Rimac's Nevera is officially the fastest EV in production, beating Tesla Model S Plaid

It is already the fastest-accelerating EV in the world today.

By: Ameya Paleja

Rimac's Nevera during its record run

Rimac 

Croatian electric vehicle maker, Rimac Automobil now has the bragging rights to the title of the fastest EV in the market, after its Nevera clocked 258 miles (412 km) an hour top speed at the Automotive Testing Papenburg track in Germany, a company press release said.

The record was previously held by Elon Musk's Tesla whose model Plaid S managed 167 mph (269 kph) at Nurburgring, also in Germany last year. However, with this achievement, Rimac has finally achieved what it had aimed for in 2018, when it first unveiled the Nevera at the Geneva Motor Show, hitting the 258mph mark.

Rimac Nevera, the world's fastest EV

Interesting Engineering has previously reported how the Nevera beats Tesla Plaid S on the race track. Now in production at the Rimac's facilities outside Zagreb, Croatia, the Nevera is powered by four electric motors that have been designed in-house and produce a total of 1,914 hp that can take the car from 0-60 mph (0-100 kph) in 1.85 seconds.

The 120 kWh battery pack can deliver a 304-mile (490 km) range or it can be put to use for reaching speeds as high as 186 mph (300 kph) in less than 10 seconds. For those, who might have been excited by the top speed capability of the car, the Nevera is delivered with a limited top speed of 219 mph and the recent trial was made possible as a special event with the support of Rimac engineers.

The record run

An attempt to clock the fastest speed on a track might sound like an engineering challenge. While true, it is also much of a logistical one, especially when one is looking for long straights to hit the 258 mph (412 kph) mark.

The Rimac team's search for the ideal track ended at the  Automotive Testing Papenburg track in Germany which has two 2.48-mile (4 km) straights. Rimac engineers set the car in its top speed mode so that it used an aerodynamic profile to balance drag and downforce and ensured high stability at these speeds.

The car was fitted with road-legal Michelin 2R tires and the tire maker's team was available at the site to oversee the attempt since the stress of the run would be largely borne by the tires.

Behind the wheel was Rimac's Chief Test and Development driver, Miro Zrnčević, who needed to give the Nevera the perfect entry from the curved sections of the track onto the straights. Traveling at 155 mph (250 kph) on the curves, Zrnčević hit the throttle to get the maximum out of the electric motors and led the Nevera to the magic mark, it had spent over four years working toward.

"I’ve driven Nevera since it first turned a wheel and to see the perfectly honed car that is today is a really emotional moment," said Zrnčević in the press release. "The most important thing I have learned during the top-speed attempt is how composed and stable the car was – confirming that our aerodynamics and vehicle dynamics teams have done an amazing job.”