Top Gear test-drove this €11 million Pagani Codalunga V12, a tribute to cars from the 1960s

The Pagani Huayra The Codalunga Speedster—we’ve already told you about it several times. Unveiled in Las Vegas in late 2025, then spotted a few months later in action on the Hockenheim circuit, this creation—of which only ten were produced—was still shrouded in a certain amount of mystery. This time, Top Gear got its hands on something much rarer: the keys to the factory prototype Pagani for a real road test. And when the car in question is worth 11 million euros, has an 852 ch V12 engine and a manual transmission, the experience is bound to be out of the ordinary.

11 million euros and only ten copies

The Huayra Codalunga Speedster was developed by the department Grand Complications from Pagani, who oversees the brand’s most exclusive projects. Following the Codalunga coupe—unveiled in 2022 and limited to just five units—Pagani has decided to produce ten Speedsters. But this isn’t simply a Codalunga with the roof removed. To maintain sufficient rigidity, Pagani developed a specialized chassis combining carbon fiber and titanium. This represents a considerable amount of work for just ten cars—and goes some way toward explaining its price: 11 million euros.

A Tribute to Race Cars of the 1960s

As we explained during his presentation, the Codalunga Speedster draws direct inspiration from the race cars and Italian barchettas of the 1960s. Its name literally means «long tail» in Italian, and you only have to look at its profile to see why.

Compared to a standard Huayra, the rear section is 360 mm longer. The massive rear hood alone covers 3.7 m² of the body. There’s no large window to admire the engine through—it’s hidden beneath the vents, much like on some vintage race cars. Top Gear also highlights the many details typical of Pagani: the four central exhaust tips, the additional exhausts concealed lower down near the diffuser, and the rear fog light mounted in a small central protrusion. For Ollie Kew, it’s quite simply the most beautiful Huayra ever made.

An 852 ch V12 and, above all, a real manual transmission

Yet beneath this 1960s-inspired bodywork lies a very modern powertrain. The 6.0-liter twin-turbo V12 developed by Mercedes-AMG delivers 852 ch here—24 ch more than the one in the Codalunga coupe.

But one of the standout features of this Speedster lies between the two seats: a genuine seven-speed manual transmission with an exposed shift gate. This is an absolute rarity in a modern hypercar and a feature that completely transforms the driving experience compared to previous Huayras with automated manual transmissions. The interior, meanwhile, retains Pagani’s usual extravagance, featuring aluminum, leather, wood, and an almost absurd amount of detail. Top Gear notes, in particular, that there are four million stitches in the cabin.

An 11-million Pagani that’s anything but a fragile work of art

Once on the road, the Codalunga Speedster reveals an unexpected side. Its V12 may not have the lyrical flair of a classic Pagani Zonda, but Top Gear describes an extremely rough ride, accompanied by the whistling and whooshing sounds of the turbos.

Despite the much more powerful Bugattis and Rimacs he’s driven before, Ollie Kew even finds this Pagani surprisingly intimidating when trying to harness its 852 ch. And that’s probably the nicest surprise of this test drive. Behind its €11 million price tag, its limited production run of just ten units, and its appearance as a rolling work of art lies a true sports car: sharp steering, solid handling, and no sense of fragility.