Rimac Is Ending Nevera Production With Just 71 Units Built

Rimac is wrapping up production of its all-electric Nevera hypercar with just 71 units finding homes. This is less than half of the 150 examples that Rimac initially planned to sell. It shows that, despite the Nevera delivering record-breaking levels of performance, demand for electric powertrains in the upper echelons of the hypercar market has fallen. However, Mate Rimac doesn't think the Nevera has been a failure.

In a recent Instagram video, the company's founder revealed that Nevera production will end with 51 examples of the regular model sold and a further 20 Nevera R models finding customers. Though that's less than the 150 the Croatian company had expected to build, the Nevera is still the highest-selling electric hypercar of its kind. Until the new Tesla Roadster actually reaches the road, the Nevera will remain among the quickest, too.

Eighteen months ago, Rimac set 24 world records in a single day with the Nevera R. This included a 0-400-0 kph (0-249-0 mph) record of just 25.79 seconds, a time that has since been beaten by the Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut. Last year, the Nevera R also set a 0-100 mph (160 kph) record of just 2.96 seconds, reached 124 mph (200 kph) in 3.95 seconds, and passed 186 mph (300 kph) in 7.89 seconds. The car was also pushed to an impressive top speed of 268.2 mph (431.45 kph), which had been an EV record until the BYD Yangwang U9 Xtreme came along.

As staggeringly quick as the Nevera is, Rimac has had trouble selling all of the units it hoped to build. When the Nevera was first unveiled in 2021, all-electric performance cars were all the rage, and it seemed they were the future of the industry. Italian design house Pininfarina even got involved, using the Nevera as the base for its Battista hypercar. However, customer sentiment has shifted in recent years, with high-end buyers now preferring analog performance cars with big, screaming engines, like those from Gordon Murray Automotive and Koenigsegg.

Mate Rimac has compared electric cars like the Nevera with smartwatches, noting they're more advanced than traditional timepieces, yet don't have the same cachet or value. In the years to come, he believes high-end cars will stick to combustion engines. This philosophy is exemplified by the Bugatti Tourbillon. When Mate Rimac was brought in to help Bugatti create a successor to the Chiron, the Nevera was supposed to serve as the basis for an all-electric Bugatti. However, the Croatian instead decided to turn the Tourbillon into a hybrid with a massive naturally aspirated 8.3-liter V16 from Cosworth. Without the Nevera, the VW Group may have never pursued a deal with Rimac, and the Tourbillon may have never been created. For it, and for its V16 to live, the world needed the Nevera.