The Rimac Nevera is the World's Fastest Production EV at 256 MPH
Chief development driver Miro Zrnčević took the Nevera to a record on a special test oval in Germany.
For one reason or another, there is still a not-insignificant contingent of people who are staunchly against the electric vehicle revolution. There are many arguments that call EVs into question such as how environmentally friendly they really are, range anxiety, etc. However, the one thing that can't be argued about EVs is that they're fast; really fast. EV motors provide massive amounts of torque almost instantly. As along as the batteries are up to the task, those motors can push a vehicle to incredible speeds.
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Rimac just demonstrated that fact by smashing the record for the world's fastest production EV with its Nevera hypercar. The Rimac Nevera already made history in 2021 when it clicked off a 8.582-second quarter-mile time netting it the crown for fastest accelerating production car period—not just in the EV category—taking the crown away from the Tesla Model S Plaid. While that is a great title to have, Rimac wasn't satisfied. The Croatian automaker scoured the world for an oval race track with straightaways long enough to accommodate the Nevera's full potential.
Eventually, Rimac selected theAutomotive Testing Papenburgtrack in Germany due to its two 4 km long straights. Once the team was on site, the Rimac Nevera was set to "top speed mode," which configures the aerodynamic package to an optimal balance between drag and downforce to ensure the car stays manageable at record breaking speeds. The Nevera was fitted with a set of street-legal Michelin Cup 2R tires, the same rubber found on hypercars from Porsche, Ferrari, Mercedes-AMG, and Koenigsegg.
With Rimac's chief test and development driver Miro Zrnčević behind the wheel, the test commenced. The key to top speed runs such as this was getting the best exit possible off of the corner onto the straight to use as much of it as possible for acceleration. According to Rimac, Zrnčević exited the corner at 155 mph before putting the hammer down and pushing all four of the Nevera's motors wide open.
By the time the driver came back in over the radio he confirmed with the team that he reached 412 kph—256 mph. The speed was measured with a Racelogic V-Box which uses high-precision GPS data to measure speed.
Here's the bonkers part: technicallyanyRimac Nevera can pull off this feat. When it comes from the factory, the Nevera will be limited to 219 mph, but if the owner wants to push for 256 mph, they can. They just need to sign up for special Rimac customer events in which a team of the automaker's engineers will make the necessary adjustments and fit the correct tires to unlock the Nevera's full potential.
While being the fastest EV production car in the world is quite the accomplishment, the Rimac Nevera still doesn't quite have the beans it needs to be the fastest production car in the world. At 256 mph the Nevera still trails behind titans such as the 2022 Bugatti Chiron, 2022 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport, 2022 Koenigsegg Jesko, and the 2022 SSC Tuatara. Though, it may just be a matter of time before an EV comes for that number one spot.
Andrew Beckford’s passion for cars started as a middle schooler when his friend Richie explained how an internal combustion engine works. He was bitten by the bug and the rest, as they say, is history. He dug deep into the tuner scene and eventually wrote for Turbo Magazine, Import Tuner, Super Street. He covered car shows, feature builds, and reviewed racing games for those magazines in addition to covering motorsports including Formula Drift, Indy Car, and F1 for his personal blog. Eventually Beckford joined MotorTrend to cover the daily automotive news beat. Besides being a gearhead, Beckford has been a gamer since the ’80s and is a huge fan of the arcade racing games of the ’90s like Daytona USA, SEGA Rally, and Ridge Racer. Beckford’s a movie buff as well, especially comic book films from DC and Marvel. When car culture crosses over with gaming and entertainment, rest assured Beckford is aware of it. In addition to serving as a consultant on a “triple A” racing titles, he’s reviewed major racing games such as Forza Motorsport, Need for Speed, Gran Turismo, F1, and more. He’s also interviewed blockbuster directors including Steven Caple Jr. (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts) and Neill Blomkamp (Gran Turismo). His biggest profile to date was with Robert Downey Jr. on his love affair with cars and his show Downey’s Dream Cars on MAX. Beckford’s profile of Downey Jr. was the first print cover story written by an African American in MotorTrend’s history. Along with KJ Jones, Andrew Beckford also heads up MotorTrend’s celebration of Black History Month by spotlighting diverse voices in the automotive industry and motorsports. Beckford’s first car was a 1982 Nissan Stanza affectionately named “Stanley” by his late mother.
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