Earlier in June, Rimac Automobili unveiled the production version of its C_Two demonstrator now called the Nevera. The €2 million hypercar is all-electric, boasting a 258-mph (415-km/h) top speed. For those of you not previously following Rimac, the C_Two concept car was revealed at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show but is a product of a decade-long project.
“This is the car I had in mind when I embarked on the ‘impossible’ journey ten years ago,” said Mate Rimac, Founder and CEO of Rimac Automobili. “All our hard work has resulted in the Nevera—our record-breaking hypercar. This car was born to outperform, and to raise the bar, redefining the norm for performance cars. And not only in performance—but as an all-around package. There was nothing else that could even come close to matching the car’s cutting-edge electric powertrain and extreme performance. But for us, that was only the starting point.”
Since the 2018 Geneva reveal, the company’s engineers have been refining the flagship during an extensive development program in the pursuit of the ultimate electric hypercar driving experience. A majority of the key systems and components have been developed in-house at Rimac’s Headquarters in Croatia to deliver on the ambitious performance targets set for at the beginning of the project.
All of this effort has been supported by key investors and partners. In March, Porsche increased its investment in Rimac, expanding its stake to 24% with an additional €70 million and reinforcing Rimac’s status as a leader in high-performance electrified vehicle technologies. Rimac says it works with many major car manufacturers including Hyundai, Kia, Aston Martin, Automobili Pininfarina, and Koenigsegg.
So, Rimac has grown from one man in a garage to a global technology powerhouse in just a decade. It’s viewed as one of the automotive industry’s rising stars, especially as the world transitions to an increasingly electric future.
Just since Porsche’s first investment in 2018, the team at Rimac has doubled to nearly 1000 people. One of the recent high-profile product-development additions was Chris Porritt, who joined Rimac as CTO in July 2020. Porritt was Chief Engineer for the Aston Martin One-77 hypercar and V12 Vantage Zagato. After that, he was VP of Engineering at Tesla, and then at Apple, he held a senior role within the Special Projects Group.
And as Rimac’s staff has grown, it has outgrown its facilities. In April, the company unveiled the design for its new state-of-the-art home in Croatia, including an on-site test track, accommodation, and museum. It will bring together all of its people and functions in one eye-catching complex designed by famous Croatian architectural practice 3LHD.
A force of nature by design
Back to the car. The Nevera name comes from the Croatian word for a quick, unexpected Mediterranean storm “charged by lightning” that races across the open sea off Croatia. The company says that the car is adept at transforming its character in an instant—from a comfortable grand tourer to an ultra-focused performance machine.
Rimac says its philosophy is exemplified in the form-follows-function nature of the Nevera’s design, applied to details including the signature “cravat” feature incorporated into the car’s flanks.
“Since the 17th Century, the necktie has provided a symbol of Croatian strength and identity, and we first paid tribute to it on our Concept_One hypercar in 2011,” said Adriano Mudri, Rimac Director of Design. “Like every element of the car’s design, it is there to provide a key function of the Nevera’s performance, serving as an air intake for the rear cooling systems.”
Changes over the early prototypes to the production car’s bodywork, including to the air diffusers and intakes, have delivered a 34% improvement in aerodynamic efficiency over the early prototypes. The profile of the hood, the shape of the pillars, and the design of the diffusers, splitters, and radiators have all been analyzed and refined to improve airflow and downforce. Inlets and cooling channels have been developed to increase the cooling efficiency of both the brake and powertrain systems, resulting in a 30% improvement at low speeds and a 7% enhancement at high speeds.
A number of active aerodynamic elements improve the car’s cooling, performance, stability, and efficiency. The front hood profile, underbody flap, rear diffuser, and rear wing can each move, driven by algorithms that provided the optimum aerodynamic configuration for the driving situation. Switching from high-downforce to low-drag mode reduces aerodynamic drag by 17.5% for a 0.3 co-efficient of drag; changing back into high-downforce mode increases downforce by 326%.
The car’s groundbreaking monocoque was developed by the former C_Two Chief Engineer Daniele Giachi who is now at Lucid. Including a bonded carbon roof, integrated structural battery pack, and rear carbon subframe, it is said to form the largest single carbon-fiber piece in the automotive industry. The monocoque forms an incredibly strong structure with a torsional stiffness of 70,000 N·m (51,600 lb·ft)/degree, delivering what the company says is the most rigid structure of any car ever made. Weighing less than 200 kg (440 lb), it incorporates 2200 carbon fiber plies and 222 aluminum inserts.
Other body and chassis design highlights include butterfly doors that carve away from the car’s wide sills as they open, easing entry and egress. Lightweight, forged alloy wheels feature an aerodynamic design that channels cooling air to the carbon-ceramic braking system and ensures smooth airflow down the car’s flanks.
Driving the future with electricity
The Nevera’s electric powertrain has been significantly reworked since its inception to deliver more torque, greater performance, and enhanced efficiency.
The unique H-shaped, liquid-cooled, battery pack was designed from scratch by Rimac. The 120-kW·h, 6960-cell pack features lithium/manganese/nickel batteries and forms an integral part of the car’s core, adding 37% structural stiffness to the carbon-fiber monocoque. The battery’s positioning low and central within the car’s floor contributes to an ultra-low center of gravity and a 48%/52% front/rear weight distribution for “the best possible” handling balance. Advanced cooling system development has made the battery more efficient since the introduction of the C_Two, enabling more power to be delivered for greater periods.
Four custom surface-mount permanent magnet motors drive the car’s four wheels independently. Together they enable 1914 hp (1427 kW) and 2360 Nm (1740 lb·ft), which the company says is triple the output of a “conventional-engine” supercar. Capable of instant maximum torque, the electric motors are said to be 97% efficient—compared with 40% for the most efficient internal combustion engines—and completely maintenance-free throughout their operating life. The front and rear wheels are each connected to a pair of single-speed gearboxes.
This powertrain enables the var to sprint from 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) in 1.85 s. Other impressive acceleration numbers are 0-161 km/h (0-100 mph) in 4.3 s and 0-186 mph (0-300 km/h) in 9.3 s—about 2.5 s better than initial targets. The quarter-mile time is in “a record-breaking” 8.6 s. The electric range is expected to be up to 550 km (342 mi).
Output is delivered to the ground with the Rimac All-Wheel Torque Vectoring 2 (R-AWTV 2) system, which replaces traditional ESP (Electronic Stability Program) and TCS (Traction Control Systems). The R-AWTV 2 enables infinitely variable dynamic responses to road and track conditions, calculating the precise level of torque to channel through each wheel for ultimate stability and agility. It makes over 100 calculations per second to tailor the level of torque to achieve the desired driving style.
“Our torque-vectoring enables new [levels] of drivetrain calibration,” explained Miroslav Zrnčević, Rimac Test and Development Driver. “And depending on the driving mode selected, the R-AWTV 2 technology can enable the Nevera to be drifted sideways or provide optimum levels of all-wheel-drive grip, traction, and safety—no matter how challenging the road and weather conditions. Thanks to a four-individual-motor drivetrain, the driver can also change the torque distribution, and personalize the performance delivery even further, for a completely bespoke drive—ranging from front- to rear-wheel drive biased car.”
High-tech chassis control
The R-AWTV 2 enables drivetrain calibration for seven different driving modes.
Sport mode sharpens the response of the throttle, brakes, suspension, and steering. Drift mode supplies more torque to the rear wheels to boost oversteer and help hold the car in a controlled power slide on the track. Comfort mode strikes a balance between a relaxing ride, efficiency, and driving pleasure. Range mode enables maximum mileage from the battery charge. Track mode is the full “unrestrained” configuration to help drivers exploit the car’s full potential. Two Custom modes enable drivers to access their personal performance characteristics.
The latest electric power steering with steer-by-wire function enables adaptive driver-feedback depending on the drive mode. The double-wishbone suspension with electronically controlled dampers and active ride height adjustment was engineered to provide a combination of a smooth and comfortable ride, exemplary body control, and ultra-agile handling.
The handling and driving dynamics of the C_Two development vehicle were fine-tuned with KW automotive GmbH, which tested the car’s shocks on the seven-poster rig in Fichtenberg, Germany. KW partnered with Rimac on the coilover suspension with adaptive valve control and a hydraulic lift system and developed the chassis control electronics.
“The suspension system in the C_Two is the most innovative product that we have at KW automotive, and it’s necessary to deliver the broad range of abilities that Mate Rimac wants for the C_Two,” said Klaus Wohlfarth, Founder and Managing Director of KW automotive. “We’ve worked with Mate since the very beginning ten years ago when we provided the suspension for his all-electric BMW track car that inspired him to start building his own electric hypercars.”
The Nevera’s complex electrohydraulic brake system has a booster with a pedal-feel simulator that distributes the braking force between the friction brakes and electric powertrain depending on the battery, powertrain, and brake state. For instance, it dissipates kinetic energy through the friction brakes if the battery is close to its thermal limits, or it activates more regenerative braking if the friction brakes are hot. All the transitions are said to be unnoticeable to the driver.
This system is said to enable the car to have the highest use of regenerative braking of “any other car on the market now.” In addition to a maximum range-enhancing regenerative braking of 300 kW provided by the electric motors, substantial stopping power comes from 390-mm (15.4-in) Brembo CCMR carbon-ceramic brake discs and six-piston calipers.
User experience and ‘world first’ AI driving coach
The Nevera has space for two occupants “in full race regalia” and their luggage, with Rimac pitching the car as much a capable grand tourer as a performance hypercar. Configured for both track driving and comfort, the layout of the cockpit is divided into two zones. The focus of the top portion is on driving pleasure and performance, while the lower part houses the infotainment system, comfort controls, and driving data.
Digital screens take up many of the functions of toggles and switches. However, main vehicle controls are handled by tactile billet aluminum rotary controls and switches—including three displays with rotating control—to provide an analog feel.
The trio of high-definition TFT screens present as much, or as little, information as the user requires. From the cockpit, the driver can monitor every aspect of the car’s performance with real-time telemetry—downloadable to a laptop or smartphone for later review.
Rimac has developed what it claims is the world’s first AI (artificial intelligence) Driver Coach to enable drivers of all abilities to extract maximum performance from the car and help them further develop their track driving skills. It evaluates performance and provides guidance to optimize and enhance the driver’s on-track performance—adding an immersive dimension to the driving experience.
The system uses inputs from 12 ultrasonic sensors, 13 cameras, 6 radars, and control by an Nvidia Drive AGX Pegasus computing platform. It overlays data from selected race circuits in real-time, offering precise audio and visual guidance so drivers can perfect their racing lines, braking and acceleration points, and steering inputs. The feature will become available in 2022 and launched via over-the-air updates to the hardware-ready cars.
Integrated connectivity via the M2M system delivers a wealth of real-time data to the manufacturer as well as the owner. While the user is connected to the vehicle through the mobile app, the manufacturer receives anonymized performance data.
Using intuitive mobile applications developed in-house at Rimac, Nevera owners can track live data, such as GPS location, charging speed, and battery status while also using it to analyze driving performance, metrics, and map previews on Google Android and Apple iOS mobile devices.
‘Near-unlimited’ personalization
Rimac promises that no two Neveras will leave the factory looking the same or bearing the same specification thanks to customers’ ability to choose from a comprehensive range of trim and material options.
“We will be making just 150 examples of the Nevera, every single unit crafted in Croatia from passion and admiration for cars,” Rimac added.
Underlining his commitment to the project, he will personally test and sign off each of the Neveras from the company’s production site on the outskirts of Zagreb before they are delivered to customers.
In addition to a premium individual personalization program, the company will offer its flagship in various editions: GT, Signature, Timeless, or the customers can choose to go Bespoke.
Nevera customers will be invited to Croatia to design their cars to their requirements. The car will be available through Rimac’s global dealer partners network at 19 sites in many of the world’s major cities across Europe, North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
