Pagani Zonda C12

When purchased from new the car was perfect with no defects or faults, which i exceedingly pleased with seen as how this car is from a low volume manufacturer.

The running in period wasn't really neccessary as these engines I believe are run in on a bench, however i still took it nice and steady at first to let the engine loosen up a bit, even at revs below 3k, the car had plenty of torque and power, an example of this was demonstrated at the lights early on in ownership when a young lad in a honda civic type-r was sat there staring, he revved his engine to try and get me too race, so of course i had to oblige. we set off from the lights and i revved upto around 5k rpm, the car leapt forward with much ferosity and showed him the excellent power of this engine, even not revving to it's limits it still performed as fast as a supercar should.

Once the car loosened up a bit more i started to strech it's legs, the car seems to have never ending power and pulls and pulls, the mercedes-amg sourced v12 in the back providing a fantastic soundtrack and power plant style performance.

The grip is excellent with those huge garden roller style tyres on, the handling however can be a little wayward at times on tight mountain roads for when i visit italy or the south of France, on longer open streches of road or at Silverstone race track, the cars handling can only be described as some of the best in the business, feeling planted on the road at all times with plenty of power to exploit the chassis as and when required so tail-happy power slides are on the cards at any given opportunity.The handling is also very progressive and fairly safe if you drive it with respect, i suspect less experianced ignorant drivers might push the car a bit harder than are able to deal with and crash it, however I have previously owned supercars so this wasn't a problem for me.

Think of it's handling as grown-up tvr-esque with lots more grip and poise and you start to get the idea of how this thing drives.

The brakes are also another plus point with them feeling very firm and never fading on any hard run i have given the car, they are very powerful and highly efficient at there job of bringing the car to a stop (sometimes causing pain in the process!).

The interior of the car is also a nice and pleasant experiance with no rattles or squeaks to this day (6.5k miles),the seats, whilst not the most comfortable in the world provide excellent support and really hold you in on tight corners, the sound system is also another plus point and has excellent sound quality with a decent amount of bass backing it up, however i do prefer the engine note when testing the car to it's extremes.

The exterior of the car in the flesh is simply astonishing, when i first saw the machine in a magazine i wasn't hugely keen on it's looks, but i liked the specs and aesthetics of the car, so when one became available, i took it for a test drive, and my god i was so impressed, i immediatly left a large deposit and picked the car up after a long wait.

The exterior is really like no other car ever made, i feel it's very unique and look stunning in the flesh, with every angle and curve precisely fitting with a car of this type.

The car has now been serviced 3 times since leaving the factory(inc. the running-in service) and to this day (touch wood) nothing has broken down,failed or dropped off. This just goes to show the excellent hand assembled quality that goes into each car and the fine engineering too.

If i was to say anything negative about the car is that it unfortunatly attracts thieves/vandals/jealous people like locusts, and I seem to have had a lot of trouble with this aspect of ownership. The fuel/servicing costs are high and ride can get uncomfortable at times, however all the above are expected with the ownership of this or any other similar type of car.

Overall
I would say the ownership experiance has been a fine one with not one complaint regarding the car itself.

If you have the means and like this vehicle, then i suggest you contact your local specialist who can supply one and book in a test drive as just about anyone, anywhere who has a keen interest in driving will enjoy it.

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To add to the previous review due to requests:

Here is a list of specs I pulled from the driver's handbook:

555BHP and 553IB/FT Torque 7.3l V12 Mercedes-Amg tuned engine.

0-60mph 3.8 seconds

Top Speed 220mph

6-Speed Manual gearbox

I purchased the car new from a fairly local specialist for the stunning price of £385,000.

This is more than the normal list price of £350,000, however mine is the 'S' model with the larger than normal engine and i specified several options from the even higher spec 'F' lightweight model, such as the one piece carbon fibre front splitter, larger carbon ceramic brakes and one or two other bits and pieces from the options list, with the car going the wrong way towards half a million i decided to sign the paperwork and await my beauty.

These were really specified just to compliment the overall package of the car and the engine remains standard (I struggle to use all the power this engine provides!) I have heard from my local dealer that the engines power can be uprated reliably to over 700bhp with a few tweaks to the engine management system,induction and exhaust.
However this would make it an uncompromising road car as it is hard enough in town with all the attention and tight streets as it is without making it louder,more uncomfortable and harder to driver.

I am planning to take this car to several more events abroad and possibly upgrade parts if i decide to attend races more often, I have already done 3 or 4 charity races in Italy since 2006,

I also hope to participate in next years Gumball rally if one is held.