The automotive world has a new benchmark. On May 19, 2026, Xiaomi Auto officially announced that the YU7 GT set a new Nürburgring production SUV lap record, clocking an extraordinary time of 7 minutes and 34.931 seconds around the fearsome 20.8 km Nordschleife circuit. The previous record belonged to the Audi RS Q8 Performance, which had held the title since June 2024 with a lap of 7 minutes and 36.698 seconds. The Xiaomi YU7 GT erased that benchmark by 1.76 seconds, a significant margin at this level of competition. Behind the wheel was Xiaomi's chief test driver Ren Zhoucan, who became the first Chinese driver to receive official Nürburgring lap certification. A historic moment, not just for Xiaomi, but for Chinese automotive engineering as a whole. The YU7 GT is no ordinary electric SUV. It is powered by a dual-motor all-wheel-drive setup producing a combined output of 990 hp, with a top speed of 300 km/h. During the record lap, the car reached 185 mph, just shy of its claimed maximum. The 101.7 kWh battery delivers a CLTC-certified range of 705 km, which is remarkable for a vehicle engineered at this performance level. Xiaomi confirmed the record-setting car was fitted with the optional Track Package. This achievement follows Xiaomi's broader Nürburgring campaign. The brand's SU7 Ultra sedan previously set the production EV lap record at the circuit, cementing Xiaomi Auto as a serious force in high-performance electric vehicles, not just a tech company making cars. The YU7 GT measures 5,015 mm in length and sits on a 3,000 mm wheelbase, making it a genuinely large electric SUV. Despite its size and 2,460 kg kerb weight, it outpaced every production SUV ever to tackle the Green Hell, including the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT, which recorded a 7:38.925 lap in 2021. The official China launch of the Xiaomi YU7 GT took place on May 21, 2026. With a $250M+ inventory of the world's finest exotic cars, F1rst Motors will be watching closely as this new era of electric performance reshapes the hypercar and super-SUV landscape.
