RE: Pagani Zonda F

Monday 20th February 2006

Pagani Zonda F

Pagani's latest and greatest. Nick Hall rides it to the edge -- and back


Pagani Zonda F
Pagani Zonda F

Attempts to beat Ferrari and Porsche at their own game normally meet with the same success as drunken rows with nightclub bouncers, but Horacio Pagani blew the establishment away with the Zonda back in 1999 and has raised the bar once again with the Pagani Zonda F.

There are just 60 Zondas in the world and Pagani will build just 25 Fs. So I was making travel arrangements before getting to the bottom of the invitation to drive the car in the romantic sounding San Cesario sul Panaro, which turned out to be a nondescript industrial estate just five minutes from the much more imposing Lamborghini facility and a contemptuous spit from Ferrari’s gates in Modena, Italy.

Precision engineering

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The 50-year-old Argentine made his name with Modena Design, producing carbon-fibre mouldings for the aerospace industry. Engineering perfection is the norm here, that’s why this precision-engineered hypercar spent nine years in the development stages.

He enlisted the help of his aerospace compatriots and the greatest names in motorsport to build everything from the magnesium alloy wheels to the exhaust that is hydroformed from Inconel, an alloy previously found only in F1 and space.

The Zonda F is a hypercar with few peers and only the Porsche Carrera GT, Mercedes SLR and Ferrari Enzo, but this is arguably in a different league in terms of exclusivity, speed and, at €478,000, it’s way more expensive.

As this car comes packed with electronic assistance, ABS brakes and a carbon-fibre monocoque and an Ohlins and Bilstein suspension set-up designed to soak up bumps in the road rather than jump around like an excited drunk on New Year’s Eve, it’s also amongst the easiest to drive.

It’s so low that the Kevlar front-splitter protection cruelly grinds away over serious bumps and ruts, and ripping it off will cost somewhere in the region of €10,000 in repairs, but aside from that the Zonda F is simplicity itself.

Spectacular road presence

You can’t even stall it, as the car can cruise round town in sixth gear from just 500 revs and will blip the throttle for you to prevent embarrassing gaffes in front of 1000 gawping bystanders. This car looks so spectacular that it will stop traffic and during my seven hours in the hotseat, on relatively quiet roads, no less than six locals approached to take its picture.

The bubble-style canopy is reminiscent of the Group C Sportscars that dominated Le Mans in the 1980s and the Gatling Gun exhaust cluster is the car’s main signature. Look closer and every detail is exquisite, perfect, from the teeth in the wheels to the lip spoilers that combine with the wide single-plane wing to plant this car to the ground. It has spent serious time in the wind-tunnel and no car feels as solid in high-speed bends. This car is huge, simply huge, but it shrink-wraps to the driver on the move.

That cab-forward design means the front corners are clearly visible and the car is more easily placed on the road than in most modern saloons. The wider rear track has caused a few problems for some, but keep an eye on those mammoth 20-inch rear wheels and this car will blow anyone’s mind in the corners. With zero bodyroll, racing car grip and an arsenal of electronics, you’d have to be clinically depressed and looking for a way out to crash this car.

And depression just isn’t an option when sat inside a car of this ilk, it’s just too much fun. It looks inspired by a designer handbag and Tomorrow’s World, with its red Dani leather, traditional binding straps and aviation-style switchgear contrasting with the vents, stalks and pedals that look like they belong on the Millennium Falcon’s grand piano. That Swatch of an instrument panel and swathes of naked carbon-fibre complete the effect. This is not just a car, it’s a theatrical experience and it’s no surprise that Pagani’s speech is littered with references to the art world.

“When I started I didn’t want to build better cars than Ferrari or Lamborghini, just like Michaelangelo didn’t set out to be better than Leonardo,” he said, although he clearly beat them anyway. “I just wanted to express myself.”

Monstrous power and performance

A hypercar powered by a 7.3-litre AMG Mercedes engine is pretty much as modern as art gets, but it’s very clear that the style and aesthetics are just as abundant as the speed here. And the car has that by the bucketload.

That V12 boasts 602bhp and 560lb ft of torque. And despite the monstrous weight of the engine and its vast proportions, the whole car weighs under 1,230kg.

Acceleration, then, is predictably explosive, with the 60mph mark passing in 3.6s and the Zonda F will have racked up 125mph by the time you’ve counted to 10. We weren’t allowed to test the top end speed of 216mph, but the way it blasted through the 100mph mark on a broken ribbon of Italian backroad confirmed it was more than up for the task.

Nothing short of an F1 car picks up so eagerly, and thankfully this car is much simpler to take to the outer reaches of sanity. Simply plant the accelerator, try to keep pace with the gearchanges in the six-speed box and soak up the noise.

That engine sounds like a distant thunder, strangely insulated from the driver at normal speeds. Give the car its full head, though, and that glorious V12 feels like it’s moved inside your inner ear, it’s a fantastic sound that I could never tire of. It’s totally impractical, but if I had the money, I know this car would still win the ladies in the Ferrari-littered streets of Monaco and Puerto Banus.

Greatest car ever?

Grand Prix legend Juan Manuel Fangio was heavily involved in the design. Indeed had he not passed away in 1995 then the Zonda would have been named after him and Pagani waited until now to pay homage to his great friend by placing his initial on his greatest creation to date.

It’s a fitting tribute to a great man, and might just be the greatest car in the world, ever…

Author
Discussion

_VTEC_

Original Poster:

2,428 posts

244 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
Anyone wanna lend me 400k?

mightymouse

1,438 posts

227 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
Form a queue for the 400K.

r988

7,495 posts

228 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
Not sure if I would call it the greatest car ever?

Think I need to drive it first

GTRene

16,372 posts

223 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
I like Zonda, but I think they've gone a bit to far with the interior!

its a sportscar not a showcase looks almost like a carnival? its to much BLING?
though a testdrive I like
GTRene

>> Edited by GTRene on Monday 20th February 13:17

DanH

12,287 posts

259 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all

It seems to have got uglier? The rear deck looks longer than I recall and the new wing is definitely not as striking.

_VTEC_

Original Poster:

2,428 posts

244 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
You don't have to have the interior like that. That's just an example of what can be done.

It's pretty much a bespoke car so can you tailor the interior to what suits you.

DanH

12,287 posts

259 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
_VTEC_ said:
You don't have to have the interior like that. That's just an example of what can be done.

It's pretty much a bespoke car so can you tailor the interior to what suits you.


Yeah I think the way the interior is evolving is consumate proof that Mr Pagani has the vulgarist taste imaginable. The binacle is diabolical, as is that steering wheel.

northo

2,371 posts

218 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
That car is Horacio Pagani's own car. It looks a bit naff in the pictures, but it is awesome once you're in it. Quilted red leather seats sound crappy, but are actually fantastic! The carbon work is unbelievable.

_VTEC_

Original Poster:

2,428 posts

244 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
DanH said:
_VTEC_ said:
You don't have to have the interior like that. That's just an example of what can be done.

It's pretty much a bespoke car so can you tailor the interior to what suits you.


Yeah I think the way the interior is evolving is consumate proof that Mr Pagani has the vulgarist taste imaginable. The binacle is diabolical, as is that steering wheel.


Still want to take it for a drive though don't you Dan?

_VTEC_

Original Poster:

2,428 posts

244 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
here's a pic I took whilst at the factory. Just gives an impression of what an ocean of carbon fibre that body is.



Really guys, seeing it in pictures and all the journal articles don't even come close to preparing you for the real thing.



dean_ratpac

1,582 posts

277 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
stunning, love the interior, completely off the wall! winning the lottery is the only way i would be able to afford one!

DanH

12,287 posts

259 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
_VTEC_ said:
DanH said:
_VTEC_ said:
You don't have to have the interior like that. That's just an example of what can be done.

It's pretty much a bespoke car so can you tailor the interior to what suits you.


Yeah I think the way the interior is evolving is consumate proof that Mr Pagani has the vulgarist taste imaginable. The binacle is diabolical, as is that steering wheel.


Still want to take it for a drive though don't you Dan?


Obviously

What is going on with those nasty red plastic mouldings around the lights?

p.s. it is still vulgar. The non F version was about as extreme as he should have gone. He has now overguilded the lilly and whilst I'm sure it will appeal to a certain group of Middle Easterners - the rest of us? I'm not so sure.

GTRene

16,372 posts

223 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
The carbon and ofcorse the ride I would like but those rear ligts
that car is overdone! to much bling(at least on this example) and ofcorse it can be build to your own taste, but lets just say, this exaple is surely not mu taste
GTRene

pdV6

16,442 posts

260 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
the article said:

The 50-year-old Italian made his name with Modena Design

I thought Horacio Pagani was Argentinian?

He was certainly pictured (or maybe described as doing so) guzzling his Mate, which is a particularly Argie pastime rather than Italian...

jeremyc

23,335 posts

283 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
pdV6 said:
the article said:
The 50-year-old Italian made his name with Modena Design
I thought Horacio Pagani was Argentinian?

The first car he designed was a Formula 2 car for an Argentinian race series. He also built and campaigned it himself.

flemke

22,864 posts

236 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
pdV6 said:
the article said:

The 50-year-old Italian made his name with Modena Design

I thought Horacio Pagani was Argentinian?

He was certainly pictured (or maybe described as doing so) guzzling his Mate, which is a particularly Argie pastime rather than Italian...
He is an Argentine. The reason that the car has a Mercedes engine is that he became friends with fellow Argentine Fangio.

_VTEC_

Original Poster:

2,428 posts

244 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
DanH said:
What is going on with those nasty red plastic mouldings around the lights?


Didn't have the balls to ask Horacio that question to be honest. Really, it's not that brash when you see it for real. There's quite a few nice details that you notice when seen up close.

Still all this pales in comparison to having GT3 RS emblazoned on the side of your car though. I mean blue wheels? How in-yer-face can you get?

naumanf1

48 posts

231 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
It's a wonderful car no doubt, but it is ridiculously expensive. No Wonder only 60 Zonda's have been delivered so far. I have never driven a Zonda, but I have driven a Carrera GT and SLR, and you can have either of those for those special moments, plus a Aston Martin DB9 for casual fun, and an Audi A6 4.2 for my daily run around all for the price of the Zonda F. But I guess, if you can afford it, why not.
I think Pagani needs to do a more affordable, smaller car. Creating an expensive, phenominal car is not as hard as some might think. Creating an affordable yet phenominal car is very hard to do, but it can be done, just look at the Lotus Elise.
Lets hope Pagani will be more than just a one car model company.

rich1231

17,331 posts

259 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
Thank you for posting, saves me surfing for pron to knock one out to

DanH

12,287 posts

259 months

Monday 20th February 2006
quotequote all
_VTEC_ said:
DanH said:
What is going on with those nasty red plastic mouldings around the lights?


Didn't have the balls to ask Horacio that question to be honest. Really, it's not that brash when you see it for real. There's quite a few nice details that you notice when seen up close.

Still all this pales in comparison to having GT3 RS emblazoned on the side of your car though. I mean blue wheels? How in-yer-face can you get?



My car is by no means a shrinking violet, however the cabin is fairly sober, and one isn't in danger of being blinded by reflections on what must be the most vulgar automotive application of chrome ever imagined. The cabin on the previous model was the embodiment of restraint in comparison!

I'm surprised there aren't diamonds set all over that binacle... or are there?