Rimac Nevera first drive: An entirely new level of hypercar performance

The performance benefits of electric powertrains are now well understood. Thanks to near-instantaneous torque delivery and continuous advances in everything from software to motor design, cars like the Tesla Model S Plaid have rewritten the production car hierarchy when it comes to acceleration.

Yet many traditionalists have been slow to come around on electric vehicles, complaining that the driving experience is too clinical and performance is too circumstantial. They say that EVs lack emotion. Well, the Rimac Nevera is about to change all of that.

Rimac may not be a household name today, but over the past decade, the Croatian startup has been hard at work quietly establishing itself as a key player in high-performance EV development. What began in 2010 with a handful of employees in a converted warehouse has expanded into a 1,700-employee operation with a 200,000 m² campus in Kerestinec, Croatia. The site, which is currently under construction, will house the company’s research and development centers and production facilities when it opens in 2023. The company’s rapid growth has been aided by its various EV development projects for automakers like Porsche, Hyundai, Aston Martin, Pininfarina, and Koenigsegg, leading Rimac to split the company into two distinct entities (Rimac Automobili and Rimac Technology) last year. (Rimac Group also now owns Bugatti, with Porsche.)

Rimac got its start when its founder converted an old E30 BMW to electric power. Just over a decade later, the company will electrify Bugatti.

Few know hypercars like Rimac

And the Nevera represents a major milestone for the fledging company. As Rimac’s first serialized production vehicle, it follows in the footsteps of the Concept One and Concept S, which were effectively prototypes that the automaker built in single-digit quantities in 2013 and 2014. Described as a blank-sheet development effort five years in the making, Rimac knew that the Nevera would have to boast some serious numbers in order to lure potential buyers away from the established players.

And this EV hypercar certainly does. Outfitted with four in-house-developed permanent-magnet motors, it delivers jaw-dropping output figures of 1,914 hp (1.4 MW) and 1,725 lb-ft (2,339 Nm). It’s enough to catapult the Nevera to 60 mph from a standstill in 1.85 seconds on its way to a quarter-mile time of 8.58 seconds and top speed of 256 mph, in turn making this the fastest-accelerating production car in the world. To give that level of performance some context, this street-legal EV can outrun a Formula One car by a significant margin.

But as we discovered during a stint behind the wheel in Malibu, California, the Nevera is more than just a set of straight-line performance figures. Rather than being satisfied with a one-trick pony, there’s clear evidence that Rimac put a lot of thought into creating an engaging driver’s car while also ensuring that the Nevera remained approachable and usable—something its customers would want to drive regularly.

Like most hypercars, the Nevera is underpinned by a race car-like carbon-fiber monocoque. It’s a design approach that gives the coupe its familiar proportions while minimizing weight and maximizing strength, but these carbon tubs typically come with some significant drawbacks in usability—it’s often difficult to get into and out of the car. To address the issue, the Nevera’s dihedral doors have been designed so they incorporate a section of the roof to create a larger opening, which in turn allows you to get into the car from a better angle. “Owners of hypercars generally don’t like to do yoga to get into and out of their cars,” said Miro Zrncevic, Rimac’s chief development driver. “When you open the Nevera’s door, you’re basically in line with the seat so that you don’t have to ‘fall’ into the car.”

The interior is suitably dramatic given the car’s price tag.

Credit: Rimac

An interior to match the price

The Nevera has a mixture of digital and physical controls. Three large displays for the gauge cluster, infotainment, and telemetry information give the cabin a contemporary hypercar vibe, but gear selection, drive modes, and power output adjustments for front and rear wheels are all controlled by traditional knobs. All of the switchgear and software was developed in-house and is paired with exceedingly high-quality materials throughout. The interior feels appropriately premium, though we did find ourselves wishing for physical controls for the side mirrors and seats, which are instead adjusted in the center display.

We set off in Range mode, the Nevera’s default setting. Despite its incredible performance figures, Rimac wanted its EV hypercar to be more of a grand tourer than a hardcore track star, and if you can keep your right foot at bay, the Nevera’s 120 kWh battery pack will deliver 341 miles (549 km) of range in this setting. The battery can go from flat to an 80 percent state of charge in 19 minutes with a 500 kW charger, while a 350 kW charger will achieve the same in 25 minutes.

The Nevera offers seven drive modes in total: Range, Cruise, Sport, Drift, Track, and two user-defined custom preset modes that allow you to mix and match your favorite settings. Clicking over to Cruise mode adjusts the vehicle systems for greater response without venturing into abusive territory. Zrncevic, who rode along with us during our drive, described it as “Porsche 911 fast,” and a stab at the accelerator corroborated his claim. It’s certainly quick enough to get your blood pumping, but it still seemed like the Nevera was holding a lot back for the sake of comfort and drivability.

Giving your passenger their own display means you can never lie about how fast you’re going or how many Gs you’re pulling.

Credit: Rimac

From behind the wheel

After we had a chance to acclimate to the car, Zrncevic suggested that we switch over to Sport mode to get a sense of the Nevera’s full potential. The setting stiffens up the adjustable KW dampers, adds weight to the steering, adjusts the torque bias, and sets the car’s active aero elements for maximum downforce. The setting also allows you to unleash the powertrain’s peak output, and it feels like every last bit of 1,914 horsepower. Despite its 4,740-lb (2,150-kg) curb weight, the Nevera accelerates like no other car we’ve driven—Bugatti or otherwise. There are no turbochargers to spool, no transmissions to downshift, no sweet spot in the powerband to reach. It simply goes.

There’s a distinct futuristic hum that increases in pitch as the car accelerates. It’s loud enough to be heard over typical road noise at speed but quiet enough to ignore during everyday driving, and Rimac assured us that it’s the natural sound of the powertrain rather than a synthesized soundtrack. While it doesn’t provide as much aural personality as a naturally aspirated V12 or a quad-turbocharged W16, it does give a good sense of speed as you’re accelerating, which is particularly useful when you’re driving something that does so this rapidly.

When we happened upon a long, open stretch of road, we decided to give launch control a try. There’s no battery conditioning process or special secret mode to access in order to get the car’s full capability—in Sport mode, it’s just a matter of holding down the brake pedal, mashing the accelerator, then side-stepping the brake pedal. Even on a dusty tarmac with the car riding on decidedly unexotic Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summer tires (the same rubber that was used to set its official 0–60 and quarter-mile times), the Nevera leapt off the line without a hint of wheelspin.