One of our customers, owner of several high perfomance sports cars (Lamborghini and Ferrari among others), sent us his impressions after a short test of Zonda C12S. We think it is interesting to publish them, not only for future Pagani owners, but for all the ones who are in love with this matchless thoroughbred.

Let's read his letter :

"The circumstances of the test are not the best: by night, on a sinuous motorway that I discover, between Cannes and Monaco; but for one impassioned with cars, the offer to take the wheel of such a car cannot be refused.

Even driving rather gently at firts, to get used to the commands, one perceives immediately certain feelings, out of the common world, and that I now know are characteristic of the Pagani,: the impression of holding what you always wished at the wheel of a sports car, the feeling of having, suddenly, a supernatural capacity, the gift to move as quickly as you want.

One perceives less the car itself (it is difficult to express, but its presence is understated) than its capability to be catapulted ahead or to stop according to the driver's will - and in a manner which owes more to the imaginary world than to the reality... First of all because there are no loud noise or perceptible vibration. Also, and most of all because there is, between the driver's orders and the reactions which they cause, a completely unusual "instantaneity" and a sheer strength, very far from all that I had already felt at the wheel of sports cars that I have driven before.

These combined perceptions - precision of the controls, feeling of unlimited capacity - create this exhilarating feeling, this immense pleasure for those who love speed, to have, for a moment, supernatural capacities, like being able to fly above the road.

The noise is dampened and low-pitched, and this unusual distortion, this contrast between the violence of the performance and speed immediately reached, and this reserved mechanichal body is strange and a little inebriating.

The relationship between the limitless torque available and the feather lightness of the car reinforces this feeling to have become, like if a magic wand had been pointed at you, a superhero without any limit, with acceleration and braking capacities which one believed impossible in comparison with the laws of the physics and the usual real-world references.

Also, the command of the shift gear is not enough "firm" to my taste, as on a well-tuned cable system, gears pass very well, but it misses a touch of mechanical pleasure (a certain lack of perception of the mechanism).

Suddenly a black shape appears in the window: what ! it is an Enzo. Of course, in Monaco, there is no suprise... In this case, it's impossible not to pretend taking the challenge ; the pretext is easy to find : it' is Claude Levy the importer of Pagani in France which is seating at my side !

A touch on the accelerator pedal... and the Pagani places itself just behind gthe Enzo. An uncommon sight, undoubtedly for the other drivers, these two wonders rushing through the night."

The test car was a factory Zonda in standard version.