Chinese smartphone giant Xiaomi has impressed on its first visit to the famed Nürburgring circuit with its Porsche Taycan-rivalling SU7 Ultra sedan, setting a blistering lap around the course.
However, the brand isn’t yet claiming to have set a production electric vehicle (EV) record at the 20.8km Nordschleife course.
In a video uploaded to YouTube, a pre-production version of the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra lapped the circuit in six minutes and 46.87 seconds – 20 seconds clear of the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT, and more than 18 seconds faster than the Rimac Nevera.
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The stellar time was achieved despite the Xiaomi losing power for a handful of seconds, meaning an even faster tour could’ve been on the cards.
However, Rimac’s hypercar will remain the Nürburgring record holder for production EVs, as Xiaomi isn’t declaring its attempt as an official record – a sign that some components such as tyres or a roll cage may have made it ineligible for the title.
Both the Nevera and Taycan Turbo GT set their times on road-legal rubber, albeit tyres which are not only incredibly expensive but also on the limit of what passes for reasonable tread.
The SU7 Ultra that took on the Nürburgring was also fitted with significantly larger aerodynamic aids – such as its front splitter and rear wing – than what will be seen on the production version.
While it featured many parts the public won’t be able to buy, one feature that will carry across to the production SU7 Ultra is its tri-motor powertrain, which is claimed to deliver almost 1155kW to all four wheels for a claimed 0-100km/h sprint time in less than two seconds.
This example was claimed to tip the scales at 1900kg and produce up to 2145kg of downforce at its 350km/h top speed.
In China, the production SU7 Ultra has gone on pre-sale at a price of 814,900 Yuan (A$174,600). By comparison, Australian examples of the Taycan Turbo GT are priced from $416,600 before on-road costs.
Production SU7 Ultra 
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