The story of the successful innovator who produced the fastest electric car in the world begins in high school when Mate Rimac created his first patent. Even then, at an early age, Mate Rimac drew attention to himself through his inventions. The graduation assignment resulted in the innovation of a glove that combined mouse and keyboard tasks and secured its creator first place in the county and then in the state competition and sent him to world competitions.
Inspired by a genius who also comes from Croatia, engineer and futurist Nikola Tesla, Rimac, born in 1988 in Livno, began his first electric car project at 20 when the BMW 3 Series E30, produced in 1984, was converted to a battery-powered car. He founded the company Rimac Automobile in 2009, and only a few years later, he employs a thousand employees.
Unencumbered by the tradition of the automotive industry, his approach has made impressive progress in a relatively short time, so today, he is developing his services used by some of the world’s largest car manufacturers.
How Did Mate Rimac Start?
From the first money he earned, Mate Rimac bought a 1984 BMW E30 323i and drove drift, drag, and other races with it. After the petrol engine exploded during one race, he decided to combine his two passions – cars and technology, and in 2007 he started remodeling his old BMW in his parents’ garage in Samobor. The goal was to put an electric-powered motor in that old BMW.
After a year of the project, he drove his redesigned BMW for the first time, and the first tests were done. Rimac was not satisfied with the achieved performances and started to develop his own components. To test the components, he began participating in races.
Since almost all forms of motorsport have restrictions and regulations relating to internal combustion engines (e.g., categorization by engine displacement), the only races he could participate in were drag (acceleration races) and drift races (rear end slip).
Weak points were shown during each race, but Rimac improved that car after each race over. After each race, the car became faster, lighter, more efficient, and more reliable. At the 402 Street Race held in 2011 in Velika Gorica, his electric BMW won in Class 11 and thus became one of the fastest cars in general. In the same year, he broke 5 FIA and Guinness records for the fastest accelerating electric car.
In 2009, he founded the company Rimac Automobili. His mission was to develop and produce the most advanced electric sports cars in the world. In 2011, he presented Concept_One at the largest car fair of the year – the Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung in Frankfurt am Main. At the beginning of 2013, the first copy of the car was delivered, making it the first car that Croatia produced and exported.
Mate Rimac has developed his company into an engineering and manufacturing company that, in addition to its cars, develops and manufactures various cars parts and prototypes for other companies.
Mate Rimac is one of the leading innovators today. Many compare him to Elon Musk. However, we must keep in mind that the environment from which Rimac comes is not as suitable for innovators as the environment from which Elon Musk comes. Therefore, the success of Mate Rimac and Rimac Automobiles is even greater.
Mate Rimac First Supercar
His first supercar Concept_One had its world premiere in 2011 at the world’s largest car show in Frankfurt and soon it became the fastest electric car in the world.
Concept_One car delights with its impressive numbers. It has 1,088 hp and 3,800 Nm of torque.
Concept_One accelerates to 62 miles in just 2.8 seconds, while its top speed is an impressive 190 miles, which is electronically limited for safety reasons.
With its 1,650 kg and energy of 92 kWh, this electric car has a range of 380 miles. Concept_One has four engines. Each of these four engines runs its own wheel, which makes this car even more special.
As far as the design itself is concerned, it is at the level of technical characteristics of the most popular sports car manufacturers. In addition to providing the driver with an invaluable driving experience, this car will also attract the attention of passers-by on the street.
Who Owns Rimac Automobiles
During 2014, three foreign investors invested in Rimac Automobiles, and according to some estimates, the company was already worth about $ 80 million at the time. In June 2016, Porsche decided to invest the money in exchange for a 10 percent stake in Mate Rimac’s company. After several years of development in 2016, Rimac is introducing a production version of its electric car.
Today, Rimac Automobiles company, with its subsidiaries, employs about 1,000 people, and a 200,000-square-meter campus building project was recently presented in Kerestinec, Croatia. This campus should be built in 2023 with an investment of 200 million dollars, and Rimac company has a plan to employ another 1,500 people.
This company sells sophisticated technology for electric cars to the world’s most renowned car companies, and dozens of millions of dollars were invested by Porsche and Hyundai.
The last major investment occurred in March 2021 when German giant Porsche invested an additional $ 60 million in Rimac Automobiles and thus increased its stake in Rimac Automobiles from 15.5% to 24%.
The goal of Rimac’s company is to use its hypercar to present the components that are installed in that car and later to sell those same components to other car manufacturers.
Rimac Automobiles was in financial troubles in the past, and the only thing that saved them was the innovativeness of their products. Nowadays, Mate Rimac’s company has ensured financial stability thanks to investors such as Porche and others.
Rimac Greyp Electric Bike
Rimac Automobiles recently released a new product – Greyp Bike, an electric bike that powers on a fingerprint and reaches a speed of 37 miles. In this electric bike, 85% of components are Rimac’s own production.
Mate Rimac and his team have been developing this electric bike for four years. This is a blend of bike and technology. Its features are really impressive.
The battery and integrated BMS (Battery Management System), developed and manufactured for the Rimac Greyp, are some of the most compacted batteries on the market. They have a capacity of 700 Wh. These batteries put Rimac electric bike on the top in this industry.
The engine, manufactured at MPF Drive, has Greyp-adapted firmware that provides excellent control with strong torque and a natural feel underfoot.
With all the electronics and software, the Rimac Greyp is still a full off-road bike. The price of this electric bike is not low.
3 versions of Greyp G6:
- Weak G6.1
- Medium G6.2
- Strong G6.3
Rimac Nevera: Fastest Electric Car in The Word!
Rimac Nevera is the fastest electric car in the world.
A special feature of the Nevera is Rimac’s All-Wheel Torque Vectoring 2 (R-AWTV 2) system, which replaces traditional electronic stability and traction control systems. This makes better grip and acceleration than have most others cars in this category.
With space for two passengers and their luggage (trunk capacity is 100 l), the Nevera is a car made for regular use. There are three high-resolution TFT screens in the cockpit, and the driver chooses how much information he wants to see—configured for both runway and comfort.
Two identical Nevera will not come out of the Rimac factory because customers can choose designs and materials. With a top personalization program, custom models will be offered in various editions: GT, Signature, Timeless, or Bespoke, and each owner of Nevera will be invited to Croatia to design their car according to their own taste.
The price of Rimac Nevera is around 2 million dollars, so only the richest will be able to afford this car. However, if we know that the car is assembled completely by hand, then we should not be surprised by this price.
Mate Rimac and Bugatti
In 2021, it was announced in Dubrovnik that Rimac company would take over the production of Bugatti, a well-known French car brand.
This agreement was reached through the complete reorganization of Rimac Automobiles company. From now Rimac’s company will be called Rimac Group. In it, all shareholders retained existing stakes. Porsche still has 24 percent.
Mate Rimac is the single largest shareholder with 37 percent, Hyundai has 12 percent, and other shareholders have a 27 percent stake.
Two business entities will operate within the group. The first company includes Rimac’s existing business, except for the production of electric hypercars, such as Nevera, and will appear on the market as an independent business entity – Rimac Technology.
The other is a new company that will be called Bugatti Rimac. It will be the ”house” of two car companies: Bugatti and Rimac Automobiles.
Both Rimac Automobiles and Bugatti will continue to develop their own car models. They will also keep their assembly lines. Thus, the assembly of Bugatti will continue to be in Molsheim, France, because, as Rimac points out, he wants to continue the tradition and make this car at a historical location that is inseparable from the Bugatti brand.
However, the production and development of components for Bugatti will in the future take place in the new Rimac campus in Sveta Nedelja near Zagreb. It will also be the headquarters of Bugatti Rimac, as well as Rimac Technology, Rimac Automobiles, and the umbrella organization will be the Rimac Group.
This is an incredible success for Mate Rimac, who in just a few years has gone from assembling an electric car in the family garage to becoming one of the owners of Bugatti.
Summary
Mate Rimac and his Rimac Automobiles almost no longer need presentation and marketing. Not because we know everything about him, but because his passion for starting car production in a country that doesn’t have an auto industry has attracted worldwide attention.
His cars are not classic vehicles as we have known them for decades. Rimac’s electric cars are a kind of technological showcase of the most modern innovations.
The story about Mate Rimac is interesting because it shows courage, perseverance, and immense self-confidence, which are characteristics that paid off in his case.