Denza gunning for 'ring record with 2,000hp Z
Not content with lording it over FOS, new Denza Z Di-Aero P2000+ will target Porsche's EV lap record
Assuming you went to FOS last week, you’ll know how seriously BYD (and the Denza and Yangwang brands contained within) takes its growing presence in the UK, as you can’t have failed to notice its centrally located giant stand. But even if you didn’t attend, you’ll have doubtless seen all the surrounding attention given to the new Denza Z, a tri-motor 1,605hp EV that starts at £142,900 and is fully intended to make people think twice about forking out upwards of £199k for a Porsche 911 Turbo S.
Fat chance of that, you might say - and you’re probably not wrong based on our first go. But at any rate, Denza is laser focused at becoming a larger part of the enthusiast echo chamber in Europe (it is no accident that the Z is accompanied by a Defender-rivalling hybrid SUV either), and what better way to elbow some space in the conversation than by setting an impressive benchmark time on the Nürburgring Nordschleife?
We say ‘impressive’ - there is already a ‘Racing’ version of the Denza Z that would doubtless provide you with a highly competitive lap time. But a Chinese manufacturer doesn’t turn up anywhere simply to compete, it wants to dominate. Hence the ‘Special Edition’ Z concept that appeared at FOS, but was overshadowed by the variants that Denza made available to drive. Our spy snapper has sourced another name for it in the meantime: the Z Di-Aero P2000+.
Ostensibly, and no doubt to satisfy the obligations of calling itself a ‘production car’, you can expect customer versions of the Special Edition to eventually appear - but its real purpose, and the one it was presumably snapped prepping for, is to deposit egg on Porsche’s corporate face by way of the Taycan Turbo GT with Manthey Kit’s 6:55.533 ‘ring record. Which itself was a response to the 7:04.957 lap set by the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra with Track Package.
Or at least that’s what we assume the downforce-generating aero and fully carbon fibre body is all about. Given it will officially sit in the battery-powered ‘Super sports cars’ category, overcoming the Taycan’s time would also see it unseat the Yangwang U9 Xtreme - a car you’d imagine has helped with Denza’s track development. It seems inconceivable that the outright sports car record would be targeted (officially, this remains the 6:43.300 recorded by the Manthey’d 911 GT2 back in 2021), although perhaps you wouldn’t risk your mortgage on that bet.
Either way, expect to read about a sub-7-minute time long before the summer ends. And then we’ll presumably learn how much a retail version of the Z Di-Aero P2000+ will eventually cost. On the basis that the Racing version currently starts at £172,900, and the Special Edition will be spectacularly low volume, you’d imagine there’s every chance it will eclipse the £200,500 price of a new 911 GT3 S/C. Now if only Denza could make people want one to the same extent...
Image credit | Baldauf
If you're asking whether the Chinese are being ignored, you could have a point. VW might be giving up and making Chinese vehicles in German factories - that's not ignoring them. But that still ignores VW's inability to compete.
Can't get excited about this. The power output war was faintly ridiculous when it was ICE cars putting out 700bhp, the EV stuff is daft. The road version weighs 2250kg, which is far too much for a sports/supercar. It looks completely generic too.
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