This is the Pagani Imola – a limited edition, track-focussed but road-legal hypercar named after the racetrack at which it was developed. It really is a sight to behold. Only five will be built and it comes with a hefty price tag – €5 million. Damn.
Driven by a colossal Mercedes-AMG 6.0-litre twin-turbo V12 developed specifically for Pagani, the Imola puts out some truly incredible numbers. Power output is a whopping 827bhp and 1100Nm (811lb ft) of torque. Given that the car only weighs 1,246kg, I’d suggest that’s more than enough.
So, how does such a lightweight car handle that incredible amount of power? Pagani’s answer is simple – Formula 1-inspired aero. As you can see, the Italians have really gone to town on the Imola in their attempts to make it as aerodynamic as possible. They’ve even developed a whole new way of painting the car to shave 5kg off the kerb weight.
Horacio Pagani, Founder and Chief Designer of Pagani Automobili, explained the Imola was not designed with elegance in mind and that its aerodynamics can be grouped into three categories – “The general outline, the internal aerodynamics and the external aerodynamic details, such as the fins, winglets and deflectors”.
He acknowledged that these details take away from the lines and aesthetics of the car but, importantly, they “allow to improve lap time, ease of driving and especially safety”. I don’t know about you but I think it looks absolutely incredible.
He was also keen to point out that whilst they wanted to make the car as efficient as possible, they had to ensure the car was driveable on the road. “We could have reduced the ground clearance so as to increase the downforce effect by taking advantage of the vehicle’s flat bottom but don’t forget, the public roads are very uneven”.
He also explained the modifications that had been implemented to the Pagani Imola’s suspension setup. The suspension geometry has been completely redesigned to ensure the car’s immense power is transmitted properly and the dive effect and sway are reduced when braking.
“We applied an electronically controlled system of active shock-absorbers to each wheel and interconnected them with each other”, states Pagani. The suspension system communicates with a central control unit which “handles active aerodynamic control as well as controlling the engine, differential and gearshift functions”. It’s all incredibly clever.
The suspension and aero are aided by an optimised Brembo brake setup. It’s also fitted with Pirelli tyres that have been developed “for a vehicle that would provide an excellent performance on track but would also be “communicative” and easy to drive, in true Pagani style”.
It has understandably taken a considerable amount of time to develop the Pagani Imola and Pagani himself claims it has been more severely tested than any car they’ve ever built. In addition to their usual testing and development methods, a test car has covered over 16,000km round the Imola circuit at race speed.
So why Imola? Well, Pagani explained that, too, and it appears to be a circuit he is very passionate about. As well as describing it as a place that is sacred to driving enthusiasts, he explained how it is “has given so much to the automotive industry and has given so much to Pagani”.
The car is a truly remarkable piece of engineering that I suspect is worthy of the €5 million price tag they’ve put on it. Unfortunately, it’s slightly outside of my budget but the five people who end up with one of these in their garage are incredibly lucky. I won’t be at all jealous, I promise.
What do you think of the Pagani Imola and its rather large price tag? Let us know in the comments section below or via our Facebook and Twitter pages.
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