Desirable Cars
PAGANI MODERN ICONS

Desirable Paganis

Lamborghini refused to invest in a carbon fibre oven because "even Ferrari doesn't have one." So its own chief engineer took out a personal bank loan and bought one himself.

Craftsmanship Treated as Art

Horacio Pagani rose to become Lamborghini's chief engineer in the 1980s, convinced that carbon fibre construction was the future of extreme performance cars. When he asked the company to invest in an autoclave, the pressurised oven needed to cure the material properly, executives turned him down on the basis that Ferrari didn't have one either, so Lamborghini didn't need one. Pagani borrowed the money and bought his own in 1987, using it to build parts for Lamborghini on contract before eventually striking out on his own entirely, later inventing "Carbotanium," a patented material weaving titanium wire directly into carbon fibre for extra strength in an impact.

Few manufacturers blend engineering and sculpture quite this deliberately as a result — every Pagani since has treated exposed mechanical detail as something to be admired rather than hidden, commissioned by clients more like a piece of fine art than a conventional car purchase. Below are the models we've covered so far.