Porsche Buys 10 Percent Stake In Electric Supercar Maker Rimac

With Rimac and Porsche joining forces, just imagine what a fully electric 911 will be capable of.

Croatian company Rimac has quickly established itself as the leading developer of electric supercars. Established in 2009, company founder and CEO Mate Rimac began working on his vision to revolutionize the electric car industry in his garage. Rimac’s first supercar, the Concept_One, may be infamous for nearly killing Richard Hammond while filming for The Grand Tour, but the publicity the accident generated was invaluable for the company. Everyone now knows Rimac.

At this year’s Geneva Motor Show, Rimac shook up the auto industry with the C_Two, a 1,914-hp electric supercar capable of hitting 0-62 mph in 1.85 seconds, making it faster than the Tesla Roadster. Clearly, this incredible car caught the attention of Porsche, because the automaker has now bought a 10 percent stake in Rimac not long after naming its first EV, the Taycan. Porsche hasn’t specified any plans following the investment, but said it hopes to enter a "close collaboration" with Rimac in the future.

“By developing the purely electric two-seaters super sports cars, like the ‘Concept One’ or ‘C Two’, as well as core vehicle systems, Rimac has impressively demonstrated its credentials in the field of electromobility”, said Lutz Meschke, Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board and Member of the Executive Board for Finance and IT at Porsche. "We feel that Rimac’s ideas and approaches are extremely promising, which is why we hope to enter into close collaboration with the company in the form of a development partnership.” The news may come as a surprise, but Rimac has worked with other automakers having developed battery technology for leading supercar makers such as Aston Martin and Koenigsegg.

It’s too early to tell how the two companies will collaborate, but it’s an exciting development for the EV world. With Porsche and Rimac joining forces, just imagine what a fully electric 911 will be capable of. “This partnership now is an important step for Rimac on our way to become a component and system supplier of choice for the industry in electrification, connectivity and the exciting field of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems”, company CEO Mate Rimac said.

German Sports Car Maker Wiesmann Will Return In 2019

And of course, they'll be powered by BMW M engines.

It's not easy for boutique sports car manufacturers to survive in this day and age. Even well-established brands like Lamborghini and Maserati have now resorted to building SUVs. Then again, both are owned by huge parent companies, Volkswagen Group and FCA, respectively. Wiesmann, a small privately-owned German sports car builder, was so impacted by the lack of demand for sports cars that it was forced to declare bankruptcy in 2013. Jump forward to today and, amazingly, Wiesmann has been able to overcome the brink of collapse and will now be making a major comeback.

Wiesmann says it will be releasing "an exciting new model next year in 2019" which will be re-engineered to come out of the company's Dulmen factory in Germany within two years. To celebrate the momentous return, Wiesmann will attend the Salon Privé Concours d'Elégance from August 30 to September 1 with two V8 heritage models: the GTMF5 Coupe (shown above) and MF4 Roadster (below). In an ode to tradition, each new car will be hand-built and completely bespoke for the individual owners.

As with previous Wiesmann sports cars, this new model will borrow an engine from the BMW M Division. The 4.4-liter twin-turbo S63 V8 from the F90 M5 is expected to make an appearance, where it will produce at least 600 horsepower and 553 lb-ft of torque. The latest M5 is all-wheel drive, so it will be interesting to see if Wiesmann sticks to rear-wheel drive with its upcoming sports car. One thing is for sure, the signature Wiesmann gecko logo will be present on the hood of the new car. More details as they arrive.