Pagani turns up wick for Huayra Roadster BC

ITALY’S Pagani Automobili has turned up the volume to 11 on the latest variant in its Huayra supercar range, the track-focused Roadster BC, by increasing power from the Mercedes-AMG-sourced biturbo V12 to 590kW, restricting weight to just 1250kg by using super-expensive exotic materials and reworking the aerodynamics to increase downforce to a hefty 500kg at 280km/h.

Just 40 of the open-air cars will be built for global consumption, selling for €3.08 million a pop, which translates to a tick under $A5.0 million.

Australian importer Zagame Automotive Group is yet to confirm if any of the cars will make it to Australia via its Melbourne showroom, but if they do, they will not be road registrable, unlike the regular, Australian Design Rule-compliant Huayra coupe and roadster that were launched in Australia in March last year.

The Huayra Roadster BC reportedly will be shown in the metal at next month’s Pebble Beach extravaganza.

The BC acronym honours Benny Caiola, the Italian-born American who was Pagani’s first customer 20 years ago when the Zonda was released. Mr Caiola, who also owned one of the world’s biggest collections of Ferraris, died in 2010.

Although Pagani describes the mid-mounted V12 in the Huayra Roadster as a completely new engine, it is a reworking of the current 6.0-litre Mercedes-AMG V12, getting two new turbochargers, a hydro-formed manifold, twin throttle bodies, four water-air cooled intercoolers and other goodies.

It has no fewer than six titanium exhaust pipes with two extra outlets from the catalytic converter at the back to contribute to an enhanced diffuser effect.

Power is up from 560kW to 590kW at 5900rpm, while torque rises from 1000Nm to 1050Nm from 2000rpm.

As with other Huayra variants, the engine is hooked up to a transverse-mounted single-clutch automatic transmission that drives the rear wheels via an electro-mechanical differential.

The transmission selector is a retro-style wooden-knob gear lever in a traditional H-pattern gate.

Pagani says the revised powertrain meets the latest international emissions standards without the need for a hybrid drive.

The roadster’s roof is a removable carbon-fibre panel. Because roadsters require extra reinforcement to compensate for the missing turret, Pagani engineers turned to advanced, lightweight materials to minimise weight gain.

Pagani head of concept and composite design Francesco Perini said intense scientific research resulted in two composite materials – Carbo-Triax HP62 and Carbon-Titanium HP62 G2 – being adopted in the roadster’s moncoque.

“We succeeded in achieving some extraordinary results that allowed us to reduce the weight of the vehicle considerably and optimise mechanical features,” he said.

“Even so, when we presented these achievements to Horacio (Pagani, company founder and designer), along with the fact that they involved a 450 per cent increase in material costs, his reaction was, ‘The customer deserves even more!’”

The roadster ended up about 41kg heavier than the Huayra BC coupe but lighter than both the standard coupe and roadster by up to 90kg.

The body is not only lighter than the standard roadster but also 12 per cent stiffer in torsional rigidity.

No performance figures have been disclosed, but Pagani claims it saw up to 2.2g in its lateral grip testing.

To achieve this, the aero kit has been tweaked with new front air inlets and a redesigned rear wing.

Stopping power comes courtesy of Brembo carbon-ceramic brake discs – 398mm with a six-piston one-piece calliper at the front and 380mm with a four-piston calliper at the rear.

Wheels are 20-inch alloys at the front and 21-inch alloys at the back, shod with Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R tires (265/30 at front, 355/25 at back).