Pagani's R-rated swansong debuts

While the closest that most of us will ever get to driving one of Horatio Pagani's creations will be via a Playstation or xBox controller, that doesn't mean we didn't nearly puddle ourselves at the mere sight of the new Zonda R. As we somehow missed out on an invitation when the car debuted in Vienna a few weeks ago, we are nonetheless happy to bring you these first official photos.

Although the Zonda R's sexy self is a sendoff for the current model range, the exoticmaker reports that the car is in fact 90% new. Built using a spendy carbon-fiber/titanium mix (reportedly an industry first) and being at once longer, wider and lower than the Zonda F, the R figures to have real presence to go along with its 739-horsepower 6.0-liter V12 engine. Zonda says the supercar was inspired by Group C racers, and street legality was not a consideration.

Thanks in part to its light weight (1,070 kilograms, or about 2,360 pounds) and Pagani's first-ever paddleshift gearbox, the rear-drive R will launch to 60 mph in three seconds dead and run up to a 233 mph top speed, provided Sir has paid the help to make sure the adjustable aero bits are properly tweaked.

A total of 16 Zonda Rs are planned, with 15 being offered to the public (the 'extra' model will stay in company hands) at a tidy €1.4M – about $1.8 million Yankee bucks. That's a shedload of cash to be sure, but given that the carbon-titanium work alone is said to have cost more than four times that of the Zonda F, it might actually be a small bargain.

[Source: iMotor]