BYD takes off-roading to new levels with the Yangwang U8L SUV that transforms into an emergency boat

Having mastered the roads with its wild fleet of electric cars, the BYD Yangwang U8L is now attempting to change the off-roading game for good.

Electric cars are having a greater presence on roads everyday.

But so far, they haven’t made much of a chink in the armor with off-roaders, as the likes of Jeep, Ford, and Toyota continue to excel with their tried and tested models.

Now, the BYD Yangwang U8L SUV could change the game.

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BYD Yangwang U8L SUV transforms into an emergency boat

Cars, especially EVs, don’t generally do well in water.

A number of EVs have even been recalled due to getting soggy bottoms and frying the circuit boards.

But BYD has found a way to stay water-tight.

In the video at the top of this page, the Yangwang U8L can be seen submerged in water and continuing to function.

How? Thanks to its ‘Emergency flooding’ system.

The brain of the car recognizes when you’re in water and promptly locks all the windows and shuts off the engine entirely, opens the sunroof (if not underwater itself) as an escape route, and recirculates the air within the cabin.

Then, the electric motors kick in, and the car can ‘swim’ ashore, moving at 1.8mph.

The EV masters claim that the U8L is only supposed to function in water for up to 30 minutes, meaning you should make a quick exit from the flooded area.

Not just a one-trick pony

You might recognize the Yangwang range for the smaller and faster U9, which recently beat the Bugatti Chiron as the fastest production car ever made.

But the BYD Yangwang U8L takes the range in a completely new direction as the top-spec off-road vehicle made by the Chinese specialists.

The company boasts a range of SUVs, from the fastest-selling and luxury-giving Denza D9 to the expert climber that is the Leopard 5.

But the BYD Yangwang U8L SUV is a different beast altogether.

Boasting 1,180hp with a 2.0-liter turbocharged hybrid engine, the huge car can accelerate from 0-60 seconds in 3.5 seconds flat and can achieve 720 miles of range on a full tank and battery.

But it can also spin on an axis like a tank thanks to its four-motor wheel support, which makes it at-one with nature when off-roading.

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