Electric Hypercar CEO Still Has a Soft Spot for the E30
Mate Rimac’s path to fame and electric hypercardom started as a teenager racing an E30 BMW 3 Series, and it’s been quite the story to follow. His Concept One electric supercar first put him into the international spotlight, and the current-day Nevera hypercar has set many records in its wake. But his love for the E30 has remained strong, and his ultimate E30 restomod isn’t an electric one, but a V10-powered beast.
All Roads Lead To E30
When the engine of the E30 BMW he raced blew up, he converted the gas powertrain to an electric one in 2008 when he was barely 20 years old. He founded the Rimac Group, and now he’s also the CEO of Bugatti Rimac. His meteoric rise to stardom makes him one of the preeminent people in the automotive industry at only 37 years of age. Yet, it seems, his love affair with the E30 has not dimmed one bit.
Why Rimac’s Personal E30 M3 Is Too Rare to Modify
Mate owns a 1990 E30 M3 Evolution III, one of only 600 cars made, and one of the rarest and most special E30s ever, right up there with the highly collectible M30-powered South African 333i, of which only a little over 200 were ever made. The Rimac boss is unlikely to molest his pristine M3, so his V10 engine will likely be shoved into a dedicated project car.
He’s been tight-lipped about exactly what engine the V10 will be, though. Surely the high-revving S85B50 found in the E60 M5 and E63 M6 will satisfy the requirements for a lightweight NA V10, while keeping it all nicely BMW in the process? We can’t be sure, but it would make the most sense.
Rimac Says Restomod Will Have to Wait
While the internet is getting all riled up about Mate Rimac’s V10 E30, let us remind you that it’s just an idea in his mind right now. He is preoccupied with running his automotive empire and possibly expanding into robotaxis, so there’s hardly a spare minute to spend on painstakingly constructing an epic BMW restomod. He sees it as little more than a retirement project at the moment, so we might be in for a long wait.
