Pagani has revealed an excellent reason to sell both your kidneys – incidentally, something you’ll soon be able to in Argentina – in the shape of its stunning Pagani Imola Roadster.
Proving it is possible to make a standard Huayra Roadster look shy and retiring, the Roadster gets a heavyweight and (very) functional body kit and an air intake that sprouts from the engine cover to sit above the heads of you and your lucky passenger. The massive vents on the lower bumper provide extra cooling, the sailfish fin gives arrows-like straight-line stability, and the housing around the tail lights vents hot air from the engine bay and exhaust system.
That the looks play second fiddle to the performance is a statement because the Imola Roadster is the most powerful convertible the company has ever built.
At the other end of its Hoover-like air intake, you’ll find Pagani’s trusty Mercedes-made 6.0-litre twin-turbocharged V12 good for 850PS (625kW) and a stonking 1,100Nm (811lb-ft). It gets the Roadster from 0 to 62mph in less than three seconds and on to a top speed limited to 217mph. Very conservative.
As expected, the Imola gets Pagani’s carbon-titanium tub, carbon-fibre bodywork and subframes made from lightweight chromoly steel. Even the paint has been on a diet. Pagani’s Acquarello Light application system means it’s 5kg lighter than a conventional paint job.
On top of that, you get a seven-speed sequential gearbox, an electronically controlled limited-slip differential, adjustable dampers, a ceramic coated exhaust and staggered 21-inch (front) and 22-inch (rear) wheels made from Avional, which – Google tells us – is an aeronautical-grade alloy. Braking comes from Brembo-made carbon-ceramic rotors the size of dustbin lids grabbed by six-pot callipers at the front and four-pots at the rear.
News that the Pagani isn’t just about straight-line performance (when is it?) comes with confirmation that the Imola can pull 2.0g in corners quicker than a Sunday-league footballer pulls a hamstring. Here, the aero comes into its own, pushing the Imola into the road to 600kgs at a 174mph canter. Just as well because at 1,260kg dry, the Pagani weighs about the same as your old Ford Fiesta.
Inside the Imola are signs of Mr Pagani’s loving handiwork everywhere you look from the trinket-like carbon-fibre seats with a four-point harness to the carbon/fibre wood trims. Even the seven-channel stereo is upgraded with bass reflex speakers hidden in the door panels.
Sadly, one number trumps the power figure: the price. You can expect the Imola Roadster to cost significantly more than the £4.3 million you’ll pay for the coupe.
Report by Russell Campbell
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