehicle is the fastest on the world-famous Nurburgring Nordschleife road circuit in Germany? If you think it is a Tesla model, then try guessing again. It is once again the NIO EP9, which broke its own record as the fastest EV in the Green Hell, as set in October 2016.

According to NIO -- a startup carmaker based in Shanghai, China – the NIO EP9 recently completed a lap in the Nurburgring Nordschleife at just six minutes and 45.900 seconds (6:45.9 minutes). It is basically faster than its previous record of seven minutes and 5.12 seconds (7:05.12 minutes), which was achieved late last year. This means that the NIO EP9 has just broken its own record at the Green Hell by 19.22 seconds. Although there were no apparent changes on the electric hypercar between the October 2016 attempt and the recent record, the NIO EP9 managed to become much faster because of more favorable weather. The company noted that the October 2016 record was made during “inclement” weather.

NIO’s claim of the EP9 breaking the record has yet to be verified with a video recording. NIO has yet to provide a video of the record-setting run, and has promised to make the recording available to the public this week. Once the claim has been verified, NIO could officially say that the EP9 is the fastest EV at the Nurburgring Nordschleife road circuit.

However, that is not all. Since the NIO EP9 is a road legal car, it could also lay claim to being the fastest street-legal car at the Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit. It is even faster than the Lamborghini Huracán Performante, which set the previous record in March, completing the Green Hell in just six minutes and 52.01 seconds (6:52.01 minutes). Of course, NIO has to prove that EP9 didn’t wear any racing tires.

While the NIO EP9 is definitely faster than the Lamborghini Huracán Performante at the Nurburgring Nordschleife, there are doubts whether it could lay claim as the fastest production car at the famed circuit. Although, NIO announced in April that a second batch of 10 EP9s are to be assembled -- each built to order – so far, seven examples have been built, and that includes the first batch. Nonetheless, NIO isn’t actually claiming that the EP9 is the fastest production vehicle at the Green Hell.

Featuring carbon monocoque and carbon composite bodywork, the NIO EP9 features a powertrain that makes use of electric motors at each wheel. Its 777-volt powertrain could deliver 1 megawatt of power -- which is equivalent to 1,360 PS (1,342 bhp) – and 1,480 Nm (4,671 lb.-ft) of instant torque. Despite this amount of power, the NIO EP9 is a bit slower on the sprint than the Tesla Model S, no thanks to its heavy weight of 1,735 kg. Its dual-battery energy system alone accounts for 635 kg of that weight. With these attributes, the NIO EP9 could accelerate from zero to 62 mph (100 km/h) in just 2.7 seconds and to 124 mph (200 km/h) in 7.1 seconds. It could go as fast as 194 mph (313 km/h). The NIO EP9 has a price of $1.48 million.

PRESS RELEASE

NIO EP9 Breaks the Nurburgring Nordschleife Lap Record

Today, the NIO EP9 set a new lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, achieving a lap time of 6m 45.900s (six minutes, 45.900 seconds).

NIO EP9 Breaks the Nurburgring Nordschleife Lap Record

“In October 2016, we aimed to set a new lap record for an electric vehicle with our NIO EP9. In the inclemental weather that the Nürburgring Nordschleife is known for, the EP9 completed two laps of the 20.8 km (12.9m) ‘Green Hell’, one of which was in 7m 05.12s, beating the previous EV lap record, making it the fastest electric car in the world. The EP9’s new lap record is 19.22 seconds faster than its previous lap time. This is a fabulous achievement for NIO and I am very proud of the team that has worked tirelessly to achieve this accolade,” said Gerry Hughes, Head of Performance Program & FE Team Principal, NIO.

The EP9’s 1-MegaWatt of power is equivalent to 1360PS (1342 bhp) and the vehicle has a top speed of 313kph (194mph). The EP9 accelerates from 0-200kph (0-124mph) in 7.1 seconds. Previously, the EP9 has broken or set new track records at four world-renowned racetracks.

Last month, NIO announced that it plans to produce a second batch of ten EP9s, and each one will be made to order. The NIO EP9 is priced at 1.48 million USD.

In March, NIO announced that they will have autonomous electric vehicles in the U.S. market in 2020. The company also unveiled “NIO EVE” – the embodiment of their vision for the future of autonomous cars.

Last month, NIO unveiled the NIO ES8, a full size 7-seater all electric SUV that it will launch for the China market later this year.

“As a company, we were born to push limits. Setting and breaking records with our EP9 is for the sole purpose to show the world that we have the automotive and technical expertise to succeed in the global automotive market. Our vision is to be the best of the next generation of car companies by producing the smartest vehicles in world,” said Padmasree Warrior, CEO, NIO, U.S.

About NIO:

NIO is a global start-up, designing and developing smart, high-performance, premium electric vehicles. NIO has thousands of world-class R&D and design experts from around the world with significant technology and management background from leading automobile and high tech companies. NIO has more than 2,000 employees in San Jose, Shanghai, Munich, London and eight other locations. In October, NIO USA announced that it was issued an Autonomous Vehicle Testing Permit by the California DMV and it would begin testing on public roads under the Autonomous Vehicle Tester Program guidelines as it progresses on its path to bring autonomy to market. Investors include Tencent, Temasek, Baidu Capital, Sequoia Capital, Lenovo, TPG and other world-renowned investment institutions.