The production-ready version of the mystifying Rimac C_Two concept just broke cover, looking remarkably similar to the concept version, which was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, back in 2018. The car, officially christened the Nevera, packs a 120kwh battery pack which sends power to four electric motors. So far, things are firmly within the realm of earthly science.
The combined power of the motors is a wind-tearing 1888 bhp which propels the Nevera from a standstill to 100 kmph in a scarcely believable 1.85 seconds. That’s 0.5 seconds quicker than the claimed acceleration figure of the upcoming Tesla Roadster. And 0.5 seconds in the world or automotive performance qualifies as a lifetime.
It is the thin line between “greatest of all time” and “also great” that’S used to safeguard the hierarchy-obsessed echelons of the automotive world. It’s top-speed is equally otherworldly, in that you would have to test it in a world where speed limits don’t exist and tarmac never runs out. It can touch 415 kmph. That makes it the fastest accelerating production car in the world, with a top speed that’s a few digits shy of beating the mighty Bugatti Chiron.
Of course, it’s not entirely about linear speed. Rimac claims that it has used the last three years to improve the battery pack’s cooling system, which means that the Nevera will run faster for much longer than expected. In order to ensure that such biblical levels of power don’t end up wrapping the car and the driver around a tree, Rimac developed an all-wheel torque vectoring system that basically acts as both an electronic stability and traction control system.
It is also something of an aerodynamic marvel, with body panels which include the bonnet, rear diffuser, underbody plate and spoiler, move independently according to airflow. The Nevera also has a ‘high downforce’ mode and a ‘low drag’ mode, with the former improving stability while cornering etc, and the latter improves aerodynamic efficiency for straight-line speed.
The technological mastery doesn’t end there. The Nevera has electro hydraulic regenerative brakes which work with the battery to provide optimum power. If the battery is too hot, the kinetic energy will be channelled back to the wheel. If the brakes are running hot, more kinetic power will be extracted from them. Of course, this means a fairly advanced braking setup, so the Nevera gets 390mm Brembo, fade-free carbon-ceramic discs with six-piston calipers which can potentially stop time.
The Nevera also uses the world’s first-ever “steer-by-wire” system featuring seven driving modes, one of which uses artificial intelligence, a bevy of sensors, cameras and radars to offer aural and visual guidance to the driver that allows him or her to best utilise a race track.
That means it essentially shows you the fastest way around the track, and the optimum level of throttle and braking input to achieve the fastest lap. Of course, such cutting-edge technology begets a truly oligarchic price tag, and so, you can have a Nevera for Rs 17.5 crore (excluding taxes). Rimac is making only 150 of these, so if you have that sort of cash burning a hole in your pocket, this is your chance.
In a constant battle for technological supremacy between heritage performance carmakers like Porsche, Audi etc and young upstarts like Rimac, the Nevera marks a significant win for the latter, having proven that when it comes to electric performance, having a century’s worth of manufacturing experience doesn’t mean much all that much in the race to create the supercar, or in this case, the hypercar of the future.
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