Chinese hybrid sets a Guinness range record

The Roewe D7 is now officially recognized as the world’s farthest-going plug-in hybrid.

According to SAIC Group that owns the Roewe automobile brand, the business saloon was able to cover 2,208 kilometers (1,372 miles) without refueling or recharging its battery even once. The D7 DMH spec that participated in the test comes with an OEM-rated range of 1,400 km (869 miles) – impressive, but still not as good as the result shown.

The record run took place on a road from Lanzhou to Ürümqi, China, and lasted four days. Drivers had to contend with altitude variations reaching 1.6 kilometers (a whole mile) and temperatures ranging from –8 to +22 degrees Celsius (17…71 degrees Fahrenheit).

The car averaged 2.49 liters of gasoline per 100 kilometers, which translates to 94.46 miles per gallon for our U.S. readers. The OEM fuel economy is conservatively estimated at 4.3 liters / 100 km, or 54.7 MPG.

The record has been officially recorded in the Guinness Book, SAIC reports.