Driverless EV SUV Makes Nürburgring HistoryNurburgring"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."While we've all been entertained over the last year watching Ford and Chevy battle over the title of fastest American production car to lap the Nürburgring Nordschleife, a Chinese EV has quietly set about setting another record around the 'Ring. Earlier this month, the Xiaomi YU7 GT fitted with the Track Package recorded an official lap time of 10:29.483—and that lap was set without a driver behind the wheel.According to the Nürburgring, the lap was completed on June 8, and it was the first time in the history of the Nürburgring Nordschleife that a fully autonomous vehicle has completed an officially timed lap. After the historic run, a new official category was added: Autonomous Driving (under Electric Vehicles).XiaomiXiaomi may not yet be a household name in the U.S. (unless you're Jim Farley), but the brand is no stranger to the Nürburgring. Last year, its SU7 Ultra set a EV lap record around the same course in 7:04.957, making it quicker than both the Rimac Nevera Time Attack and the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT.AdvertisementAdvertisementFor additional context, Ford's Mustang GTD Competition set a time of 6:40.835 earlier this year, while the Mercedes-AMG One still holds the overall production car lap record with a time of 6:29.09, and the late, great Sabine Schmitz was able to lap the 'Ring in a 136-hp diesel-powered Ford Transit some 20-plus seconds quicker than the autonomous Xiaomi. Meanwhile, a human-driven YU7 GT set a time of 7:22.755 on April 2. So, adding a driver to the 990-horsepower EV SUV is good for shaving over three minutes off the lap time.Watching the video of the record-setting run on the Nürburgring YouTube channel reveals the Xiaomi YU7 GT didn't exactly nail every apex, and speeds were significantly lower than what you see on record setting runs with a driver behind the wheel; even on the long straight from the Gantry to the Bridge, the car never topped 131 mph. (On the same section of track with a driver on board, the same car hit 185 mph.)The Xiaomi YU7 GT's lap wasn't fast enough to threaten any outright performance records, but that wasn't the point. The autonomous vehicle managed to navigate all 73 corners of the Nordschleife safely, proving a vehicle could navigate the Green Hell entirely on its own. Whether that excites or terrifies enthusiasts, automotive history was made the same.You Might Also LikeIf You Can Only Own One Car, Make It One of TheseThese Are the Most Popular Cars by State
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