Gone With The Wind

At €7 million, the Pagani Huayra Codalunga is the brand's latest sold-out Grandi Complicazioni hypercar.

-  DAVID KHOO

Automobili Pagani may just be turning 25 years old in 2023, but this relatively "young" brand in the rarefied realm of hypercars is an "old soul" with enough chutzpah to stand toe-to-toe with the familiar contenders.

For instance, the brand's first model, the Zonda, looks as fresh today as it did when it was first launched over two decades ago and we expect no less from the Huayra and its latest model, the Utopia.

Hugely inspired by the life's work of Leonardo da Vinci, visionary owner-artist dreamer Horacio Pagani's ascribes to the philosophy where art, science and emotion intersect, which serves to elevate his brand's sublime and soulful performance cars into the lofty sphere of performance art.

For instance, you won't look at any Pagani and think that it was the effort of a joint committee, or that its main selling point is to overwhelm you with the latest technology. In fact, Pagani makes it a point to retain mechanical feel, analogue instruments and to have as few digital screens as possible.

As electrified powertrains take root in the hypercar segment - bringing with them easy access to instant performance - it's become quite a busy arena as traditional petrol hypercars and the new breed of hyper-EVs jostle for supremacy.

Tempting as it is to rely on hard technical specifications to grade a hypercar's "hyperness", we like to think that enthusiasts have evolved and are rightly attributing more weight to the emotional over the empirical.

Record-runs and the checklist of "must-beats" feed the hypebeast and are good for bragging rights in-the-moment, but such tit-for-tat snipes are the stuff of brands that have something to prove... and possibly not a lot else?