I used to leave my car unlocked back when I lived in Connecticut, figuring a town with more cows than people had very little chance of someone hot-wiring an unwashed Corolla. Now I can say I have at least one thing in common with Mate Rimac. And it’s not the dirty Corolla.
On Wednesday, October 28, someone stole Rimac’s Bugatti Chiron from the Rimac factory. How? He left his keys in the car. On social media, he admitted he leaves his keys in all his cars.
Apparently, a stranger just walked into the factory and took the car. At first, Rimac believed someone at the factory had taken it for a joyride. Not quite. The police were called as Rimac tracked his Chiron via telemetry, watching it head toward the Slovenian border.
To make this sound even more like a GTA server, Rimac took off in a Porsche 911 to chase down the thief.
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According to Rimac, the car thief had actually made it to Austria. That’s where authorities finally caught up.
Once brought to the police station, the thief explained that he’d actually come to the factory looking for a job. But that Chiron with the keys inside was just too tempting. This coincides with Rimac’s own security footage, shared on Instagram, which shows the thief casually sauntering over to the Bugatti, looking around, taking a final drag of his cigarette, then getting into the car.
“Don’t try your luck — it will not happen again,” Rimac concluded, saying he would no longer leave his keys in his cars.
Rimac isn’t concerned about his Bugatti Chiron
Honestly, the whole situation was quite comical. Especially Rimac’s reactions.
I guess I am not too surprised that Rimac, the young Bugatti CEO, felt a little silly about the situation. While the base price of a Chiron is $3.3 million (and Bugatti makes way more expensive options), Rimac’s net worth is said to be around $2.5 billion. It’s not like he was panicking.
Rimac is considered to be a bit of a prodigy. At 19, he turned his 1984 BMW 3-Series into an electric car right in his garage, and it had record-breaking performance. He later founded Rimac Automobili and Greyp Bikes. Rimac is known for its extremely aggressive hypercars, including the $2 million Nevera, which has 2,000 horsepower.
In 2021, Rimac became the CEO of Bugatti Rimac, a joint venture between Rimac Group, Bugatti, and Porsche AG. The Rimac Group also has a 55% majority stake in Bugatti Rimac.
“I am really happy that the deal with Porsche and HOF Capital has been completed. Porsche has been a valuable partner for years, helping us build a strong foundation for the brand’s future. I am really looking forward to our collaboration with HOF Capital, which will be a great asset in executing our long-term vision for the exciting future of Bugatti,” he said earlier this year.
