street. Moritz, Switzerland: – All Pagani projects are born from visions and dreams, and some of Pagani’s most exclusive models come from the ideas of our customers, as Horacio Pagani told us when we met him at the Huayra launch in Geneva-exhibition in 2011.
The Pagani Huayra made its Geneva debut in 2011. Here with Horacio Pagani’s gray suit behind the car. Photo: IVAR ENGERUD / Finansavisen
The varieties are endless
Even then, we’d had more than ten years with the Pagani Zonda in nearly a dozen special variants, so we had no idea what we had in store after 2010 from Modena’s most exclusive sports car manufacturer at the Geneva prologue.
Exactly 12 years later, we’re out of counting long ago, but if we count back right with the BC, Roadster, Roadster BC, Imola, Tricolore, and R, the Codalunga is the seventh special edition Huayra.
Horacio Pagani is clearly not interested in following trends toward simple dashboards with just one screen to run everything. There is a lot to watch here. photo: i Photo: IVAR ENGERUD / Finansavisen
The best in the industry
Common to all Pagani models, the focus on detailing, materials and build quality is otherworldly. It’s been that way since Horacio Pagani, with a background in Lamborghini, started his own business casting carbon fiber parts for racing 35 years ago. When he rolled out his own car, the Zonda, in Geneva in 1999, it immediately brought orders for several years of production for a handful of employees.
After the 2000s, Pagani’s reputation grew to be the best in the supercar world, first with the Zonda and then with the more sophisticated Huayra.
Production capacity is now about 45 cars per year. No more will be produced to maintain exclusivity. Exclusivity is also guaranteed by variants with more refined specification and price tags than the ‘basic version’. Codalunga is the latest, but not the last.
She circled around the stunned car when it was parked. Photo: IVAR ENGERUD / Finansavisen
Elongated beauty
“Longtail”, “Langheck”, “Codalonga”. The adorable babies have many names, but when it comes to the Pagani Huayra, it goes “Codalunga.” In just five versions – the same as the Zonda Cinque – and at a price you can only afford so much higher than other cars in the 850-hp V12 class.
The Huayra Codalunga features a very extended rear end. Porsche, Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and many others wore this on their long-distance cars in the 60’s and 70’s, and the McLaren F1 Le Mans was also a Longtail.
The client’s request
Horacio Pagani knows how to strike when the iron’s hot, and when a couple of clients expressed their thoughts and wishes for a Horaia version of this classic racing car phenomenon a few years ago, Codalunga’s ideas were cemented into concrete ideas and drawings.
Long bodies contribute to aerodynamics that give a higher top speed, and this trend is repeated in supercar models such as the McLaren Speedtail and Bugatti Chiron Super Sport.
Pagani probably has the best gear system on the market, at least for those who like mechanics. Photo: IVAR ENGERUD / Finansavisen
36 cm longer
The big money (really) lies in building special editions, which is why Pagani has in-house vehicle builders in a division they call Grandi Complicazioni. The name alone indicates that this will be expensive.
They retained the well-known V12 technology, but took the body work seriously and stretched it 36 cm longer than usual. At the same time, the price was extended to seven million euros.
You had to be among the ICE attendees to enjoy the sight and sound of Codalunga on the ice. Photo: Ivar Engerud/Finansavisen
Number five
Only five customers can look forward to their copy of Codalunga. Even if you want to buy a car worth over NOK 75 million (before taxes), you don’t have to wonder if they have any left. Of course they don’t.
Then maybe you should call the Norwegian Formula Automobile representative and ask if they can get you a “regular” Pagani first. These special cars are reserved for the best customers, who often have one and three Pagans before.
But to enjoy the beautiful scenery and the great sound of stretching across the snowy surface of St. Moritz, it was ‘free’.
(This article was first published in Finansavisen Engine).
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