| Pagani Automobili S.p.A. | |
| Type: | Private |
| Founder: | Horacio Pagani |
| Key People: | Horacio Pagani (CEO/President) |
| Industry: | Automotive |
| Products: | Sports cars Carbon fibre components |
| Owner: | Horacio Pagani |
| Revenue: | € 114,382,997 |
| Revenue Year: | 2021[1] |
| Num Employees: | 162 (2023) |
| Homepage: | Pagani.com |
| Location: | San Cesario sul Panaro, MO, Italy |
Pagani Automobili S.p.A. (commonly referred to as Pagani) is an Italian manufacturer of sports cars and carbon fiber components. The company was founded in 1992 by Argentine businessman and engineer Horacio Pagani and is based in San Cesario sul Panaro, near Modena, Italy.
Horacio Pagani, who formerly created and managed Lamborghini's composites department, founded Pagani Composite Research in 1988. This new company worked with Lamborghini on numerous projects, including the restyling of the Lamborghini Countach 25th Anniversary Edition, the Lamborghini LM002, the P140 design concept, and the Diablo. In the late 1980s, Pagani began designing his own car, then referred to as the "C8 Project". Pagani planned to rename the C8 the "Fangio F1" to honour his friend, the Argentine five-time Formula One champion, Juan Manuel Fangio.
In 1991, Pagani established Modena Design to meet the increasing demand for his design, engineering, and prototyping services. In 1992, he began construction of a Fangio F1 prototype, and by 1993, the car was being tested at the Dallara wind tunnel with positive results. In 1994, Mercedes-Benz agreed to supply Pagani with V12 engines. The cost of these cars are at a total of 2.3 million dollars.
The final car was named the Zonda C12, the first of the Zonda line (the Fangio F1 name was dropped out of respect for Fangio, who died in 1995). It was first presented at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show.
In 2005, Pagani announced that it planned to triple its production output within the next three years, and to enter the US market in 2007.
On 30 June 2010, Pagani claimed a new record for production-based cars using the Pagani Zonda R and completing the Nürburgring in 6:47, beating the Ferrari 599XX.[2]
See main article: article and Pagani Zonda. Pagani's first model, the Zonda, is powered by a mid-mounted DOHC V12 engine manufactured by Mercedes-Benz's AMG division. The car's design was inspired by jet fighters and the famous Sauber-Mercedes Silver Arrow Group C cars, and features several unique design elements, including its circular four pipe exhaust system.
The Zonda's production run ended with the Zonda HP Barchetta. Only three were produced with one unit retained for Horacio Pagani's personal collection and the other two costing US$15M.[3]
Pagani announced a variant of the Zonda named "Zonda Cinque" which was introduced as a 2009 model. The Cinque is based on the track-only Zonda R, but features a new Mercedes-Benz M297 V12 engine, active aerodynamics, and features exterior elements from the newly developed material "carbon-titanium fibre", which is stronger and lighter than typical carbon fibre. Only five were produced, all of which were already spoken for.[4]
Pagani announced the Zonda Cinque Roadster in July 2009, of which only five were produced. The roadster uses the same Mercedes-Benz M297 V12 engine as the coupé version, but has been made lighter and stronger to keep the car structurally rigid. Both the coupe and the roadster accelerate from 0 - in 3.4 seconds, 0 - in 9.6 seconds and have a top speed of . The Cinque uses carbon-ceramic brakes from Brembo. They help decelerate the car from - 0 mph in 3.1 seconds and - 0mph in 4.3 seconds. The maximum side acceleration is 1.45g with road tyres. The car produces of downforce at .[5]
At the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, Pagani announced the exclusive Zonda Tricolore, built to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Frecce Tricolori, the Italian Air Force's aerobatic squadron.[6] Originally intended to be limited to a single car, eventually three were produced. The Tricolore is based on a top specification Zonda Cinque, built on a carbon titanium chassis with sequential transmission and titanium exhausts. The mid-mounted 7.3L M297 V12 engine produces 6610NaN0, which helps the car achieve a top speed of 217mi/h and a 0 - acceleration time of 3.2 seconds.
See main article: article and Pagani Huayra. The Pagani Huayra, a successor to the Pagani Zonda, was initially revealed online in a press release on 25 January 2011. It was officially revealed at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. The car is named after the Incan god of wind, Huayra-tata.[7] The engine is a 6.0-litre twin-turbo M158 V12 engine from Mercedes-AMG producing 5440NaN0[8] and 1000Nm of torque.[8] The Huayra's body is made from carbotanium; a lightweight composition of carbon fibre and titanium. The Huayra has been redesigned from the ground up, but shares many visual qualities with its predecessor. The car can accelerate from 0 to in 3.2 seconds and has a top speed of . Only 100 units of the Huayra were produced, each costing £1,000,000 without options.
An extreme, track-focused version of the Huayra called the Huayra BC was unveiled at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show. The Huayra BC is named after the late Benny Caiola, a friend of Horacio Pagani, and the first Pagani customer. The Huayra BC has an improved version of the standard Huayra's engine, producing 764PS and 1000Nm of torque.[10] The weight is reduced by to just, thanks to the use of an all-new material called 'carbon-triax' in the car which Pagani claims is 50% lighter and 20% stronger than regular carbon fibre, giving the car a power-to-weight ratio of NaN2NaN2 per horsepower. The Huayra BC uses a lightweight titanium exhaust system, new aluminum alloy wheels, and a stripped-out interior. The tyres are Pirelli P-Zero Corsa tires that feature 12 different rubber compounds, and the suspension and wishbones are made of aeronautical grade aluminum, known as Avional. The Huayra BC also has a new front bumper with a front splitter and winglets, deeper side skirts, and an air diffuser that stretches the entire width of the rear bumper along with a large rear wing. The car uses an Xtrac 7-speed sequential manual transmission and has an electro-hydraulic actuation system. Pagani has stuck with a single-clutch gearbox because it weighs 40% less than double-clutch gearboxes.
30 units of the Huayra BC were made, despite the claim by Pagani that the model was limited to 20 units. Each unit cost in excess of €2.1M.[11] [12]
Later, Pagani unveiled the Huayra Roadster BC and produced 40 units.
After 2 years of development, the Huayra Roadster was officially unveiled in the 2017 Geneva Motor Show.[13]
The design of the car underwent several changes, with the most noticeable being the rear, with updated eyelid-like fixed flaps that continued with the design and eventually ended on the rear lights. Vents were included on the rear engine cover for efficient cooling of the engine, and the wheels were updated specifically for the car along with Pirelli P-Zero tires, along with the addition of a spoiler at the front. The car has conventional doors instead of the Gull-wing doors used in the coupé as such doors cannot be fitted to an open top car. The car has the same twin-turbo V12 engine as the coupé but with the power upgraded to 764PS at 6,200 rpm and 1000Nm of torque at 2,400 rpm. The power is delivered to the rear wheels via a Xtrac 7-speed sequential manual transmission which is 40% lighter than its coupé counterpart. The car was constructed by a material developed by Pagani called 'carbon triax', which is a combination of tri-axis fibre glass with carbon fibre. This allowed the car to weigh less than its coupé counterpart, for a total of 1280kg (2,820lb), making it the first roadster lighter than the coupé. Only 100 were made, all of which were sold even before production ended.
Pagani said that the car could accelerate at 1.8 G.[14]
Continuing its tradition with the Zonda, Pagani produced several bespoke Huayras.
See main article: article and Pagani Utopia. The successor to the Huayra, named Utopia, was revealed on 12 September 2022. A total of 99 examples of the closed coupé model are planned with possible open and track variants.[15] All 99 coupés are already assigned to the customers. The first car was delivered in October 2023.[16] The Utopia uses the same M158 twin-turbocharged V12 engine as the Huayra, designed and built by Mercedes-AMG, but upgraded to now produce at 6000 rpm and of torque available between 2800 and 5900 rpm. Pagani partnered with Xtrac to develop a 7-speed gearbox that will be mounted transversally and is available as pure manual or an automated manual and coupled with an electro-mechanical differential by a triple plate clutch.[17]