Porsche is boosting its ties with Rimac, an electric supercar company, by partaking in a $500 million investment round for the Croatia-based startup.
Porsche didn’t reveal the exact amount it ingrained in Rimac, except to say it was “eight figures.” And Porsche won’t keep a controlling interest in Rimac, retaining its formerly disclosed 20 percent equity stake in the company.
Porsche donates to a $500 million investment round for the Croatian startup. Over the years, Porsche has evolved closer to Rimac, acknowledging shares in the company and developing a joint venture to drive Bugatti after Volkswagen assigned ownership to the startup.
As a result, Porsche has a positive perception of Rimac’s future. Porsche also possesses a controlling stake in Greyp, an electric mountain bike company founded by Rimac’s CEO, Mate Rimac.
“We’re delighted that Rimac has gained prominent new investors, and we are optimistic about the continued development of this exciting company,” says the Deputy Chairman, Lutz Meschke, the executive board of Porsche AG and associate of the executive committee for Finance and IT. Other investors possess SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 and Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
Rimac was established in 2009 by Mate Rimac in a garage as a one-person process. Over the prior few years, the company has evolved into a highly desirable brand. Many heritage automakers call upon the startup to help create their electric supercars, including Porsche, Hyundai, and Bugatti.
It’s not much of a query why that is. Last year, Rimac discharged the Nevera, a quad-motor, 1,914 horsepower meetup of electric absurdity, with a top pace of 258 mph and a capability to leap from 0–60 mph in less than two seconds. The Nevera is anticipated to be the fastest sports car ever made, a title formerly held by the Bugatti Chiron.
With the new funding, Rimac intends to hire 200 additional employees in 2022 and invest in extending its production capacity for “high-volume projects.” Rimac is a low-volume manufacturer, presently only churning out a handful of vehicles every month. The company has fixed a limit for the Nevera of 150 units.
Nonetheless, Rimac includes “ambitious growth plans for the coming years,” Mate Rimac said while thanking Porsche for the vote of confidence.
Rimac Automobili is a Croatian car work headquartered in Sveta Nedelja, Croatia, developing and producing electric sports cars, drivetrains, and battery systems. The company was established in 2009 by Mate Rimac. Rimac Automobili’s Concept One prototype was the fastest display electric vehicle. While manufacturing and commerce high-performance vehicles under its brand, Rimac also develops and produces battery packs, drivetrain systems, and cars for other firms. The Applus+ IDIADA Volar-E is an instance of a product designed for another company. The company revealed its second model, the Rimac Nevera, during the 88th Geneva International Motor Show in March 2018.
The groundwork for the company was applied in 2007 as a hobby garage activity of Mate Rimac. Working on his own, he transformed his BMW 3 Series (E30) to comprise an electric powertrain and earned alerts from the press and investors. A noteworthy part of the early financing came from angel investors and the sale of proprietary patents.
Rimac Automobili was founded in 2009 in Sveta Nedelja, near Zagreb, Croatia, where suitable facilities were rented. When he was 19 years old,
Porsche is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs, and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company is owned by Volkswagen AG, a controlling stake held by Porsche Automobil Holding SE. Porsche’s current lineup includes the 718 Boxster/Cayman, 911 (992), Panamera, Macan, Cayenne, and Taycan.
Ferdinand Porsche founded the company called “Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH” with Adolf Rosenberger and Anton Piëch in 1931. The main office was at Kronenstraße 24 in the center of Stuttgart. Initially, the company offered motor vehicle development work and consulting but did not build any cars under its name.
One of the first assignments the new company received was from the German government to design a car for the people; that is, a Volkswagen. It resulted in the Volkswagen Beetle, one of the most successful car designs. The Porsche 64 was developed in 1939 using many components from the Beetle.
During World War II, Volkswagen production turned to the military version of the Volkswagen Beetle, the Kübelwagen, 52,000 produced, and Schwimmwagen, 15,584 built. During the war, Porsche made several designs for heavy tanks, losing out to Henschel & Son in both contracts that ultimately led to the Tiger I and the Tiger II. However, not all this work was wasted, as the chassis Porsche designed for the Tiger, I was used as the base for the Elefant tank destroyer.
In the war’s closing stages, Porsche also developed the Maus super-heavy tank, producing two prototypes. Ferdinand Porsche’s biographer, Fabian Müller, wrote that Porsche had thousands of people forcibly brought to work at their factories during the war. The workers wore the letter “P” on their clothing. It stood not for “Porsche” but for “Poland.”
In post-war Germany, parts were generally in short supply, so the 356 automobiles used components from the Volkswagen Beetle, including the engine case from its internal combustion engine, transmission, and several parts used in the suspension. The 356, however, had several evolutionary stages, A, B, and C, while in production, and Porsche-made parts replaced most Volkswagen-sourced parts.
In 1954 the 356s engines started utilizing engine cases designed specifically for the 356. The sleek bodywork was designed by Erwin Komenda, who also had designed the body of the Beetle. From the beginning, Porsche’s signature designs have featured air-cooled rear-engine configurations (like the Beetle), rare for other car manufacturers but producing automobiles that are very well balanced.