With Porsche getting more involved in Rimac, Hyundai is said to have ended cooperation projects with the Croatian car manufacturer.
Sources say Automotive News Hyundai ended its partnership with Rimac due to tensions caused by Porsche increasing its stake in the electric supercar maker from 10 to 24 percent last year.
This is part of a deal that sees Rimac and Porsche form a 55/45 joint venture to run Bugatti. The hypercar brand is officially a wholly owned subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group.
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Mate Rimac (left) and Euisun Chung (right) in 2019
In 2019, Hyundai and Kia invested 80 million euros ($119 million) in Rimac in exchange for a 12% stake in the Croatian carmaker.
The two companies then announced a pair of joint projects: an electric sports car for Hyundai’s N sub-brand and a hydrogen fuel cell sports car.
Trade publication sources say Hyundai will perfect the EV on its own and launch the vehicle in 2023. However, the fuel cell vehicle is expected to be scrapped.
A Rimac spokesperson said, “We have two high-profile projects in the works [with Hyundai]one project has been completed and several future projects are under discussion”.
They did not confirm whether the completed partnership is an N.-branded EV.
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Rimac Nevera
The spokesman refuted claims that Porsche’s rise in influence had caused problems, saying, “Hyundai has assisted in the company’s transformation over the past 12 months”.
In addition to producing vehicles under his own name, Rimac adopts Rimac technology The subsidiary continues to conduct engineering and design consulting, as well as providing its electric powertrain technology and expertise to other car companies.
One of the more prominent examples of this is Pininfarina BattistaThe first self-branded car of the famous Italian design firm.
It is not clear if Hyundai intends to sell off its 12% stake in Rimac. The Korean company is currently the third largest shareholder in Rimac after founder and CEO Mate Rimac (37%) and Porsche (24%).
