Automotive Perfection: The Pagani Story

Exquisite. Beautiful. Incomparable. Fast.

These are the kind of words used to describe Pagani's. But where did this all start? How did one man go from being the lead engineer of Lamborghini, to being one of its top rivals?

This is the story of the man who wanted to make the most beautiful car in the world.

This is the Pagani story.

Part 1: Argentina

The story starts in Argentina, where Horacio Pagani was born in 1955, in Casilda. It was here that his automotive enthusiasm was born. He developed a strong relationship with a local modeller called Tito Ispani, and spent hours in his shop, absorbing as many tricks of the design trade as possible. These classic design styles would lead him to design his cars in the classic inspired, yet timeless manner as he does.

He loved making model cars, but if there was something he loved more than that, it would be reading about his idol, Juan Manuel Fangio. The greatest Argentinian racing driver to ever live. He spent every waking hour drawing, modelling and reading, all in an effort to gain the amount of knowledge needed to pursue his dreams.

As a teen, he was gifted a motor from an old motorbike, and he and his friend constructed two minibikes, so as to be able to ride together. It was here where his craftsmanship shone for the first time. He crafted everything by hand, down to the seat cushions and the fuel tank. The owner of a local store was so amazed by their handiwork, that he displayed his creation in his shop window.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

He was later given the opportunity to build his very own car, before even leaving high school! A company in another Argentinian city provided him with a bodykit, and all he needed... was the rest of the car. So he set to work on getting that. He found a Renault Dauphine, which, ironically, had an 845cc I4 engine - the polar opposite of the engines used in Pagani's cars today. Eventually, after 5 months of tinkering, the creation, known as a dune buggy, was finally complete.

He soon enrolled in a local arts university, but that didn't satisfy his thirst for creating his dream cars. The next few years brought several more adventures, but none of them mattered. Pagani knew that his automotive dreams couldn't prosper in Argentina. So, as anyone with an automotive dream would, he moved to Italy, and got a job at Lamborghini.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

Part 2: Italy

He began working for Lamborghini in 1983, and instantly fell in love with their cars. He was intrigued by the elegant yet angular styling that Bertone used to design the Lamborghinis. He soon climbed the ranks, and became the chief engineer for the Sant'Agata Bolognese based company. He designed the never released P140, which was supposed to come out in tandem with the Diablo.

In 1987 he was entrusted with designing the first car made with composite materials, the Countach Evoluzione. It was a game changer, but nobody knew how important it would be in just 15 years time, even Lamborghini was against the idea of using composite materials instead of fibreglass, steel or aluminium.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

Part 3: Zonda

By 1987, Pagani was making preparations to start his own company, borrowing capital in order to cover the costs associated with the daring act. In 1991 he left Lamborghini to found Modena Design, which would become Pagani.

But Zonda would not simply fall into Horacio's lap. To cover the costs of the company, Pagani started out by selling composite parts to other companies. He was constantly working with aerospace companies and F1 teams, and the work in both these fields gave him more insight into performance vehicle design, and it is reflected in the fighter jet styling of the Zonda and beyond

Horacio was still in Sant'Agata at the time, just down the road from his former employer and now enemy. It was now time for Horacio Pagani to get into his zone: the Zonda zone.

The next few years were dedicated entirely to the production of the car. He attempted encapsulate the engineering beauty of a fighter jet, whilst simultaneously reflecting its aggressive side. Using composite materials, the Zonda was slowly coming together. Mercedes provided the enormous 6.0L V12, which, surprisingly, only put out a maximum of 444hp. A 7.3L V12 replaced it soon after.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

Then came the 1999 Geneva Motorshow. It was time for Horacio to do what he always wanted to do. Create the most beautiful car in the world. It certainly is up there. The Zonda C12 is a masterpiece of engineering and artistic beauty. But most of all, it gave Ferrari and Lamborghini food for thought, considering a tiny startup could make a car faster than almost their entire lineups.

The C12 S followed soon after, and this was where Pagani became serious. The 6.0L V12 was swapped out for an even more menacing 7.0L V12, which pumped out 542hp, and allowed it to go from 0-100 in just 3.0 seconds, topping out at 208mph, much faster than the previous iteration.

But Pagani didn't stop there. The Zonda 7.3 with yet another engine upgrade soon followed, and the Zonda F and Zonda F Roadster came later too. By the end of the Zonda's 20 year production run, the Zonda was pumping out 789hp, with a top speed of 221mph (355kph).

Part 5: Huayra

Named after an Andean wind, the Huayra proved to be a worthy successor to the Zonda, immediately shattering Pagani's speed record at the time of it's 2011 debut, firing out 730hp from a 6.0L V12, and hitting a top speed of a mind boggling 238mph (383kph). The Huarya was, and still is, the craziest Pagani yet, and with the recent release of the Huarya R, we can be sure that the Italian legend will still be sculpting automotive history for some time.

Part 6: Beyond

In a statement from Pagani's CEO, they "....will build V12 hypercars until 2026", when they will inevitably switch to either a hybrid or electric system. It's clear that Pagani has changed the game forever. Shortly after the release of the Zonda, the Murcielago followed. Shortly after the release of the Huaryra, the Aventador followed. Notice a trend? While Lamborghini and Ferrari set the bar, Pagani always surpasses it. While Pagani may never gain the kind of fanbase known by Ferrari and Lamborghini, people who know about them, know that they changed the game. And they know that unlike Ferrari and Lamborghini, you won't see Pagani's on every piece of clothing, on aftershave, or on luggage.

But you will see it, on their cars.

So did Pagani successfully complete his quest to make the most beautiful car in the world? I'll let you be the judge of that.

Thank you for reading

CITATIONS

“Horacio Pagani (Auto Executive).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 13 Aug. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horacio_Pagani_(auto_executive).

“Pagani Automobili S.p.A.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

“Pagani History.” StackPath, www.pagani.com/history/.

“Pagani Huayra.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 1 Sept. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagani_Huayra.

“Pagani Zonda.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 3 Sept. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagani_Zonda.