In case you hadn’t noticed, there’s a slightly awkward performance grudge match taking place between two automakers at the very top of the hypercar tree. Rimac and Pininfarina have been trading blows for the past couple of years, and this week it’s the Croatian firm’s turn to gloat after its Nevera EV set 23 speed records.
The awkwardness we mentioned stems from the fact that the Pininfarina Battista is based on the Rimac Nevera, and until recently it was the the Battista that was the undisputed g-force king, after the Italian machine set a bunch of acceleration records that beat previous feats recorded by the Nevera.
But now Rimac is back on top. You can see the full list of physics-defying numbers in the image below, but some of the standout achievements include an 8.25-second quarter mile, 0-300 km/h (0-186 mph) in 9.2 seconds and 0-400 km/h (249 mph) in 21.31 seconds. Those numbers were all recorded in Germany, independently verified by two third-party outfits and measured with a drag strip-style one-foot rollout, by the way.
Related: Pininfarina Battista Is The World’s Fastest Accelerating Quarter-Mile Production Car
Rimac, though, is most proud of the time it takes the Nevera to get to 400 km/h and back to zero again, claiming that this combined test of traction, acceleration, power, aerodynamics, braking force and grip is the ultimate measure of a hypercar’s straight line performance.
The Nevera did the job in 29.93 seconds, beating the previous record holder by over a second, though in that case the beaten champ wasn’t the Battista, but the Koenigsegg Agera RS, which managed 31.49 seconds in 2019. And if you’re wondering how a Bugatti Chiron compares, the one-time performance great is miles off the pace, needing 42 seconds.
The quad-motor Rimac sent its 1,888 hp (1,914 PS) and a 1,741 lb-ft (2,360 Nm) to wheels shod with road-legal Michelin Cup 2 R tires to deliver its explosive off-the-line go for the record runs, and the focus of this story is obviously those standing start times. But to our mind the numbers generated along the way are every bit as jaw-dropping. Imagine, for instance, spotting the tiniest of opportunities to overtake a car on a public road and knowing that you can easily make it because you can accelerate from 60-130 mph (97-209 km/h) in just 2.99 seconds. Crazy.
