Mercedes said its GT XX electric concept has set multiple endurance and distance records after running continuously for more than a week at the Nardo high-speed test track in southern Italy, covering the equivalent of the Earth’s circumference.
The four-door EV, first unveiled in June, is equipped with two axial flux motors and a 114 kWh battery, producing 1,360 horsepower. The vehicle features an 850 kW charging capability, which Mercedes says enables the car to add around 400 km of WLTP range in five minutes. Its top speed is listed at 223 mph (359 km/h).
Running two cars in parallel, Mercedes clocked 40,075 km (24,901 miles) in 7 days, 13 hours, 23 minutes and 7.10 seconds – equivalent to 3,177 laps of the 12.5 km circuit. The automaker said the test was designed as a tribute to Jules Verne’s “Around the World in Eighty Days,” with a target of completing the feat in less than eight days.
In addition to the circumnavigation attempt, the GT XX covered 5,479 km (3,405 miles) in a 24-hour period, surpassing the previous EV endurance benchmark of 3,961 km (2,461 miles) set by China’s Xpeng P7. Engineers kept the vehicle running at an average speed of around 300 km/h (186 mph) to balance energy efficiency with charging cycles.
Mercedes did not disclose total energy consumption or charging data from the test but said both prototypes completed the run with only a 25 km difference in distance covered. The company said the results highlight the potential for extreme performance in future EV technologies, though the 850 kW charging rate far exceeds what is currently available for consumer vehicles or infrastructure.