There was already almost no car on the road quicker than the Rimac Nevera. But Rimac’s customers somehow weren’t satisfied with the car’s already pants-soiling performance and asked for a version that was even faster. Naturally, Mate Rimac and his crew had no trouble arranging that, and the result is the Rimac Nevera R. It’s lighter, faster, and grippier, taking the Nevera’s never-before-seen performance even further.
The “regular” Nevera (if it can even be called such) was designed more as a GT car than a track toy, albeit one with bullet-like performance. The Nevera R, then, can be considered an overpressure round, with stickier tires, retuned all-wheel drive, more extreme aero, and other chassis tweaks, topped off with 193 extra horsepower. Output now totals 2,107 hp, which is more like what you’d expect a freight train to have.
To make use of that power, the Nevera R upgrades to Michelin Cup 2 tires mounted on 20-inch front wheels and 21-inch rears. Rimac retuned the Nevera R’s four-wheel torque-vectoring AWD system around these, sharpening its steering, and calculably improving cornering. The way Rimac tells it, the Nevera R is 3.8 seconds quicker around Nardo with 10% less understeer and 5% more lateral grip. Some of that comes from a reformulated aero package, with a fixed rear wing and enlarged diffuser generating 15% more downforce at 10% greater efficiency.
Its 108-kWh battery has been lightened, while the brakes have been upgraded to “Evo2” spec. They’re now carbon ceramic with a silicone matrix layer to improve stopping power. It needs these because the Nevera R makes even the Nevera look like last decade’s news, doing zero to 60 mph in just 1.74 seconds and hitting 124 in 4.38. That’s almost as quick as a BMW M2 going from zero to 60.
It’ll finish the standing quarter mile in 8.23 seconds, just a blink of an eye before touching 186 after 8.66 seconds. Held wide open, it’ll top out at 256. That’s 2 mph slower than the original Nevera, but you don’t really care, do you? Didn’t think so.
Anyway, now’s the time to call in all accounts receivable, because Rimac only plans to make 40 of the Nevera R. It didn’t say what the price is, but considering the Nevera cost $2.5 million, you can expect at least as much of the R. But if you need the exact number, you need to reminded of the saying: If you have to ask…
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