BYD's Denza Z Is a 1582-HP Electric Supercar That Costs £143,000

BYD wants a piece of the electric supercar market, and it’s not being subtle about it. At the Goodwood Festival of Speed this week, the Chinese giant pulled the covers off the Denza Z — a three-motor, 1582-horsepower machine that launches to 62 mph in under two seconds.

The Denza Z comes in three flavors. The Coupe hardtop starts at £142,900 (roughly $182,000). The Spider convertible goes for £159,900. And the Racing track-spec version tops out at £172,900. All three open for pre-orders in October, with first deliveries expected before the end of 2026.

Wolfgang Egger designed it — the same man who penned the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione — and it shows. The car sits under 4.8 meters long, making it the smallest vehicle in Denza’s lineup, with clean surfacing and aggressive air channels. The Racing trim adds a carbon front splitter, multiple dive planes, and an optional large adjustable rear wing that generates 1,060 kilograms of downforce at its 217 mph top speed.

Under the skin, the powertrain is the headline. A single 500 kW motor drives the front axle, while two 340 kW units handle the rear — combined output of 1,582 horsepower. The Racing variant clocks 0-62 mph in 1.96 seconds. The hardtop does it in 2.25 seconds at 2,230 kg curb weight. The convertible, at 2,300 kg, manages 2.3 seconds. These are not numbers you’d expect from a car weighing as much as a full-size sedan.

BYD threw every piece of tech it has at this car. The Denza Z is the first production vehicle to combine the company’s e³ three-motor platform with its DiSus-M magneto-rheological suspension system. It also debuts steer-by-wire — no mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the front wheels — plus second-generation blade batteries with flash-charging capability.

The battery pack delivers 76 kWh of usable energy. Range varies by body style: 255 miles for the Coupe, 248 miles for the Spider, and 236 miles for the lighter Racing version. Carbon-ceramic brakes are standard across the board.

Inside, it’s predictable supercar fare — carbon fiber and Alcantara everywhere. An 8.88-inch instrument cluster sits behind the steering wheel alongside a 12.8-inch central infotainment screen running Google Automotive. There are paddle shifters behind the wheel, though the car uses them to trigger simulated gear changes rather than actual ratios. An overboost mode pushes torque up by 30 percent for 20-second bursts. Artificial engine and sci-fi exhaust sounds can be piped through the cabin — or played externally.

The Denza Z is already chasing a Nürburgring Nordschleife lap record. Test cars have been spotted by CarBuzz photographers on the ‘Ring, and BYD says the official timing run is underway. The current production EV record stands at 6 minutes 59.157 seconds, set by the Yangwang U9 Xtreme — which also belongs to BYD. The Denza Z will need to beat not just the U9 but also Xiaomi’s SU7 Ultra if it wants the top spot.