BYD’s YANGWANG U8 can achieve a zero-turn radius even with regular tires

BYD’s high-end brand, YANGWANG, has addressed questions from netizens today regarding the principles behind achieving a zero-turn radius, as well as whether the YANGWANG U8 can be driven like a boat.

When asked about how the YANGWANG U8 achieves a zero-turn radius, YANGWANG stated that the most direct and effective method is to make the wheels on the left and right sides turn in opposite directions. This requires the vehicle to be equipped with four-wheel torque-independent control, allowing the wheels to turn both forwards and backwards, as well as requiring strong torque and power to allow the wheels to break through the limit of ground adhesion. The YI4’s four-wheel independent control and super-strong power naturally possess this ability. In addition, to enable the zero-turn radius to be used on more road conditions, YI4 provides precise torque control, allowing the vehicle to customize the steering angle and speed, which broadens the scope of usage scenarios for the YANGWANG U8’s zero-turn radius function.

Additionally, YANGWANG Automobile officials stated that regular tires can also achieve turning in place, and the implementation of the turning in place function is not directly related to the tire model. This is because Yi Sifang can sense the rotation status of the wheels, and adjust the power of the four wheels to ensure the normal operation of the turning in place function. Its power is also sufficient to surpass the grip limit of most civilian vehicle tires, ensuring that turning in place can be achieved with any civilian tire under various road conditions.

Regarding the issue of tire wear when turning in place, YANGWANG Automotive claims that its “Yi Sifang” technology has the ability to sense road conditions in milliseconds and precisely control torque output. When turning in place, Yi Sifang can quickly sense the road grip and tire traction, accurately calculate the minimum torque required to turn the vehicle in place, and thus enable the vehicle to turn in place with minimized tire wear on sand, snow, asphalt, and concrete roads.

“Yi Sifang” technology is the first mass-produced four-motor drive technology in China, which can achieve precise control of the vehicle’s four-wheel dynamics with the independent vector control technology of the four motors. The maximum speed of the “Yi Sifang” platform can reach 20500rpm, and the whole vehicle horsepower can exceed 1100.

It is worth mentioning that YANGWANG Automotive also addressed the issue of whether the U8 can be driven as a boat, stating that the emergency floating function of the U8 is designed to achieve emergency escape in case of danger, including water crossing in the wild and urban waterlogging disasters. This is a passive safety function similar to an “airbag”, not an active “entertainment” function. Although the U8 has the ability to float for a short time, it is essentially a vehicle, not a boat that can “swim”. We do not encourage any users to attempt this function in non-emergency situations.