August 4, 2022 - Croatia does not produce many cars, but when it does... Mate Rimac announced that Formula 1 legend Nico Rosberg has taken delivery of the first Rimac Nevera.

Twelve years ago, a young Croatian called Mate Rimac was driving a car that would not have looked out of place in the hit British TV show, Only Fools and Horses. But in contrast to Del and Rodney's attempts to achieve financial independence through a variety of get-rich-quick schemes, Rimac has been very focused on his project.

A project that has seen his company become Croatia's second unicorn, with investment from Porsche, Hyundai and more, including taking over the famous Bugatti brand.

(Photo by Igor Kralj PIXSELL)

The flagship product of the company is the fastest electric hypercar in the world, the Rimac Nevera, which last week became the first car to cross the new Peljesac Bridge connecting independent Croatia for the  first time - Mate Rimac was the driver, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic the passenger.

A week is a long time in the Nevera story, and Rimac posted earlier on his Facebook page to announce the delivery of the first Rimac Nevera to a customer - none other than Formula One ace, Nico Rosberg:

Nevera #001 delivered! We are so much looking forward to see it on the streets of Monaco. We can't wait to see 149 more roll off the production line!

Rosberg seems to be delighted with his purchase.  A lovely video on his YouTube channel. 

I am not sure of the exact retail price of the Rimac Nevera, but it the Croatian car industry could shift a few more, I am sure the man from Peckham would declare:

"Billions, Rodney."

Congratulations to all involved, a global example of Croatian excellence. 

To follow Mate Rimac's journey, follow the dedicated TCN section on the progress of the Rimac story.

June 1st, 2021 - Rimac Automobili just announced their newest model, 'Nevera,' the best electric hypercar and the most powerful car with the best acceleration in the world. 

Picking a name for a new car model is never an easy task, and Mate Rimac, founder and CEO of Rimac Automobili, wanted the name to be meaningful and reflect Rimac's creation rules and car character. The newest model is named after an electrified, powerful, and unique force of nature, the summer storm of the Mediterranean. 

"At the beginning of the project, we set ourselves really high targets; global homologation, fastest acceleration of any car, most powerful production ever, lots of features and functionalities, autonomous driving features, and comfort in the car. Making it usable, not just to sit in the garage but for people to actually enjoy it," said Mate Rimac, founder and CEO of Rimac Automobili.

"I'm very proud that we nailed pretty much everything and even overachieved with some of our targets. One of the things that make this car very special is that everything has been developed and designed specifically for this car. Everything is custom developed for this car by our team here. 

We are really proud of the results and think we have something really special", Rimac stated. 

Never in history has there been a car like the Rimac Nevera, a fully electric next-generation hypercar that opens up new dimensions in road performance.

Compared to the concept, the numbers remain the same: with 1914 horsepower from four electric motors, the Nevera can accelerate to 100 km/h in 1.85 seconds and 100 miles per hour in just 4.3 seconds. Stunning acceleration is maintained throughout the full-throttle cycle and reaches 300 km/h from the start in 9.3 seconds.

The first test drive was done just last week on the airstrip of island Pag and documented on some of the most famous YouTube car channels in the world, the Late Break Show, CarWow, Mat Watson Cars, and many more. 

As part of the user journey, every Nevera owner will be invited to Croatia to design their car to their liking. Nevera is exclusively available through Rimac’s global network of partners at 19 locations and more, located in many of the largest cities across Europe, North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

Check out the full model reveal below! 

For more information about things in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.