New Car: 2012 Pagani Huayra

Pagani’s new supercar has breezed in, and Auto Express has the first pictures! Taking its name from the ancient Argentinean god of wind, the Huayra is set to blow the supercar competition away – thanks to its stunning gullwing-door-styling and an AMG Mercedes-sourced twin-turbo V12.

Pronounced ‘why-eera’, the newcomer replaces the Zonda but certainly builds on the outgoing car’s reputation for striking, outlandish design. At the front, the Huayra features quad jewel-like headlights and a bluff nose, which incorporates daytime running lights.

Behind the gaping front grille is a pair of flaps incorporated into the bodywork. These work in tandem with a pair of flaps at the car’s rear to give the Huayra active aerodynamics, which are controlled by a powerful ECU, which constantly monitors speed, yaw, lateral acceleration, steering angle and throttle position and adjusts each flap as necessary.

When cornering, the flaps closest to the inside of the bend pop up, increasing downforce and thus grip on the unloaded inside wheels, and reducing body roll. The ECU is also linked to the front suspension, which is firmed up under heavy braking to counter the weight transfer.

In profile, the Huayra’s silhouette owes much to the Zonda. But look closer and details like the wing mirrors which protrude on slender, carbon fibre stalks, and wheels which are different on the right and left so the spokes curve in the direction of the wheels’ rotation, demonstrate the attention to detail that has promoted Pagani to the supercar big league. And of course, there’s drama in spades, helped no end by the swooping gullwing doors.

The rear is dominated by quad titanium exhaust pipe exits, which spout from the Huayra’s twin-turbo 6.0-litre V12. The engine is built specifically for Pagani by AMG, Mercedes’ performance arm, and produces more than 700bhp at 5000rpm and 1,100Nm at 3500rpm, yet it will be rated at below 310g/km of CO2 - for comparison, the 562bhp V8-engined Ferrari 458 Italia comes in at 307g/km.

The engine’s power is fed to a bespoke single-clutch seven-speed automated Xtrac gearbox. Couple that to a kerbweight of just 1,390kg, and it’s no surprise that the performance figures are seriously impressive. 0-62mph takes 3.2 seconds and top speed is over 235mph, although this might be limited to avoid having to use bespoke tyres like those fitted to the Bugatti Veyron.

The interior picks up where the Zonda left off, with a bespoke, hand-crafted look and feel. The cabin is a little bigger than the Zonda’s, and features impressive details like the gear selector which rises from the centre console, and the multi-function steering wheel which incorporates controls for the lights, wipers, indicators, even Pagani’s version of the manettino switch, which alters both the electronic stability control and gearbox settings.

Hand-made dials for the dash and a key that’s shaped like the car and doubles as a music storage device set the Huayra apart.

Sadly, all of this fanatical attention to detail, hand-crafted elegance and brutal power comes at a price. The actual asking price is yet to be finalised, but will be at least €800,000 plus taxes, which equates to around £1,000,000 here. But if the Huayra seems a bit tame, there’s always the roadster and more powerful S version on the cards too. For more details click here.
Thanks to: Auto Express