Out of everything you’d expect a 956kW electric hypercar to do, would you put “jumping up and down on the spot” on your bingo card? Well, you might have to with the new BYD YangWang U9
A new look at the BYD YangWang U9 showing off its party tricks has shocked the world on TikTok after a video showed the electric hypercar jumping up and down on the spot.
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The video, posted to TikTok page ‘Driving Lessons’, shows the new model compressing its suspension and lifting four wheels off the ground while sitting in a showroom in China.
The video garnered a mixed response from viewers with some finding it spectacular and others confused about what the point of it is.
“So like… the car can jump… does that… have any practical use?” wrote one user.
“Elon Musk wishes he did this” wrote another.
Though the technology was originally revealed to the public in a video posted to the BYD YouTube in 2023, the technology is now being shown off in the metal as the car makes its way into YangWang showrooms.
As amazing as it is that a 2475kg car can lift four wheels off the ground at a standstill, the party tricks don’t stop there. The YangWang U9 can dance by adjusting each individual corner of the suspension.
This is thanks to the BYD DiSus suspension setup, which combines air adjusted with a hydraulic system to allow the U9 to have super fast, in-car adjustment without the need to bust out the tools.
Along with doing a ‘bunnyhop’, the BYD U9 can dance by having independent adjustment on all four shocks. It can also lift one wheel in the air to allow you to change a tyre without a jack as well as drive on three wheels.
This technology is surprisingly not new; the 1955 Citroën DS was fitted with hydropneumatic suspension. The system was manually pumped by spheres in the car, allowing it to drive on three wheels when needed.
Audio electronic giant Bose also had its hand with bunny hopping cars through experimental electromagnetic suspension that managed to get all four wheels off the ground of an 1800kg Lexus LS400.
Hydropneumatic suspension, or just Hydro, is less common on newer cars in lieu of a less complex and easier-to-manage air suspension.
Fun little gimmicks are still common even with air suspension; the Mercedes-Benz GLE and GLS range with E-Active body control optioned have a Free Driving Assist mode that bounces the SUV up and down to help free it from sand. However, owners have been using it to show off their air-suspension option.
Regardless of the gimmicks, the YangWang U9’s setup allows the car to handle different driving situations and adjust the suspension at will.
BYD has been spotted testing the U9 on the famous Nurburgring Nordschleife in Germany. Although no official lap times have been released, it will no doubt be aiming for the road-going EV lap time set by the Rimac Nevera in 2023.
Want one? You may be waiting a while. While the U9 has been marketed as affordable for a hypercar at ¥1.68 million or $AU360,000 – less than half the list price of flagship Ferrari supercars such as the SF90 – there has yet to be any confirmation that the EV will land in Australia.
The post This incoming Chinese hypercar can literally jump on the spot appeared first on Drive.
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