NIO EP9 breaks lap record at Nurburgring Nordschleife

The NIO EP9 has set a new lap record at the Nurburgring Nordschleife, achieving a lap time of six minutes and 45.9 seconds. "In October 2016, we aimed to set a new lap record for an electric vehicle with our NIO EP9. In the inclement weather that the Nurburgring Nordschleife is known for, the EP9 completed two laps of the 20.8km Green Hell, one of which was in seven minutes and 5.12 seconds, beating the previous electric vehicle lap record and 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 Programme & FE Team Principal, NIO. The EP9's one megawatt of power is equivalent to 1,342bhp, it has a top speed of 313km/h and accelerates from 0-200km/h in 7.1 seconds. The EP9 has also broken or set new track records at four world-renowned race tracks.

Last month, NIO announced that it plans to produce a second batch of 10 EP9s, and each one will be made to order. In March, NIO announced that it will have autonomous electric vehicles in the U.S.A market in 2020. The company also unveiled NIO EVE - the embodiment of its vision for the future of autonomous cars. Last month, NIO unveiled the NIO ES8, a full-size seven-seater all-electric sport utility vehicle that will be launched in the China market later this year.