Mate Rimac, executive director of Bugatti Rimac, in a conversation with CNBC, estimated that sports and luxury cars with internal combustion engines will survive for a very long time.
Rimac compares such a future to the watch industry. Most people today check the time on a mobile phone or a cheap “smart watch”, but the most expensive Swiss mechanical watches have not disappeared. On the contrary, customers pay huge sums for them precisely because they represent complex mechanics, handwork, tradition and emotion. Rimac believes that something similar will happen with supercars.
According to Rimac, the reason is the fact that power and acceleration alone are no longer enough to justify the price of several million euros. Today, already relatively affordable electric cars can achieve performances that ten years ago were reserved for the most expensive hypercars. According to Rimac, raw numbers are therefore becoming less important, and buyers at the top of the market are increasingly looking for character, sound, mechanical complexity and the ability to make their car unique.
The best example of that philosophy is the new Bugatti Tourbillon. Instead of inheriting the all-electric Chiron, Bugatti developed a new 8.3-liter naturally aspirated V16 with 1,000 hp, which, together with three electric motors, gives the car a total of 1,800 hp. The electric part is not a replacement for the petrol engine but helps it with instant torque and allows the big naturally aspirated V16 to remain the central part of the experience.
The Tourbillon will be produced in just 250 examples, with a starting price of 3.8 million euros without tax. Rimac told CNBC that all examples are already reserved and that the average customer spends another 600,000 to 700,000 dollars on personalization, from special colors and leather to unique details, in addition to the base price.
The paradox is obvious. Technologies for some of the most advanced electric cars are created at Rimč’s plant in Croatia, while at the same time a V16 is being developed that almost no one else would even try to make.
However, Rimac’s forecast is not a complete return to gasoline. He said he expects electricity to capture the majority of the market, while gasoline will remain reserved for the most expensive models.
Also See: Porsche To Sell Its Bugatti Stake To Rimac
https://autojosh.com/mate-rimac-believes-that-the-future-of-sports-cars-lies-in-gasoline-not-electricity/
