In one sitting, start-up NextEV set two new records on the Circuit of the Americas (Texas, USA) with its latest Nio EP9.
If you're new to the Nio EP9, you will know that it is the fastest electric sports car ever on the Nürburgring Nordschleife, and that it has left behind models like the Nissan GT-R Nismo and even the Lexus LFA Nürburgring Edition.
Thanks to four electric motors, the Nio EP9 manages to develop 1,350 hp of power and 6,334 Nm of torque (!). And because it is an electric, NextEV also announces a range of 427 km; batteries take 45 minutes to charge.
GENEVA ROOM: The Dendrobium doesn't want to be just another electric sports car
To prove not only the performance but also the autonomous driving capabilities of the Nio EP9, NextEV took it to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. As you can see in the video below, the Nio EP9 was able to cover the 5.5 km of the circuit in 2 minutes and 40 seconds driverless , and in the middle reached a top speed of 258 km/h.Still, as advanced as today's autonomous driving technologies are, in circuit humans continue to get the better of them. In the same exercise but with a driver at the wheel, the Nio EP9 set a new circuit record with a time of 2 minutes and 11 seconds, reaching a speed of 274 km/h. Humans are still in charge. Still…