Rimac Automobili is a Croatian car manufacturer that develops and produces electric supercars, drivetrain and battery systems, headquartered in Sveta Nedelja, Croatia. The company was founded by Mate Rimac. Rimac Automobili's first model, the Concept One, is known as the world's fastest production electric vehicle.^[4] While Rimac sells high-performance vehicles under their own brand, the company develops and produces drivetrain systems and full vehicles for other companies. The Applus+ IDIADA Volar-E is an example^[5] of the services Rimac Automobili offers and executes for other companies.

History

Early work of Mate Rimac

The groundwork for the company began in 2007 as a garage-housed hobby of founder, Mate Rimac, Bosnian Croat from Livno, Bosnia and Herzegovina.^[6][7] He converted his BMW E30 to incorporate an electric powertrain and subsequently gained attention from the press and investors.^[7] Much of the early financing came from angel investors and selling patents.^[7] The company itself was formed in 2009^[8] and rented facilities in Sveta Nedelja, near Zagreb, Croatia.^[7] The e-M3 was Rimac Automobili’s first test mule. The founder and CEO Mate Rimac started to convert this car when he was only 19 years old: “I owned an old BMW E30 (MY 1984) which I used for drift and circuit races. At one of these races, the gas engine blew up. Then I decided to try building an EV. After one year or so the car was able to drive but I was not satisfied with the result. It was heavy, not very powerful and the range was very limited. I started to gather a team of experts to develop our own components since I believed that the electric propulsion can give much more compared to what was available on the market. At that time, I already had a very clear vision of my ultimate goal. Today, hard work is making my dream come true.”^[9]

Models

Green Monster

The prototype BMW E30 is called the "Green Monster" by the designers. With a 0-62 mph in 3.3 seconds mark, it is the fastest accelerating electric vehicle in Category A, Group VIII, and Class 3 sections (over 1000 kg). The “green monster” develops 600 horsepower, 900 Nm of torque, reaches 100 km/h from standstill in 3.3 sec and a top speed of 280 km/h. Five development evolutions have pushed the e-M3 to become the officially fastest accelerating electric vehicle according to strict FIA rules.

• Records:
  • 1/8 mile: 7,549
  • 1/4 mile: 11,808
  • 1/2 km: 13,714*
  • 1 km: 23,260*
  • 1 mile: 35,347*
• Records subject to official FIA approval (pending)^[9]

The original BMW has now gone through five stages of reinvention and, says Rimac, "got faster, lighter and more reliable each time". When he realised how little of the original car remained, he decided to build a new car from scratch.^[10]

Concept One

The Concept One is an all-electric battery-powered hypercar. With a curb weight of 1850 kg, and 1088 hp, the Concept One can reach 100 km/h from a standstill in 2.8 seconds and continue to accelerate to the limit of 305 km/h. 92 kWh of energy in the Battery modules delivers enough electricity for up to 600 km of range.

The company planned an initial run of 88 vehicles mainly targeted at the European market.^[7][11] As of October 2014^[update], eight cars had been manufactured and sold which was the entire production.^[12] Almost all of the materials are produced in-house; no critical components are off-the-shelf.^[7][13] The current design team includes former designers from Pininfarina^[7] and Magna Steyr.^[13] The exterior was designed by Croatian designer Adrian Mudri.^[14]

Rimac's goal for the Concept One is to be the best electric supercar. The whole car is developed around the powertrain and battery-pack. Gear changes or clutches are not needed and due to the electric drivetrain, the reaction time is instant. The batteries are located in the floor, together with all the other heavy propulsion components in order to achieve a low center of gravity, which leads to better handling. One battery charge can operate the car for around 510 km (320 miles) and needs to recharge for only 30 minutes on a 200 kW power supply station

Concept S

The Concept S is a lighter, more powerful and more aerodynamic, track-oriented update of the Concept One. The electric motors can produce 1384 bhp, that means the Concept S can accelerate from 0–100 kilometres per hour (0–62 mph) in just 2.5 seconds and reach a top speed of 365 kilometres per hour (227 mph).^[15]

At the 2017 Geneva Motor Show the company announced the establishment of official dealerships of its brand in Europe, North America and the Middle East, with dealers Manhattan Motorcars, PACE Germany and Al Zarooni Group.^[3]

Concept Two

The Concept Two is the successor to the Concept One. It is an all-electric battery-powered supercar.^[16] The Croatian supercar firm confirmed that a new model would arrive in 2018. It has now announced it will be revealed at Geneva motor show. At the time, Monika Mikac, the Croatian firm’s chief operating officer said the car will be more comfortable and expensive than the Concept One, but also capable of even better performance. Rimac also described the model as "a true game-changer".

Component manufacturing

Rimac is in charge for producing KERS hybrid battery systems for Aston Martin's all-new hyper car, the Valkyrie. Rimac also produces battery systems for Koenigsegg (specifically for Koenigsegg Regera), Jaguar Cars, as well as others.^[17][18]

It is also involved in the production of drivetrain and other components for race car drivers, such as Nobuhiro Tajima, with whom it debuted with the joint all-electric car "Tajima Rimac E-Runner Concept_One" at the 2015 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. It finished the race second, ahead of all internal combustion engine cars.^[19][20]

See also