2011 Pagani Huayra AUTOart - 58208 (diecast)
Published 07/03/20
Located in San Cesario sul Panaro, near Modena, Italy, Pagani Automobili S.p.A. has been in business since 1992. Founded by Argentinean Horacio Pagani, the brand only makes high-end sports cars in very limited runs. Their first car was the Zonda C12, released in 1999. Since they cannot produce their own engines, from the beginning Pagani relied on Mercedes-AMG. But, other than the power train and some ancillary systems everything else comes from Pagani. With the success of the Zonda and all its (many!) variations, in 2011 they presented the Huayra. Named after Huayra-tata, a Quechua wind god, Pagani produced only 100 cars, as per agreement with Mercedes-AMG. It was very diverse from the Zonda, with a different type of construction, involving extensive use of titanium throughout the chassis and suspension. The chassis was a carbon fiber and titanium mix, with gull-wing doors that include a good portion of the roof.
The engine was the M158, specifically designed for the Huayra by Mercedes-AMG. It was a twin-turbocharged 5980 cm³ V12 with smaller twin scroll type turbos for reduced turbo-lag, that delivered 720 hp. It also counted on a modified intercooler configuration, dry sump lubrication and a customized Bosch ECU. Pagani was adamant that power delivery should be as smooth as possible. And as expected, the car was fast. It could reach 100 km/h from a standstill in just 2.8 seconds, with a top speed of 383 km/h. As a comparison, the Zonda Revolución (in theory the last and ultimate Zonda), went from 0 to 100 km/h in 2.6 seconds. However, the curb weight of the Huayra is 1350 kg, while the Revolución only weighs 1070 kg. In conclusion, the Huayra has some very serious engineering behind it.
The production of the “basic” Huayra was very limited, and customers had to order each car. Production started in early 2011 and in February of 2015 the last one of the 100 units was sold. And that was €1,056,000 a pop. Plus extras, like €112,500 for a full carbon bodywork option. Or €14,950 for a 7-piece matching luggage set. Yes, Pagani makes some very exquisite fast cars… In scale though, things are not as expensive. For instance, this AUTOart here. A very nice rendition of the real deal in 1:43, and VERY cheap (when I bought there were tons available on the web). Maybe not everyone’s cup of espresso but a very good model nonetheless.