Bugatti CEO responds to Tesla Roadster
In a video posted on social media, Mate Rimac revealed that he had also considered the idea of creating a flying hypercar.
The industry is still recovering from the Tesla Roadster. Nine years after the first teaser, the American manufacturer finally kept its promise and unveiled the electric hypercar that, contrary to what the early prototypes suggested, is capable of flying.
Soon after, social media was flooded with videos and information about the model, along with numerous reactions from around the world. The latest came from Mate Rimac, founder and CEO of the Rimac Group, which includes the Bugatti Automobiles and Rimac Automobili brands.
The issue here is not merely a reaction to what Elon Musk’s brand unveiled on October 15th, but also the fact that he revealed having explored in 2019 the same idea of installing thrusters at the base and rear of what would become the successor to the Rimac Nevera. See for yourself:
The issue at hand
Mate Rimac disclosed that his team studied solutions similar to those seen on the Tesla Roadster years ago. In 2019, the possibility of generating aerodynamic force even when the car was stationary was discussed.
In 2020, a project investigated the use of cold thrusters on the Nevera’s successor, capable of producing thrust by releasing pressurized gas. According to him, the ambition was precisely to give the vehicle the ability to accelerate from 0 to 96 km/h in less than a second and even to fly.
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However, these were development possibilities and goals, not confirmed capabilities for a future production model.
The priority was Bugatti Tourbillon’s atmospheric V16 engine
According to Rimac, the team couldn’t work on all projects at once and decided to prioritize the Bugatti Tourbillon, equipped with an 8.3-liter atmospheric V16 engine paired with a hybrid system. The result? 1800 horsepower, 0 to 100 km/h in two seconds, and a top speed of 445 km/h.
The executive’s reaction to the new Roadster was still positive. Mate Rimac praised the diversity of technical solutions being explored in the automotive industry.