Pagani Huayra Codalunga Speedster: The art of lightness in motion

Born from Horacio Pagani’s reverence for the sleek racecars of the 1950s and ’60s, the Huayra Codalunga Speedster captures an era when beauty and performance coexisted in delicate equilibrium. In a world increasingly driven by technical efficiency, this model reclaims a lost romanticism, one where aerodynamic restraint and sculptural clarity reign. Limited to just ten examples, it is not merely an open-top version of its coupé predecessor, but a carefully distilled expression of speed, balance and essential design. Every exterior element has been reimagined to elongate, soften, and purify. The monocoque is completely new, designed around openness without compromise. The windshield sits lower, its curvature gentler, while the side windows draw from vintage prototype silhouettes subtle gestures that enhance visual fluidity and reduce noise, both literal and aesthetic. The roof, when mounted, becomes an uninterrupted extension of form, linking nose to tail in a single, harmonious line. It’s not an addition but a continuation of thought. From above, the teardrop geometry of the canopy emerges, a transparent polycarbonate section that reduces weight and articulates motion. Body-colored roll bars dissolve into the car’s interior, blurring the boundary between exterior sculpting and cabin intimacy. Door sills, aerodynamically honed without visible openings, underscore Pagani’s mantra of "hidden complexity, revealed only in function."

Inside, the Huayra Codalunga Speedster offers a calm, tactile counterpoint to the sculpted exterior. Hand-hammered leathers, solid-milled metals, and semi-matte finishes converge in a quiet celebration of analog detail. Each component, from the mahogany-accented steering wheel to the hand-polished gear knob, carries a sense of purpose, rooted in motorsport heritage yet elevated through artisan execution. Most arresting is the exclusive fabric applied across seats, doors, and center console. Originally designed for haute couture, this embroidery motif translates Pagani’s four-exhaust icon into a fluid visual rhythm of overlapping circles 450,000 stitches per panel, done entirely by hand. It is a symphony of patience and precision, where touch becomes as evocative as sight.

At its core, the Codalunga Speedster pulses with Pagani’s signature V12, a 5,980 cc twin-turbocharged engine developed in concert with Mercedes-AMG. Delivering 864 horsepower and 1,100 Nm of torque from just 2,800 rpm, it provides smooth yet explosive acceleration. Power is managed through a 7-speed transverse gearbox, available in both AMT and manual versions, allowing the driver to choose between intuitive precision and raw mechanical connection. Sound is inseparable from identity, and here, a six-outlet titanium exhaust, with upper ceramic-coated tips and lower titanium pipes, offers a tonal signature as pure as the car’s visual one. Beneath the sculpted surfaces lies a Carbo-Titanium and Carbo-Triax monocoque, a marvel of rigidity and featherweight construction. Pagani’s active suspension, forged from aluminum alloy, adapts in real time to driving conditions, while the carbon-ceramic braking system from Brembo delivers formidable stopping power without fade. Avional wheels 20 inches front, 21 rear paired with Pirelli Trofeo R tires, provide a precise and communicative interface with the road. Every component is calibrated for balance: less about domination, more about dialogue between driver, car, and terrain.

The Speedster’s creation belongs to Pagani’s Grandi Complicazioni division, a realm of limitless craftsmanship where each vehicle is a sculptural dialogue between maker and client. Inspired by haute horlogerie, these projects require time, obsession, and mastery not merely custom builds, but conceptually singular machines. With Horacio Pagani guiding the process, each Codalunga Speedster is shaped by personal dreams, uncompromised by convention. The result is a rolling work of art: one-of-a-kind, and yet unmistakably Pagani.