Leaving your keys inside an unlocked vehicle is always a terrible idea, but doing so with a multi-million-dollar hypercar is a uniquely expensive gamble. Bugatti Rimac CEO Mate Rimac recently learned this lesson the hard way after a rather brazen car thief managed to steal his personal Bugatti Chiron directly from a company facility in Croatia. The incident unfolded casually, with security footage showing the suspect smoking a cigarette before wandering into the building, spotting the keys sitting inside the seven-figure machine, and simply driving off.
According to Rimac, he had developed a habit of leaving the keys inside his vehicles, perhaps to avoid the hassle of getting locked out. He likely assumed no one would be foolish enough to steal something so recognizable. Fortunately, an eagle-eyed employee quickly spotted the 1,479-horsepower hypercar speeding away from the factory and immediately alerted the rest of the team through a company group chat, confirming that an unauthorized joyride was indeed in progress.
The Cross-Border Pursuit
We caught the drama as it happened on his Instagram page. Rather than simply sitting around and waiting for the authorities to handle the situation, the Bugatti CEO took matters into his own hands. Rimac immediately jumped behind the wheel of a nearby Porsche 911 that fortunately had a full tank of gas and began chasing down the suspect. While the thief already had roughly an hour head start and was actively fleeing toward Slovenia, Rimac had a massive technological advantage: the Chiron’s advanced live telemetry system.
This built-in factory software allowed Rimac and his engineering team to monitor the hypercar’s location, vehicle speed, and exact fuel level in real time. They continuously relayed these live updates to the police via their group chat, effectively turning the stolen Bugatti into an incredibly expensive tracking device. We wonder whether the stolen vehicle was Rimac’s notoriously high-mileage Chiron, though the executive was just relieved the situation remained under digital surveillance as the chase crossed international borders.
Man Took his Shot
The cross-country pursuit finally came to an end after the thief crossed into Austria. The suspect had even stopped to put roughly half a tank of gas into the thirsty quad-turbo, 8.0-liter W16 engine, and naturally, he drove off without paying the fuel bill. Thanks to the constant barrage of live telemetry updates provided by Rimac’s team, Austrian police were eventually able to seamlessly intercept the stolen hypercar.
Fortunately, the Chiron only sustained very minor front bumper damage, avoiding the catastrophic wreckage that easily could have occurred. While I’m sure he must be glad it wasn’t his dream car, a V10-swapped BMW E30, the multi-million-dollar scare prompted an immediate policy change. The CEO has officially vowed to never leave keys inside his vehicles again, putting an end to his trusting factory habits.
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